As if winning one national championship wasn't enough of a statement, the Penn State Lady Ruggers aren't shy about their desire to duplicate last year's achievement.

"It sounds conceited, but we want to win it," said Amy Manidis, a senior flanker.

And how they played this season shows that they truly want another title. In a 2004 winter season in which they were 9-1 (3-0), the Lady Ruggers played every match with an intent to win, but most importantly with the spring season -- or playoffs -- in their sights.

The Lady Ruggers will be the No. 2 seed in the Mid-Atlantic region playoffs.

Oct. 23 and Oct. 24 were the team's two most important matches. Penn State faced a reminder of last year's road to a championship with consecutive matches against Princeton and Navy, the reverse order of last season's championship and semifinal victories. With Navy, a divisional competitor in the Potomac Rugby Union, Princeton became a secondary concern.

"Princeton was a 'friendly match.' but putting our self in a better position to win the [Potomac Rugby Union] made more sense," senior captain Maggie Reed said.

The effect was Penn State's only loss of the regular season. Princeton handled a Lady Ruggers lineup cluttered with inexperienced players, 31-0. Though the rookies played well for most of the game, Penn State gave up three tries in the first 15 minutes, mostly off of turnovers. The performance left many feeling disappointed about the team's approach going into the match.

"One of our problems as a team is we aren't always mentally prepared," Manidis said, "It was a wake-up call."

Though they were intentionally shorthanded, losing was still not an option for a championship contender that Penn State believed it was. For the Lady Ruggers to even put themselves in a situation where they thought they could afford to rest their veteran players means they had confidence in their depth.

"It's awesome that we have such great players. Some that are on our bench would start for every other team in the country," Manidis said.

Coming into the season the Lady Ruggers returned 25 players from last year's roster. Still many critics before the season pointed to the absence of three All-Americans: flanker Devon Boyle, three-quarter Jenny Lui, and scrumhalf Kim Magrini.

Magrini, the former Penn State star is now the captain of the USA under-23 team. Emerging this winter in place her place was junior scrumhalf Teri O'Brien, who had big shoes to fill.

Many players stepped up into prominent roles this season. A consistent performer has been fullback Diana Klein, who has been key in distributing the ball to the wings while also capitalizing on great play from the backs, who are especially quick and strong this year.

Most importantly, during the biggest match of the year the entire Penn State team stood out. On Oct. 30, the same day that their football counterparts lost to the Ohio State, the Lady Ruggers prepared to play their match against one of the rugby powers of the Midwest in the Buckeyes. The conditions for the match were out of the ordinary, as not only was the game moved to a turf field, but the jeering fans moved with them to raz the Lady Ruggers about a football game that they could do nothing about. The shots from Ohio State players were the most hurtful.

"Those girls hit hard," Manidis said.

After a tight first half where the score was only 5-0 in favor of Penn State, the Lady Ruggers proved up to the challenge in the second half. Penn State matched Ohio State's toughness and bested their energy, beating the Buckeyes 29-5 with a great second-half effort. Not only was this a win for Penn State on the day that Ohio State seemed to have all the glory, but it was also a landmark victory for the Lady Ruggers.

"We showed with both our 'A' and 'B' side what depth and commitment of play we bring to the table," Reed said.

The players also give credit for their high level of play to coach Pete Steinberg and his staff. Steinberg, who last year accomplished the balancing act of bringing two teams, Penn State in Div. I and Temple in Div. II, women's rugby national championships, has Penn State on the winning track once again.

Penn State has set itself up with a good situation for going deep into April and into May through the postseason and to the finals. And for Reed, that might be the only suitable reward for her coach.

"We can't repay [Steinberg] for what he's done for us. Maybe win him a national championship," Reed said.

And the players are more than ready to try to get that done, again.

"It's go time," Manidis said.