A few more notes in the WER rugby women’s professional league:
—we omitted WGR and Harvard alumn, Ollie Wright. She’s playing lock and eight for the Boston Banshees. Good luck!
—Hannah Pfersch starts at tighthead prop for the TC Gemini in their 7pm game tonight against TC.
—Games are a streamed live and free. Click here for all the streaming info: https://www.womenseliterugby.us/watch
Female student athletes from WGR continue to achieve great things. This year's M.A. Sorenson award winner nominees for the most outstanding women's collegiate player include two such alumni. While not the first WGR alums to be nominated, both have had remarkable careers, in each her own right.
Aly Cunningham started playing flag rugby in first grade and never stopped. A standout for Catholic Memorial HS as well as a frequent USA under-age rep, she continues to excel at the highest of levels. Her nomination comes on the heels of being nominated as an NCAA 1st Team All American.
WGR's other nominee has taken a more circuitous path towards recognition. Following in the footsteps of an older sister, Alexis Dallas played rugby for the Bruisers. She then pursued playing opportunities at various institutions including Long Island University, Lander University, and now Wheeling Jesuit. The now well-traveled Dallas excelled in high school as a basketball player at Tosa East and as a leader for her Brookfield Bruisers teams.
It's reassuring to see voters recognize student-athletes from NCAA and non-NCAA programs. In an ever-changing landscape of collegiate athletes, where institutions do not always support women's sports or rugby equitably, some student-athletes do not always get the support they should. This calls to mind the treatment of the USA's first NCAA program at Eastern Illinois, a program that no longer exists. See here for the details of this sad tale. NCAA women's rugby has progressed significantly since this story, yet the cautionary tale remains as programs come and go.
The new women's professional rugby league kicks off Sunday. Playing 15's rugby, there are several players with Wisconsin roots, including Hannah Pfersch, the WGR and Hamilton HS alumn.
The league schedule can be found here:
The Chicago Tempest play at Northwestern inside the beautiful, new Martin stadium in Evanston, overlooking Lake Michigan.
USA age-grade level coaches will be in the Chicago area for a talent ID camp. This event is highly recommended for anyone with high-aspirations in women's rugby. A link with registration details is here
LLW is able to announce two spring 2025 Wisconsin Girls Rugby Dates:
The annual James Foley Memorial Tournament takes place Saturday May 3rd, 2025 at Bill Young Stadium in Waukesha. A 10's tournament in the past, organizers are not yet certain if that format will continue or if the event morphs into a 7's series event. Either way, expect matches to begin that morning inside the stadium.
As has occurred the last several years, the Wisconsin State All Star Select Team will hold their annual camp the next day at the same field. The Select Camp takes place Sunday May 4th at Bill Yong Stadium. New and experienced players are encouraged to attend. In some years, the Wisc-All-Stars have take two full 15's sides (V and JV) to their summer tournament. New on the agenda: several WGR alumni of collegiate varsity and high-level club programs are joining the staff as assistant coaches. They should bring some excellent energy and coaching IP to the program. The future of the program is looking bright. Interested players should contact Coach Alexandra Glorioso: aglorioso@catholicmemorial.net with questions.
In concerning news, the WGR 7's series has shrunk to five participating teams over three events, all starting after the Midwest HS Girls 15's Championship in Elkhart at the end of April. The three stops on the WGR 7s Series take place May 10th, May 17th, and May 31st. The final tournament is help in conjunction with the high school boys state tournament at Madison United Rugby in Cottage Grove.
