Cardinal Women Advance to Final Four
Steuber Rugby Stadium – Friday and Saturday April 19-20, 2014
This weekend the Stanford Women hosted the round of 16 and the quarter-finals for the USA Rugby Women’s DI Collegiate National Championships. On Friday, the cardinal women advanced past Texas A&M with a final score of 78-5. The following day, they faced off against historical rival BYU, well rested and ready for the challenge. After an intense game, Stanford advanced to the Semi-Final, beating BYU 26-17.
Against A&M, the Stanford women came out hard, excited for the round of 16 match. Stanford dominated defensively, and played an aggressive offense, but their penalties onge again nagged them. The Stanford Women ceded many penalties through the game, which let A&M gain yardage, and was ultimately the cause of their only try of the game. Though the penalty count was high, Stanford also managed to get their point total quite high by quickly turning over the ball and using it to their advantage.They ended the game 78-5, and immmediately begaan planning for the game ahead.
On Saturday the Stanford Women followed with an incredibly competitive game against BYU, who beat stanford in the quarter-final in 2011. The Cardinal women were both mentally and physicaly prepared for the challenge, and opened the game with a try within the first two minutes. BYU quickly turned up their intensity, however, and the game proceeded very tightly, even having a tie score for a few tense minutes. Though faced with a tough opponent and a close score, the Stanford Women kept their cool to take the lead in the second half, thanks in part to senior Maxine Fonua, who managed a hat trick, bringing in 15 of Stanford’s total 26 points. Final score: 26-17
Next Up: Stanford hosts the semi-final and final rounds of the USA Rugby Women’s DI College National Championship, May 9-10