NEWPORT, R.I. – This weekend the Salve Regina University women's rugby team will travel to Marietta, Ga., for the National Small College Rugby Association (NSCRO) Final Four.
It has been a whirlwind season for the team, experiencing unprecedented success, and currently standing undefeated at 7-0.
However, it's not just that the team is winning matches that's garnered them attention, it's how they are doing it. The Seahawks have outscored their opponents by a staggering 367-54, which includes two shutouts (85-0, 78-0).
The team, which went 3-3 last season, did not come into the season with championship aspirations.
"Coming into the season, we hired a new coach literally right before the start of the season," said team captain and senior Maggie Adams. "No one was sure what to expect, but once we got things rolling and saw how many people we had coming out to practices, we knew it could be a good year."
"We had no idea at the beginning of the season that we'd be where we are now," said fellow senior and team captain Elizabeth Maher. "We started winning games that no one thought we could win and it just started snowballing."
A turning point for the team and their belief in themselves came when they defeated UMass Dartmouth 24-5. It was the program's first ever win over the Corsairs.
"It really showed us something, beating them," said Adams. "There was a lot of heart involved and we played really well together as a team."
The Seahawks rode the momentum and confidence of that win into the postseason and it showed in a 78-0 drubbing of Wentworth in the Colonial Coast Rugby Conference (CCRC) semifinals.
Next up was Endicott, a perennial powerhouse in the conference, with the conference title on the line. The team was nervous before the game, given they had never advanced this far in the playoffs before, but once the game started, the fear fell away.
"We were all nervous because we hadn't played Endicott it two years, but as soon as we started playing, and started beating them, it ended up being 63-14, which was a huge deal," said Adams.
Heading to regionals the Seahawks were the underdogs, playing teams they've never faced, in stadiums they've never been before, but by now they had embraced the historic journey the team was on.
"Heading to regionals, and even just the CCRC championship game, in my head I was thinking 'You know what, this is team history, we made it this far, I'm so proud of everyone no matter what happens, and we didn't just win those games by a little, we won them by a lot," said Maher.
The Seahawks topped Franklin Pierce 43-10 then defeated the University of Rochester 43-15 to punch their ticket to the Final Four.
If you ask the team what the biggest factor has been in their success, they'll point to how close-knit the team is.
"We're such a close group," said Maher. "We are a very family-like team. So, going into every game we feel like we have nothing to lose, we are so happy with where we are, but at the same time we want to have each other's backs, everyone's heart is one-hundred percent into it, so it makes you want to fiercely protect that every time you go onto the field, to give your all for the person next to you."
"Rugby is such a special sport," said Adams. "You lay your body on the line every game, and when you do that for each other the way we have, it really helps what we are able to accomplish."
It has been the case for almost over a month, but every game the Seahawks play in is the biggest game in program history and they have a chance to do something only one other team in school history has done: capture a National Championship.
Salve Regina's men's rugby team captured the national title in 2012, and the Seahawks' men's ice hockey team came within a goal of capturing the school's first varsity national championship this past March. Two more wins is all they would need to put a an exclamation point on what has already been an historic season.
For Maher, the moment is even more special. When she joined the squad in her freshman season she was part of the program's first ever victory.
"To see where we are now, the evolution of this team is incredible," said Maher. "I've seen it grow from day one when we only had ten kids coming out to practice, barely enough to field a team for games, and losing by a lot, to where we are now, it's just unbelievable."
The Seahawks will face Catholic University of America in the semifinals on Saturday and should they advance they would play either Wayne State College or Minnesota State University Moorhead in the championship game on Sunday, December 2. If they do not advance past Catholic University the Seahawks would play in a third-place game versus the loser of the other semifinal.
Just two more games left to play this season. For the seniors, it is a bittersweet moment.
"We have an incredible group of seniors," said Maher. "They've really poured their hearts into this program, to build it up. No matter what happens we have so much to be proud of, whether we are national champions or we finish third place, it's been amazing. But we also know that no matter what, this is it for us."
This weekend the Salve Regina women's rugby family will travel down to Georgia, and just maybe, they'll bring back some hardware for the family mantel.
