Women's Rugby Welcomes Dartmouth for Rematch of NIRA Finals

Saturday, September 8

Hamden, Conn.

1:00 PM

Quinnipiac University

Dartmouth

Women's Rugby Welcomes Dartmouth for Rematch of NIRA Finals

9/6/2018 2:00:00 PM | Women's Rugby

By: QU Athletic Communications

Dartmouth Big Green (1-0) at
Quinnipiac Bobcats (0-1)
Saturday, September 8, 2018 • 1:00 PM
Quinnipiac Rugby Field • Hamden, Connecticut
All-Time Series vs. Dartmouth: 2-1
LIVE VIDEO

HAMDEN, Connecticut - The three-time defending NIRA national champion Quinnipiac women's rugby team will welcome in the Dartmouth Big Green on Saturday, September 8th, in a rematch of the NIRA Championship in 2017, where the Bobcats won their third-straight NIRA title.

GAME NOTES:
LAST TIME OUT
The Bobcats fell to the Harvard Crimson, 37-19, in the season opener last Saturday. The Bobcats were led offensively by Maples, Clara Lemal-Brown (Wooster, Ohio) and Margot Vella (Leppington, Australia), who all struck for their first tries of the 2018 campaign. Mckenna Haz (Shawnigan Lake, British Columbia) added an assist and two conversions on the day as well for the blue and gold.

SCOUTING DARTMOUTH
Dartmouth kicked off its 2018 campaign with a dominating 76-5 win over Notre Dame College last Saturday. The Big Green were led by captain Camille Johnson, who controlled the match from start to finish. The Senior Flyhalf scored four tries and six conversions for a total of 32 points, which was more points than the Nevada native had in the entire 2017 season. The three-time Ivy champion Dartmouth team is coming off an 8-1 record in 2017 with its only loss coming against Quinnipiac in the NIRA Finals. The Big Green welcomes in six new freshman, who all will look to make an impact in 2018.

BIG WIN OVER THE BIG GREEN
The Bobcats secured their third-straight NIRA National Championship last season, downing Dartmouth, 29-20, on November 19. Quinnipiac was led by Ilona Maher '18, who scored two tries in the match. She also added two assists. Junior Mikah Maples (Mowequa, Illinois) scored two of her own tries. Quinnipiac went on a 19-point run after Maples' first try of the match and never looked back, en route to its third-straight title.

STEPPING UP
This year's Quinnipiac squad will be trying for a fourth-straight national title after graduating several key players who had major roles in the last three championships. Ilona Maher, who won the MA Sorenson Award as the National Player of the Year in 2016-17, recently helped Team USA to a fourth-place finish in the Rugby World Cup Sevens, while Flora Poole, Rebecca Haight, Tayler Schussler, and Maggie Wesolowski also earned All-America honors from last year's graduating class.

THEY'REEEE BAAAAACK
The Bobcats still have a wealth of talent returning, including All-American Emily Roskopf, who will be trying to pull off the rare feat of winning four national titles in four years of college (along with fellow senior Caitria Sands). Junior Mikah Maples also emerged as a significant offensive weapon last season, scoring twice in both the NIRA Semifinals and Finals, while last year's freshman class, led by regular starters Carson Hann, Destiny Henry and Jordan Cowan, had an immediate impact on last year's national title team and will take on even larger roles as sophomores.