Brown women’s rugby rebounded from a hard-fought home defeat on Oct. 5 against Harvard, dominating Norwich this Saturday.
Bruno scored its first try less than a minute into the game and never looked back. The Bears led 39-0 at the half and extended their lead after the break to reach the century mark.
“The team really showed up today and was able to execute a lot of different skills,” Head Coach Rosalind Chou wrote in an email to The Herald. “I think it was a very well rounded game for them on both attack and defense.”
The game against the Norwich Cadets, an out-of-conference opponent, gave Coach Chou an opportunity to rotate her squad. “We really wanted to give opportunities to players who haven’t had as many chances to showcase their skills so far this season,” Chou wrote. “We know we're building great depth on the squad and this was the game to see those players really step up and show us what they could do.”
In the first half, the Bears offense was powered by Sophie Dornstein ’27, who scored three tries including the first try of the match. “My success really comes down to the team executing everything to set me up to score,” wrote Dornstein in an email to The Herald. “My position is entirely dependent on everyone else, so the fact that I was able to score really just highlights the cohesion of the team and the fact that everyone was playing incredibly well.”
“This is Sophie’s first year playing, and she’s a success story as a walk-on with no prior rugby experience,” Chou wrote. “She spent last year in a manager position and has really just burst onto the scene this year with how quickly she’s picked up the game and works really hard. It’s so great to see the fruits of that labor in the game with three tries.”
The Bears’ offensive onslaught continued after the break as they piled on the overmatched Norwich squad. Lily Nowak ’27 added three tries of her own to lead Bruno’s second-half pace.
“The pace that she brings to the backline is incredible,” Chou wrote of Nowak. “She has really got her timing down and is a threat out on the edge.”
“We saw in this game just how much talent our team possesses. The confidence in our abilities gained from this game will allow us to carry the energy into our training,” Nowak wrote. “We will use this fuel to continue learning and growing as individuals and as a unit, which will set us up for success for the rest of the season.”
The Bears will be back in action and look to keep the momentum going at home this Saturday against Mount St. Mary’s.
“This was a really valuable game to get some minutes for everyone on the field” wrote Dornstein. “I think just having a good win and putting everyone in high spirits … will allow us to roll into the coming three league games with some confidence knowing exactly what we need to do to make playoffs.”
