The Longwood women's rugby team took to the First Avenue field last Saturday, Nov. 5 needing a win against Mary Washington to earn a share of the Virginia Rugby Union (VRU) title. Mary Washington was undefeated while Longwood had one loss. From the very beginning, the Lancers dominated the game. With Amanda Willis, Mallory "Mac" Greene and Brittany "Blew" Lewis providing the power, Longwood scrum won every scrum and moved Mary Washington's players around the field. In line-outs, Greene and Katie "Diego" Nance worked together to claim virtually every throw; but the Mary Washington defense held strong and was winning enough control of the ball to make the first score and take a 5-0 lead.
As the first half continued, Longwood looked for a way through the tight Mary Washington defense. With 10 minutes left in the half, center Gabby Dixon worked to the outside and touched down for the score. The missed conversion left the half-time score 5-5.
Encouraged by the strong start, the Lancers began to assert their dominating play with continued territorial advantage. Captain Emily Laura ran through several Mary Washington tacklers and touched down 12 minutes into the second half to take the lead 10-5. A penalty kick from Emilee "Boots" McDaniel increased the lead to 13-5.
As the game moved on, some excellent defense by Longwood saved a try and then superior conditioning came into play. In the last minutes of the game, Laura scored again and the McDaniel conversion gave the Lancers a 20-5 victory.
The game marked the end of league play and three teams, Longwood, William & Mary and Mary Washington, are tied atop the eight team league. Complex tie-breaker rules will determine who advances to regional play, but no matter what, Longwood has claimed at least a share of the VRU Championship. The women's team next takes the field in Richmond at the annual Christmas 7's on Dec. 3.
