The Carleton Ravens women’s rugby team mauled the McGill Martlets 57-0 in their home opener on Sept. 10 at TAAG Park. The win followed the team’s season-opening 19-12 victory over the Montreal Carabins.
After placing sixth overall in the U Sports top ten rankings this week—the highest in Ravens rugby history—and starting their season with a 2-0 record, the Ravens are full of confidence this season.
“We really emphasize playing as a team on both sides of the ball, attack and defence,” Ravens starting inside centre Claire File said. “Going forward into harder games, we’re confident we’ll be able to do that as well.”
Leading the Ravens was starting full back Vanessa Chiappetta, who racked up two tries and five out of six conversion attempts, totalling 20 points against the Martlets.
Chiapetta was named MVP of the game and U Sports rugby player of the week.
“Vanessa is always an attacking threat,” said Ravens head coach David Luong.
The Ravens demonstrated their offensive determination until the final whistle, hindering the Martlets’ opportunities to turn over possession.
Throughout the game, the Ravens quickly shot up the field to close gaps and regain possession. Eventually, that pressure caused the Martlets’ spirits to weaken.
“It felt like they were scared to run at us because we were so hungry to get the ball back every time,” File said.
With the Ravens spending little time defending, they asserted their dominance on the pitch with aggressive tackles made by the back row of Joleen Mason, Brianna Messer and Jayden Spence. The cohesive defensive unit shut down the few breakaways the Martlets managed.
“There was a lot of good communication in terms of defence as well as the attack,” Luong said. “Defence will win championships.”
File commended her team’s unity throughout the game. She said it allowed her to trust that her teammates had her back and were able to make the next move.
“I was willing to sacrifice my body so that other girls could shoot through and do their thing,” File said. “It felt good to know that the 14 other girls on the field were doing the same thing for me.”
The Ravens are set to host the uOttawa GeeGees at TAAG Park Sept. 21 at 4:00 p.m.
Featured image by Marc Lafleur.
