Mighty fall as Vassar defeats Lady Ruggers

Goliath thought he could easily defeat David. The Penn State women's rugby team thought the same about Vassar.

They were both mistaken.

"We went in thinking we were going to run over them," Penn State scrumhalf Kelly Kio said. "We didn't get our heads in the game and once they scored first, that really upset us."

Thorn said the Ruggers seemed to defeat themselves by not concentrating on their opponent. Even the physical elements of a raw sport like rugby sometimes take a back seat to the psychology of the players.

"If we have the skills, but not the mental game, the plays won't matter," Thorn said. "We have to go out on the field focused and mentally prepared."

Penn State eight man Jen Sikora said the game, even with its disappointing result, was necessary. She said the game allowed older players to rest and younger players to prove themselves in different positions.

Thorn said the team was able to make many good continuous plays and now it is clear what the team has to work on. Also, Kio said on-field communication against Vassar was sub-par.

Yet, having younger players on the field also made it difficult for the team to catch up to Vassar in the early half of the game.

"Vassar just came out and dominated the tempo of the game," Sikora said. "The lack of veterans on the field made it hard to gain control."

The Ruggers needed to let some players rest because the team will host rival Princeton this weekend. Since Princeton beat Vassar twice this season by a combined score of 90-3, this presents a unique situation to the Ruggers.

Sikora said the team will play every healthy veteran to match up against Princeton and probably won't be overconfident of Princeton because of its strong program.

"We just have to work on our mental skills. Once we make that step, we'll be fine," Thorn said. "It's just a matter of when we'll make that step."