CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts – The American International College women's rugby team left no doubt as to who the queen program of the National Collegiate Rugby Association Division II is, dominating West Chester University 74-0 in the NIRA Division II National Championship to claim the program's second consecutive crown and third in five seasons on Saturday, November 22 at Harvard University's Mignone Field.
AIC, whose only loss came to the host Crimson that ultimately also defended its crown by downing Lindenwood University 22-19 in the NIRA Division I Championship later in the afternoon, finish the season at 7-1, including a perfect 6-0 in NIRA Division II competition for the second consecutive season.
The first 10 minutes featured AIC's forward pack pushing its way closer and closer to the try line, as the team possessed inside the West Chester 22-meter line. Eventually, the raw power of AIC's front was able to find a way in, with a second-effort push by team captain Annekkia Ritter-Truxal scoring the five. Camryn Henderson's conversion went through just at the 10:00 mark to give AIC a 7-0 lead.
From there, the floodgates opened. Two strong kicks, with a few heavy hits in between, allowed the Yellow Jackets to move downfield again. AIC once more used its forward line to push toward the goal, and after a few pick-and-go plays came up short, worked it to the left side instead, where Amalani Bonds was able to dodge into the try zone in the 16th minute. Henderson put home the tough-angle conversion.
Just past the midpoint of the half, AIC struck again. After Jendell Moe and Henderson combined for some distance, Azariah Walker had a brilliant run and timed an offload perfectly to Shiela Sarmiento, who was able to put down right under the goalposts in the 21st minute, setting up Henderson for another easy conversion. Henderson then scored in the 23rd minute, finishing a run after Bonds stole a mishandled pass and dished to Mahina Hafoka on the right side. She converted again and AIC led 28-0.
AIC's next try came from two of its most powerful runners, as Haley Thompson bulldozed her way near to the try line before eventually dishing back to Moe to finish the job in the 29th minute, with another Henderson conversion following.
AIC then won a scrum away from West Chester to set up its next try, working the ball to the right side for Hafoka, who split the defense and beat the Golden Rams fullback to the try line for the 34th-minute score and a 40-0 lead.
The Yellow Jackets notched their final first-half score off of a West Chester kick from the Rams try line; Kiyanah Edwards fielded it on the right side and cut almost the width of the field to burst into the corner of the try zone in the 37th minute, capping a 45-point first half for the Yellow Jackets.
The second half was more of the same as SaTya Miller broke a big run in the first minute of the frame, nearly scoring herself before being brought down just three meters out; Ritter-Truxal finished the job.
On the ensuing kickoff, Edwards made a big run from her own line to midfield; Luna Bussing gained further yardage, and out of the last breakdown, AIC then worked from left to right for Hafoka to finish in the 44th minute. Henderson's conversion made the score 57-0.
Bussing made another strong run up the left side to help set up yet another try, and after going to ground, the ball was dished to Cuarenta, who dodged would-be-tacklers the rest of the way to the try line for a score in the 47th minute. Another Henderson make followed as AIC led 64-0.
As AIC subbed in its reserves, the workrate did not drop, and Ritter-Truxal took advantage of a knock-on forced by Venise Sanft to burst forward to the Rams 22-meter line. Off of a penalty, Henderson dove forward for the final five meters and five more points in the 52nd minute.
What turned out to be the final try of the match was a brilliant combination of speed and skill by Edwards and Miller. The Rams kicked deep into AIC territory and Edwards fielded it, quickly flying to the right side and executing a give-and-go down the sideline for a 75-yard try and a 74-0 lead in the 56th minute.
The final 24 minutes saw AIC put the game away, running down the clock with consistent, persistent defense. Morgan Schechter kicked the ball into touch with no time left to end the game and complete the repeat.
Henderson was named the game's Most Valuable Player thanks to a stellar 24-point performance with two tries and seven conversions. In a post-match interview, she said, "We all just fight together, not just on the field, but 24-7, we are tight as one…we practice the forwards and backs working together as one."
Director of Rugby Jameson Bonti said after the matchup, "I don't think that we've reached our full potential…The best is yet to come, in my opinion. It's a wonderful group of women; a group of women that are incredibly fierce. We've talked about being bold all year. It's an incredibly bold, brave group of women. I love this group."
The summation of an astonishing season for the team includes 498 points scored to just 91 against; in Division II competition, that margin was 453 to 29, with four straight shutouts to cap off the season. AIC scored 79 tries and allowed just 14 for the campaign.
Individually, Edwards and Henderson were the program's leading scorers, with 95 and 93 points. Edwards scored 19 tries in her seven matches, with Henderson totaling five tries and 34 conversions made. In total, 19 different players scored at least once for the Yellow Jackets over the course of the season.
Ritter-Truxal and Sarmiento's collegiate 15s careers close out in a special way; the duo were the only two players remaining from the 2021 NIRA Division II Championship team that was AIC's first, and so are the College's first three-time national champions.
