This past Sunday, November 9, the Foxes had two matches against Division I powerhouse UC Santa Barbara up at the CMC soccer field. Though neither resulted in a technical “victory,” they were certainly two eventful and instructive games.

The first match was a rookie game starting at 9 am. The rookie team this year is substantial in size, but because of the complexities of the game it takes a while for new players to learn the ropes and develop killer rugby instincts. The girls experienced a few defensive glitches in the rough first half, but they pulled it together in the second 40 minutes. There was only one injury sustained, a broken nose to China Camacho PI ’07. To the disadvantage of the rookies, they were missing their two scrumhalfs and had to pick a replacement on the spot. This is a specialized position, similar to a quarterback in football, making it particularly difficult to find a substitute. Erin Hurley CMC ’07 was up to the challenge, taking over for Stephanie Moyerman HMC ’06 and Kaci Farrell PI ’07. This kind of last minute rearranging is not entirely foreign to the rookie team, as the pre-season games test the commitment of newcomers and veterans alike.

The second match began around 10:30 am, and the veteran women braced themselves for a difficult game. Having played against the talented and well-funded UCSB team in the past, the women knew they might be in for a difficult ride. However, Coach Leslie Jameson was impressed and pleased by the results, even though UCSB scored twice off of missed tackles and four times overall, with the match ending at the final score of 0-26, UCSB. Granted, this is still a loss, but the team played one of its tightest games yet. For comparison, the women lost 0-70 to UCSB a few years ago. The match-up against this Division I school was surprisingly even, with our women putting up clean scrums and solid defense.

The varsity team ended up playing with rookie locks, which is a challenging and exhausting position. The locks are, essentially, the power behind the scrum, a position that requires a lot of pushing and exertion. The locks performed amazingly, and they contested throughout the entire game, which means they were pushed in the crucial moments when the ball is being fought for in the scrum.

Essentially, this past Sunday marked a stunning improvement in the fluidity and savageness of the Foxes’ game. The actual season does not start until January, but the women are steadily improving in their experience and ability.

Next weekend, the women will be participating in a big collegiate tournament called Scrum by the Sea, sponsored by UCSD in San Diego. For the first time in Claremont College history, the women’s rugby organization will be submitting two teams for the two-day competition. The A side team will face Berkeley, Occidental, and University of Arizona.