The 1st Girls High School Rugby Match in Wisconsin: Fall 1998

 Archivists from the WGR media outlet collective, Lifelawrugby, unearthed a newspaper clipping commemorating the first rugby match in Wisconsin between two Wisconsin high school girls teams.

The match took place in the Fall of 1998 at Dretzka Park between ... you guessed it ... Divine Savior Holy Angels HS and Catholic Memorial HS.  

Excitement and interest in the sport had been growing as DSHA began by traveling around the state to play against college teams.  That wasn't a sustainable model.  In short time, a group of girls at CMH came together under coach Linda Niemela, from Marquette University.  Although the team only lasted two seasons, they left an impression about what could be.  

The CMHS girls had to call themselves the Krusaders with a K because the school was initially hesitant to recognize them.  A decade later, with DSHA having proven to administrators that the sport was a viable, safe, and life-changing endeavor, CMHS would begin its program as an official school supported entity, a key in its long-term stability.  There alone is a lesson for those driving the sport: just because school admin may initially turn down acceptance, does not make school support unattainable.  Parent support, interest, and involvement drives school activities.

Back in 1998 these teams played each other twice, with the Krusaders winning the second match at their new found home inside Minooka Park.  A rivalry was born.   

Pictured below is Erin Voelz, of DSHA, with the ball in both hands.  One of the early trailblazers for girls sports in Wisconsin, she went on to play on a partial athletic scholarship at the first NCAA program in the USA at Eastern Illinois University, opening the door to so many others to come after her.

     

"Dreams are true while they last, and do we not live on dreams?" (NIL Rules under NCAA)

The original creator of this blog, a long time rugby player, coach, ref, and lawyer began this effort out of an interest in the law and rugby.  Dan's work in education was an obvious link for these topics.  While much has changed, included a viable NCAA women's collegiate pathway, in recent years, the opening of NIL has further changed the landscape of collegiate athletics.  The Wisconsin State Athletic Association (WIAA) opened it's doors to NIL a year ago, in order to head off any possible litigation.  They most likely had no choice.  

For any student-athlete who plans to compete at the NCAA college level, there are certainly a myriad of rules and regulations to be aware of.

The College Sports Commission and the NCAA now require that high school and junior college athletes report any name, image & likeness (NIL) agreements that meet certain criteria.

 

Here are the key details:

• The rule applies to any NIL deal worth $600 or more that was agreed to, executed, or includes payments after July 1, 2025, or after the student-athlete’s first day of their junior year, whichever comes later.
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• Reporting must be done via the new clearinghouse - NIL Go - at https://nilgo.com/login
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• Failure to report such deals can result in loss of eligibility
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• NIL payments must serve a valid business purpose (e.g., promoting goods/services sold for profit). Traditional “pay-for-play” arrangements do not qualify.
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• These rules also apply to junior college athletes under the settlement framework.
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• While the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) does not require high school disclosure of NIL deals, this national rule will apply to any student‐athlete who plans to play at a Division I institution.
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• To protect your future eligibility and to be proactive, we recommend that any student-athlete keep a record of all NIL discussions, agreements, and payments, and ask questions if you are unsure whether an opportunity qualifies.

 

We encourage all families and student‐athletes to review any engagements, keep good documentation, and reach out to NIL education partners like Influential Athlete, if you have any questions. We want to ensure every athlete is prepared and aware of their obligations and opportunities under these new rules.

With rugby athletes like Iona Maher enjoying enormous social media success, it no longer feels like a pipe dream to envision rugby influencers tapping into these opportunities.   

As Alfred Lord Tennyson once said, "Dreams are true while they last, and do we not live on dreams?"

Obituary Information for 11/8/25

WGR President Betsy Wendelberger passed away on October 25th, 2025 at the age of 33.  

May eternal rest be granted unto her, and let perpetual light shine upon her soul.  Rest in peace. 

We send our prayers and thoughts for the Wendelberger family.  

Her full obituary can be found here.

