Texas A&M women’s rugby qualified for nationals at the National Collegiate Rugby Premier Qualifying Tournament in Bethany, Oklahoma, on Saturday, March 4.
A&M went 2-1 against Southern Nazarene University and the University of Texas in three games during the Saturday tournament, bringing its season record to 5-2.
Electronic systems engineering senior Emily Dodson said she’s super proud of the team.
“They played good, clean, Aggie rugby,” Dodson said. “They fought hard and proved that they can hang with any other team out there. We are currently in the D1 division, but since we finished in the top two we can play in the premier division at Nationals.”
Ecology and evolutionary biology graduate student and co-captain Isis Davis was the lead scorer with six tries over the course of the three games this past weekend.
Animal science junior Suuzanne Eubank said each person on the team put in 100% and gave all they had.
“We qualified for nationals, and each teammate played very well,” Eubank said. “On a more personal note, my biggest takeaway was that win or lose, Jesus is the only affirmation I should seek.”
The biggest motivational factor for the team is the Aggie spirit, health sophomore Bri Macias said.
“What kept me motivated was my teammates cheering me on and always keeping the 12th Man spirit alive wherever we go,” Macias said.
Mechanical engineering senior Shalini Siriwardena said she’s really looking forward to the home game on March 25 because of the Aggie spirit.
“I’m looking forward to having the energy that Aggies bring to any home game,” Siriwardena said. “It’s powerful and electric. There’s nothing like it.”
Follow the team @TamuWRFC on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
Sarah Hickman is a recreation, parks & tourism science junior and contributed this article from the course JOUR 359, Reporting Sports, to The Battalion.