The No. 12 Lady Ruggers showcased their depth last night at the west ruby field on campus. Clarion threw its best at Penn State's B-side only to be completely dominated in a 31-12 shellacking.

The Lady Ruggers scored a try early as Mary Creighton put on a show. After tracking down a Clarion kick, the fullback booted the ball over Clarion's defense, jarred the ball loose with a hit and raced in to put Penn State up 5-0. She kicked the conversion to put the Lions up 7-0.

With the score at 21-12, rookie sophomore Betsy van Bourgondien snuffed out any hopes Clarion clung to. With ball secured in arm, her teammates pushed her in for the try. She then picked a loose ball up and sprinted into the try zone. The conversion sailed through the uprights and put the Ruggers safely ahead 31-12, and that's how it remained during the final minutes of play.

Coach Pete Steinberg was pleased with the performance the girls put on. It showed their depth heading into the all-important Sweet 16, where Penn State is seeded No. 12. A number of the inexperienced girls are starting to mature.

"We played with a lot of agression, which is really important," Steinberg said. "It's a big deal for a lot of the girls when they go out for rugby. Often it takes them a while to get used to the contact." The bumps and bruises that the team has should not pose a threat to the championship run.

"There's no position out there that would really jeopardize us," Steinberg said on how the team would be affected by having to put in a backup. "It might be a small step down, but there isn't anything that would be that bad."

From the fourth spot in their bracket, they will have to take on Stanford, a traditional Final Four team. Although Stanford may have the higher seed, they will have to travel east to University Park for the contest. Penn State has advanced to the Final Four almost every year since the team was founded over a decade ago. The two powerhouses will clash here, which has its advantages and disadvantages.

"It makes it difficult sometimes for us to focus," Steinberg said. "On the road you don't have to deal with the distractions."

The A-side team will play the Keystone team this weekend before the Sweet 16. The winner of the Penn State-Stanford game will go on to play the winner of the UC-San Diego-Colorado game.