While students around campus departed for spring break trips, the women’s rugby team competed in two major tournaments, winning one and finishing fifth in the other.
On March 22, the Bears dominated at Brown 7s, going undefeated and shutting out three of their four opponents.
“We rarely have home tournaments during the 7s season, so in addition to the sunny weather and packed bleachers filled with family and friends, we were excited to play hard at home,” wrote Olivia Baptiste ’26, who led the team with six tries, in a message to The Herald. “Playing for our loved ones and defending the den is always a nice motivator.”
The weekend after, Brown competed once more at Harvard’s Crimson 7s. Though less successful than they were the weekend prior, the Bears still racked up two wins on the way to a fifth-place finish.
Both competitions showed the team “what we need to do to continue to bring our game to the next level,” wrote Head Coach Rosalind Chou in a message to The Herald. “We have a lot to build on.”
Two days before Brown 7s, the Goff Rugby Report published the list of nominees for the 2024-25 MA Sorensen Award, which recognizes the best collegiate women’s rugby player in the nation. Both Akilah Cathey ’25 and Nikki Lynch ’25 — each of whom earned first-team, all-National Intercollegiate Rugby Association honors earlier this year — received nominations.
Last year, Cathey was Brown’s first-ever Sorensen Award finalist.
Punching in five and three tries, respectively, Lynch and Cathey were crucial in Bruno’s domination during Brown 7s.
Both players “really led the team in some difficult moments, especially in the final,” Chou said in a message to Brown Athletics. “It was a great day for the squad.”
During their first match-up of the tournament, the Bears trounced Roger Williams 59-0 as three different athletes — Cathey, Baptiste and Lily Nowak ’27 — posted two tries each.
But it was Genie Dickens ’28, the team’s fly-half, who emerged as the team’s most prolific scorer after putting up 12 points on six conversions. Throughout the competition, Dickensracked up a total of 38 points following 14 successful conversions and two tries.
With one victory under their belt, the Bears could not be stopped. During the competition’s second match-up, Brown defeated Northeastern 40-0. Julia Murray ’26 spearheaded the Bruno attack, scoring one try and three conversions, while Dickens and Nowak rounded out the offensive with one try each.
The third game of the day was no different, with the Bears waltzing to an easy 43-0 win against the University of New Haven. Dickens, Lynch and Baptiste combined for 33 points.
“I think during Brown 7s, our set piece plays were extremely effective,” Baptiste wrote. “We kept playing hard to the end, allowing us to be so successful.”
But the Bears faced their biggest threat during the final game of the day against American International College. For the first time in the tournament, an opponent struck first: Only one minute into the game, AIC broke through the Bruno defense to claim a 5-0 lead.
But the Bears refused to stay down for long. Cathey and Lynch put up back-to-back tries, and with two successful conversions by Murray, the Bears took a 14-5 lead into halftime.
After the break, AIC continued to put pressure on Brown. Scoring twice in two minutes, AIC reclaimed the lead, pulling away 17-14. But Bruno wasn’t done yet, and with only five minutes left in the contest, the Bears sprang into action.
Yona Allouche ’28 was the first to strike, propelling Brown back in front with a try. Baptiste backed her up, cementing the Bears’ lead with her sixth try of the day. In the end, Brown was able to pull away with a 28-19 victory.
“We walked away, of course, feeling proud to win at home,” Chou wrote, adding that the team and coaching staff hope to continue learning and improving from their performance.
But unfortunately for the Bears, the lessons they learned during Brown 7s did not translate to Crimson 7s one week later. During the first match of the latter tournament, the Bears faced AIC again — this time in Cambridge. Instead of taking down the Yellow Jackets like they did a week before, though, Brown lost the game 26-24.
“In preparation for another AIC re-match, we examined areas in which they exploited the week before in film and in training,” Chou wrote. “7s is a game where the team that makes the fewest mistakes will win, and AIC is a skilled team that took advantage of our mistakes this weekend.”
The re-match against the Yellow Jackets came down to the wire. With less than a minute to go, Brown trailed 21-19. Recovering a scrum at AIC’s 22-meter-line, Dickens connected with Nowak along the left flank. Blowing past two AIC defenders, Nowak side-stepped a third before punching in a try, giving Brown a 24-21 lead.
But with the victory almost in hand, disaster struck. In the final seconds of the match, Brown kicked the ball off, and an AIC player returned the kick 60 meters for a try — clinching a 26-24 victory for the Yellow Jackets.
After their brutal loss to AIC, the Bears restored their momentum in a rainy match-up against Long Island University. Spreading the wealth, four different players — first Dickens, followed by Cathey, Laryssa Barbosa ’26 and Aziza Alford ’25 — reached the tryzone. Once the clock struck zero, Brown walked away with a 26-7 victory.
In their third game against Trinity Western, the Bears once again tasted defeat. It took Brown over 10 minutes to score, and by the time they did, they already trailed 19-0. A try by Barbosa put the Bears on the scoreboard, but the one offensive effort was not enough, and Brown ultimately lost 26-5.
Following two losses and a win, Brown did not advance to the tournament finale and instead competed against Sacred Heart in a battle for fifth place. For most of the game, the Pioneers commanded the lead — and by halftime, they held a 14-5 advantage.
But when the second half began, the Bears took over. Three minutes into the half, Nowak received the ball deep in Bruno territory. Sprinting down the left flank, she delivered a massive fend, sending a Pioneer defender to the ground. With the path to the tryzone free, Nowak brought the Bears to 14-10. With a successful conversion by Murray, Bruno was now only two points behind.
Though Sacred Heart struck next, the Bears did not stay down for long. With two minutes to go, Barbosa sidestepped a Pioneer defender and speared through the heart of the Sacred Heart defense. Rushing 60 meters down field, she plunged into the tryzone and tied the game for the first time since 0-0. A victory finally within reach, the Bears smelled blood.
As the clock wound down, Brown launched its final attack. Cathey led the charge, barreling down the right flank to the five-meter line. From there, the Bears flipped the field with four quick passes. On the left side of the field, Nowak was home free and clinched the victory with a successful try. The Bears ended the day — and the tournament — with a 24-19 win.
Next up for the women’s rugby team is the Polar Bear 7s, which will take place at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine on April 13.
Lydell Dyer is a sports editor for The Herald. A junior hailing from Bonn, Germany, Lydell is studying nonfiction English and political science, and if he's not off "making words sound pretty," you can find him lifting heavy circles at the Nelson.
