Big Blue meets Crimson: UNE takes on Harvard in historic rugby match

The University of New England's women's rugby team kicked off its first varsity season Saturday, September 17, 2016 with its first home game against Harvard University. It was Harvard’s first visit to UNE, with more than 400 fans lining Barbara J. Hazard Field to cheer on the Nor’easters.

The day began with a pre-match cookout and reception for friends and neighbors of UNE. Coach Ashley Potvin-Fulford welcomed the crowd and gave an explanation of the rules of rugby. President Danielle Ripich and members of the UNE and Harvard squads held a ceremonial scrum to start the game.

The match was widely covered by local media, with stories from WGME, WCSH, and the Portland Press Herald, which highlighted the growth of rugby nationwide. “To see that evolution of girls’ ice hockey and now to be a part of the evolution of women’s rugby is really cool,” Coach Ashley Potvin-Fulford said. “It’s becoming a general acceptance that not all girls want to do what I guess they’ve been expected to do from such a young age.”

The Nor'easters have competed as a club team since 2012. In 2015 they captured the New England Rugby Football Union (NERFU) championship and participated in the National Small College Rugby Organization National Championship, winning the third-place game in the Northeast Region bracket and finishing the season ranked 16th in the nation.

Beginning in 2016, the team will be a member of the National Collegiate Women's Varsity Rugby Association, the governing body of collegiate varsity women's rugby with 20 competing members (American International, Army, Bowdoin, Brown, Central Washington, Dartmouth, Davenport, Dowling, Eastern Illinois, Harvard, Life, Long Island University, Post, Molloy, University of New England, Norwich, Notre Dame College, Quinnipiac, Sacred Heart, West Chester and Wheeling Jesuit).

UNE President Danielle Ripich said, “I am so proud of everything these student athletes have accomplished to work toward their first varsity season, and I am thrilled at the opportunity to show Harvard what UNE spirit is all about!”

“Harvard coming to the University of New England for the first time elevated our first varsity women’s rugby game, making it a historic milestone for the entire UNE community. I could not be more grateful to all on campus who assisted in making this day a life long memory for all who played and attended.”

Read and watch more from the Portland Press Herald, WCSH, WGME, and UNE TV.

To learn more about UNE Athletics, visit www.athletics.une.edu        

To apply, visit www.une.edu/admissions