Funeral Details:

Fri Nov 7th  Visitation 4-8pm at Christ King Catholic Church, Wauwatosa

Sat Nov 8th Mass of Christian Burial 1030am 

In lieu of flowers, a Betsy Wendelberger Memorial Fund has been created with all funds to be given to her most cherished organizations.

https://www.venmo.com/u/BetsyWendelbergerMemorialFund-

Player,Captain; Daughter,Sister; Coach,Leader; Volunteer and administrator, to name only a few: she touched many lives in and beyond the rugby world. 

Nothing Gold Can Stay

 Nothing Gold Can Stay

By Robert Frost

Nature’s first green is gold,

Her hardest hue to hold.

Her early leaf’s a flower;

But only so an hour.

Then leaf subsides to leaf.

So Eden sank to grief,

So dawn goes down to day.

Nothing gold can stay.

State 2025

State Tournament Scores 2025

Catholic Memorial 7  DSHA 22 (Championship)

Fox Cities 43   Madison 29 (3rd Place)

Hamilton 26 DSHA jv 19 (5th Place)

Bruisers defeated Stevens Point Area HS (7th Place)

WGR 2025 Final Standings

1 DSHA HS

2 Catholic Memorial HS

3 Fox Cities

4 Madison

5 Hamilton HS

6 DSHA HS jv

7 Bruisers

8 Stevens Point Area HS (SPASH) 

Finals and Season Notes:

This is Divine Savior Holy Angels' 4th consecutive state championship.  

The scores of the last three state finals between the Dashers of DSHA and CMH Crusaders:

   22-7 (2025)

   21-5 (2024)

   38-7 (2023)

This was Catholic Memorial's 3rd consecutive state final appearance and their 11th second place finish.

Madison went from playing an exhibition game at last year's tournament to playing in the 3rd place game, showing significant progress as a program.  Improved playing numbers make a huge difference to any program.  This was their first appearance in a medal-placing playoff final.

While it was sad to see Green Bay unable to field a 15's team this fall after a strong start to their conference participation, several of their players went to great lengths to pick up game time with the Bruisers.  It's a 2 hour drive from Green Bay to the Milwaukee area.  Hopefully both programs can continue to build on their participation levels.

Fox Cities is an ascending program.  While still very new at the WGR conference membership level, a strong middle school tackle program as well as a youth flag program give them an exciting base from which to build.

Rugby Referee Clinic Oct 26th

 While WGR players, staff, board members, coaches, family, and fans will all be packing the house at the State Tournament this Sunday, if there are any alumni players out there, RUGBY needs referee help.

There is a clinic this Sunday in the Chicago area.

Info here:

World Rugby Level 1 Referee

Time: 8:30am - 5:00pm

Location: Lions for Hope Sports Complex

2637 W Polk St, Chicago, IL 60612

To Register:

• Access the USA Rugby Learning Center from your "My Profile" page in Rugby Xplorer.
• Once logged in, click on "Learning Center" from the left-hand menu.
• Click on the name of the person who is going to register for the course to enter the Learning Center
• From there, click "Course Catalog" to see the available courses.

*Young alums, contact the Wisconsin Referee Society if financial support needed: wrrsboardp@gmail.com 

WGR 2025 State Tournament Pairings

 At Haertel Field in Waukesha, the WGR season concludes with four fifteens matches on Sunday Oct 26th, 2025.   This is not the main Carroll University football stadium.  This is an auxiliary university field with artificial turf.

11:00am  Bruisers vs SPASH              (7th Place)

12:30pm  DSHA jv vs Hamilton HS   (5th Place)

2:00pm    Furies vs Fox Cities            (3rd Place)

3:30pm    Catholic Memorial vs DSHA  (Championship)

*There is very limited parking that will likely only be available for WGR staff, volunteers, refs, coaches, and a few handicapped attendees.  Carpool if able.  Most of the parking is in the surrounding neighborhood.    Bring lawn chairs as seating is also limited.