News

Orlando plays outnumbered, but still going to the South!

Orlando women had a rough weekend playing Miami Women and Ft. Lauderdale women back to back.  The first game we played a man down the whole game with forwards playing in back positions.  Nevertheless, we only lost by a couple of points.  The second game, we gained one more person, but we were so drained it was hard to keep up.  Again, only losing by a try.  There is good news though!!  We are still seeded to go to South Championships.  We should be gaining some more players that are coming from UCF which is greatly needed.  

FUNDRAISING SUCCESS!!

April 12-13 proved well for Orlando Women as they raised over $400 for the team at the Pet Fair. This is an annual  event the Science Center hosts where families bring their pets out for fun.  Mostly dogs, but we encountered goats, a skunk, cats, and lizards as well.  Casey Fields was the woman of the week who made this all possible.  She arranged the free booth and supplied the kids toys for the balloon raffle. Crystal Pilsbury made home made dog biscuits and everyone else brought baked goods for sale.  Thanks for all those who came out to help, especially to the UCF girls who weren't even obligated to.  Our goal is to raise enough to fly to National Championships in the fall.

Tampa Women come out of the woodworks

We hosted Tampa in a friendly match.  We won, but tampa had a few good players that surprised us.  This is all in preparation to help us get ready for South Championships.  It's good to see the other florida women teams developing more and more.

Savannah Tournament

A favorite tradition of the women and men to celebrate St. Patty's Day in Savannah Georgia.  The women only got to play 2 games on Sat. that they won.  However we enjoyed ourselves the rest of the weekend.  See the Photos Here

Round Robin not so round

This turned out to be a single match since one team couldn't pull the numbers. We went up against Ft. Lauderdale in a victorious match on an intense windy day. The forwards spent most of their time inside the scrum praying the ball wouldn't be carried off by the wind after it reached the backs.  See the Photos Here

Ruggerfest Tournament

Congrats to the Orlando Women who did outstanding in the Ft. Lauderdale Ruggerfest! On Saturday they beat The Naval Academy 17-5 followed by Ft.Lauderdale about 17-0. On Sunday in the finals against D.C. Furies, a D1 top ten team, they lost 3-5.  See the Photos Here

Cayman Women Vs Orlando Women

The Cayman Women brought a touring side to spur up games against several Florida teams. Orlando won this freindly first match of the season. We were excited to play new blood on our turf. It's good to know women's rugby is growing throughout the world. See the Photos Here

National Championships!!

Congratulations to Orlando Women for representing and hosting DII playoffs. We started off the weekend ranked 7th in the nation. After three matches, Orlando moved up to become ranked 3rd in the nation. In their first match of the weekend, Orlando upset the #2 ranked team the Village Lions from NY. Orlando's 2nd match of the day againt Detroit Women proved more difficult as most of the game consisted of neither team scoring as the forwards battled to gain precious possesion. Detroit won with a close score of 5-3. The match for 3rd and 4th place pitted the two South teams against each other once again… with Orlando beating Naples 15 - 13 in an excellent match. It was an spectactular showing for Orlando's 1st time at the DII National Tournament. Orlando expects to return to Nationals next year with even better results!! 
See the Photos Here

All Florida Day

The Orlando Women had a very successful showing at All Florida Day, beating Jacksonville 54-5. Winger Joanna Black scored 3 tries, maybe even more. We stopped counting. It was a great game to practice rucking and allow the ladies to play together some more before Nationals.

2007 South Championships

It was a long weekend for the Ladies as they traveled down to Hialeah to compete in DII South Championships. They faced Memphis on an overcast Saturday, pulling ahead quickly with a try from a kick-off. Several tries by the speedy backs followed, sealing Orlando's victory in the first half. The second half slowed down but by then the score was 30+ to 0.

Sunday came on hot and muggy, with everyone feeling the effects of Saturdays long game. Naples came out in full force, but Orlando soon gained control of the rucks and spent most of the first half in Naples' 50. Two tries were scored before half time. As the game wore on, the play got sloppier, and possession was spottier. Two yellow cards were issued to Orlando players for coming in off-sides, and Orlando spent a tense period defending their try-zone with only 6 forwards. The ladies held Naples off with some amazing defense, and spent the rest of the game holding off a tiring team. A confusing penalty call from the ref in the last minute of play allowed Naples to squeeze in a try, but Orlando were already far enough ahead to cinch the title! See the Photos Here

Orlando Takes Home the Gold!

The Orlando Women took home trophies, medals, and plaques this past weekend, after winning the Sunshine State Games Women's Division in Lakeland. It was a hot day, and the first Florida tournament, so energy was hard to come by all day. However, the ladies inched out USF and then Coconut Grove, to put in a healthy defeat against FAU/FTL. Jo Black scored many tries, outrunning every opponent, and Becky Rodrigues-Metlen played with great gusto and heart, showing us all how it should be done! Now if only Juice could hold onto that ball!
Congratulations Ladies! Next stop, Todd Miller.

Sunshine State Sevens

Sunshine States are coming up on June 16th in Lakeland, Florida. We are entering one side, and all players will have to pay $15 towards the registration cost- please pay Tara. The tournament is part of State-wide Olympic-Style Games, and winners get their own medals! If you want to play, sign up here.

Summer Sevens

It's Summer Sevens time again and we intend to be just as competitive as past years. See the Play page for a list of tournaments we will be attending and e-mail Casey to tell her which ones you can make it to.

Orlando defeats Naples

For the second time this year, the women came out on top of the Coconut Grove Rugby team. The game, played in South Miami in sweltering conditions, was a hard-fought battle between two old rivals.
See the Photos Here

Victory in Savannah

Where else would a Rugger be on St.Patty's Day but in Savannah, GA? The ladies traveled up to a city swathed in green, and while they were there, played some Rugby! It was an exciting weekend, Orlando shut out all three opponents and took 1st place in the Women's Division. What a pity there's no score for kissing Lepreachauns!
See the Photos Here