Kayla Maulson is a senior child development major at Humboldt State who has been affiliated with the rugby team for more than five years. Maulson took a year off, because she gave birth about a year ago. She felt incredible scoring in her last game as a Lumberjack.
“If you’re not first, you’re last,” Maulson said.
The Jacks women’s rugby team crushed the University of California, Berkeley in their matchup on March 3 at College Creek Field. Maulson was the first of seven Jacks to score in this matchup.
It was a bittersweet moment for the Jacks, as it was their last home game of the season. Each senior who played for the Jacks was a key component in the game.
The Jacks started off strong thanks to the help of head coach Meredith Conrad-Forrest. Before the game even started, Conrad-Forrest recognized that the defensive line needed to be shifted around.
“The energy we had going into this weekend seemed really positive, because we beat Berkeley before,” Conrad-Forrest said. “It was beautiful for them to have their last game end that way.”
At halftime, the score was 26-17. Even though the rain picked up, nothing was able to stop the Jacks from keeping their momentum alive.
Out of the four seniors on the rugby team, each would cross the goal line, contributing to the 51 total points that were scored.
Lila Bell, a senior child development major at HSU, was an important piece in this new formation. Typically, she plays the 13 position, which focuses on maintaining the outside lanes. She lined up at the 10 position, which is similar to a quarterback in the sense that you call out the shots and dictate where people will line up.
The Jacks were in between the halfway point and goal when Libby Treu executed a play that Bell called out.
“We picked a play that would allow me to run right through their defense,” Bell said. “We took them by surprise!”
All together, the Jacks have won two and lost five games. Even though they have lost a total of five games, they still have a chance at making the playoffs, because of their total points scored throughout the season.
The Jacks walked away in their final game with a 51-22 point victory over the Cal Golden Bears.
The Women’s College Division 1 Elite Playoffs of rugby begins on April 20. The championship round of 16 takes place over a three-day period and will conclude with a championship bout on May 5.
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