<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0nb23D_0wJLZIPM00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0nb23D_0wJLZIPM00" width="640" height="360" >PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. — 2024 may be SUNY Plattsburgh women’s rugby's best year in the program’s 43-year history.The Cardinals finished their regular season ranked No. 20 in the National Collegiate Rugby Women's Division III rankings for the second straight week. Plattsburgh State has never been ranked for all the years the school has had a rugby team since 1981. They secured No. 20 after a 22-7 win over Nov. 5 Clarkson on their senior day. That win also gave Plattsburgh State an undefeated record at 5-0, a mark significantly better from 2023 after the team finished that season 1-4.“It honestly makes me so proud,” said Plattsburgh State Women’s Vice President Marisa Gosselin. “I’ve never gotten emotional with a sport like this and after we won the last game. Just leaving the field it felt so good to know that we worked so hard and we’ve come so far.”That turnaround is quite the feat, considering this team, which operates as a club sport at Plattsburgh State, features all players who have no prior rugby experience in high school. “It means a lot, especially because … it’s a club sport,” said Plattsburgh State women’s rugby president Evie Hatch. “Everyone here is a walk-on; they are learning the sport every day… No one here played rugby before, so it means a lot that we are setting the foundation for a stronger team to keep growing.”The Cardinals say a key piece to their success this year was getting the right people to join their squad. The women’s rugby team must recruit exclusively enrolled students at the school through info tables at university events and digital promotion on social media. It took time, but many of the upperclassmen say they have found a passionate group of who have fallen in love with the sport. “A lot of it is just straight passion,” Gosselin said. “This team has a lot of energy every time we step on the pitch ... this team feels cohesive, we all fit very well together. It makes a difference on the field.”The greater commitment means more players willing to learn how to improve from coach Jake Mainville. Mainville, who facilitates drills and schemes for the team to practice three days during the week, makes the team feel much more prepared to win on game day.“We wouldn’t be able to do it without Jake Mainville,” said Plattsburgh State women’s Rugby captain Emery McQuade. “Having a coach that really knows the sport and can represent it to us women … he’s been a helpful hand, and I’m proud to have him as coach 100 percent.”The Plattsburgh State players want the program to grow even greater in the future. They hope that the emergence of high school flag football across New York can help add some potential recruits to their rugby team based on similar playstyles between the two sports. “It could make a huge difference,” Gosselin said. “I talked to one of the flag football coaches up here, and he said a lot of his girls would love to continue something of that sort in college … I think rugby is that steppingstone.”In the present, the Cardinals’ focus is set on this weekend, where they will play against SUNY Geneseo in an opening-round playoff match at home. “It means a lot no matter what the outcome of the season is,” Hatch said. “The fact that we made the playoffs just means a lot…. It shows we really want it, and we are working really hard for it.”Kickoff is right outside Memorial Hall on Sunday, Oct. 27, at 11 a.m. </div></body>

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Plattsburgh State women's rugby finishes regular season ranked for first time in program history

PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. — 2024 may be SUNY Plattsburgh women’s rugby's best year in the program’s 43-year history. The Cardinals finished their regular season ranked No. 20 in the National Collegiate Rugby Women's Division III rankings for the second straight week. Plattsburgh State has never been ranked for all the years the school has had a rugby team since 1981. They secured No. 20 after a 22-7 win over Nov. 5 Clarkson on their senior day. That win also gave Plattsburgh State an undefeated record at 5-0, a mark significantly better from 2023 after the team finished that season 1-4.

Plattsburgh State women's rugby finishes regular season ranked for first time in program history

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