D-I & D-II Women’s Championships, NAWIRA This Weekend!

Unless you live in a cave and/or don’t normally read my blog (shame!), it’s time for the top women’s rugby teams in the country to battle for national bragging rights.

That’s right … It’s Championship Weekend Baby! (Imagine I said this just like Dick Vitale)

• For the most timely D-I Womens’ Results, see USA Rugby’s Main Page and Bracket

• For D-II Women’s Results, see the D-II Women’s Site (Who needs USA Rugby?!)

• And let’s not forget that our USA 7s women’s developmental team is playing in Barbados this weekend at the NAWIRA 7s. Barbados, by the way, is having a significant giant snail invasion. Watch out girls!

UPDATE: Here’s the two schedules for the weekend …

USA Rugby Division I Women’s National Championship
MATCH SCHEDULE
Games will be played on Friday 11/10 and Sunday 11/12

Friday – 11/10
Plate Bracket
12:00pm Pool A#2 (Washington Furies) v D#2 (Beantown) – 3
12:30pm Pool C#2 (Twin Cities Amazons) v B#2 (Keystone) – 4

Cup Bracket
2:00pm– Pool A#1 (Berkeley All Blues) v D#1 (Atlanta Harlequins) – 3
2:30 pm– Pool C#1 (New York) v B#1 (Minnesota Valkyries) – 4

Sunday – 11/12
Plate Bracket
10:00 a.m.– Plate Champ – 4
10:30 a.m. – Plate Consol – 3

Cup Bracket
12:00 p.m. – Cup Consol – 4
2:00 p.m. – Cup Champ – 4

Division II Women’s Rugby Championships
Saturday, November 11, 2006
Game 1 – No1 Raleigh Venom versus No8 Fort Lauderdale – 9am (Bottom pitch)
Game 2 – No4 Minn. Menagerie versus No5 NOVA B – 9am (Top pitch)
Game 3 – No2 Pittsburgh versus No7 Seacoast – 11am (Bottom pitch)
Game 4 – No3 Albany versus No6 Naples – 11am (Top pitch)

Game 5 – Winners game 1 play Winners game 2 (Bottom pitch) 1pm
Game 6 – Losers game 1 play Losers game 2 (Top pitch) 1pm
Game 7 – Winners game 3 play Winners game 4 (Bottom pitch) 3pm
Game 8 – Losers game 3 play Losers game 4 (Top pitch) 3pm

Sunday, November 12, 2006
Game 9 – Losers game 6 play losers game 8 for 7th/8th place (Bottom pitch) 9am
Game 10 – Winners game 6 play Winners game 8 for 5th/6th place (Top pitch) 10am
Game 11 – Losers game 5 play losers game 7 for 3rd/4th place (Bottom pitch) 11.45am
Game 12 – Winners game 5 play Winners game 7 for 1st/2nd place (Bottom pitch) 1.30pm

And here’s USA Rugby’s official D-1 preview …

11-9-2006 – DI WOMEN’S CLUB CHAMPIONSHIPS KICK OFF IN ORLANDO
BOULDER, Colo. — USA Rugby’s Division I Women’s Club Championships will be held at Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex in Kissimmee, Fla., Nov. 10 and 12. These Championships will feature eight of the nation’s best women’s rugby club teams in a cup and plate competition. The winner of the Championship cup is named the National Champion, while the winner of the plate is regarded as the consolation champion.

Among the teams that will be competing for the 2006 National Championship title are the Berkeley All-Blues, who look to make 2006 its 10th-straight National Championship win, No. 2-seeded Minnesota Valkyries, No. 3 New York Rugby Club and No. 4 Atlanta Harlequins. The teams that will compete for the consolation plate are the pool runner-ups and include the Washington (D.C.) Furies, Beantown, Twin City Amazons and Keystone (Pa.).

Several members of the 2006 USA Women’s World Cup Team are now — just a few months after representing the U.S. in the Women’s Rugby World Cup – battling each other for rights to national title. Berkeley has such players as U.S. Team captain Jen Crouse, Jamie Burke, Laura Cabrera, Erin Carter, Ashley English, Tina Nesberg and Mari Wallace on its squad. New York has Hedwig Aerts, Kristin Baja, Carrie Dubray, Ellie Karvoski, Lee Knight, Phaidra Knight, Kelly McMahon and Keenya Warner highlighting its roster, while Atlanta features stars such as Patty Jervey, who is the most capped woman in USA Rugby history, Pat Neder, Kate Cox and Heather Hale on their side. And, Minnesota has Kristin Zdanczewicz, Jen Sinkler, Christy Ringgenberg and Kate Turpin representing the Valkyries in its battle for the No. 1 spot.

Friday matches start at noon and run through 2:30 p.m., while matches on Sunday go from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. A one-day pass is $11.25 for an adult and $8.50 for a child (3-9); a two day pass is $18.50 per adult and $13.50 per child.

For more information on this tournament, please log on to http://www.usarugby.org. For press interested in attending, please contact Jessa Giordano at (917) 626-2805 for credentials.

I will, of course, post any results, recaps, juicy rugby bits I find this weekend as I can. Fans should post their own recaps, results in the comments to share with others.

14 Assists for 1 Try … 15/80. I’ll post today’s scores later tonight …

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