This May, we closed out the first official year as a program! While there are many things to improve upon, both teams are incredibly proud of the athletes and how the teams have come out of the pandemic with a successful rugby program.
MEN'S TEAM
The Men's Team competed in four 7s tournaments this spring, finishing with a 4-8 record. The team graduated only one senior, Deonte Morris, and is excited to continue the momentum into the fall. The biggest highlight of the season was the team's first win where they held their opponent scoreless - quite a feat in rugby 7s where practically every mistake yields a score by the opponent.
The men's breakout athletes have been recognized by Captain Daniel Davillier. Cade London (CJ) and Jeremiah Chukwuka, both rugby rookies playing at prop, stood out with thier ownership of the match pace and strategic defense. Jeremiah even was awarded Tournament MVP in the men's final tournament of the spring. Rel Anglade at Wing/Half-Back acted as the team utility knife all year, showing both his energetic leadership and match awareness. College Men's 7s is a fast-paced competition and our men were up to the challenge. This year, the Men's Team has set a standard of knowledge and intensity that we will build on as we grow.
WOMEN'S+ TEAM
The Women's+ Team played in two 15s friendlies, three 15s conference matches, and one 15s playoff match this season. The team went 1-2 in the conference and used the friendlies against a DC-area women's motley (Furies, NOVA, Stingers, GW) and UVA to grow and build on thier 15s skills. A few of the highlights of the season include the come-from-behind win against UMD, where the women+ rallied in the last 5 minutes to score twice and win 22-19 on a last play try. Another was in the match against American University where, playing down (to 12 and 13 players) all of the match, they dominated every scrum playing down without a number 8. While all of the athletes have made marks, the tenacious tackling of Gabby Mays at Fullback, the bravery and intelligence of Kam Haliday at Flyhalf, and the hard running of Alicia Bush at 8 (all three are rugby rookies) have been notably influential at their key technical positions this year.
Additionally, the Women's+ Team hosted the first rugby match ever on Howard University soil, on the evening of April 2, 2022. While it was a loss to Conference Competitors George Washington University, the Women's+ Team kept answering GW's tries and showed that rugby belongs and should be respected as an important part of the Howard University community fabric.
Herd Rugby has made a mark in college rugby scene this year and the more we grow and build out our depth of athletes, the better we will be. We are excited for what our second year holds and look forward to the continued support of the community.
HU... You KNOW!