PSU ‘Mauraders’ crush Keene 29-7

Quinn Hagerty

He/Him

Staff writer

9/28/23

September 16th marked a cloudy morning, but for the Women’s Rugby Team at the Ice Arena Field, their win against Keene State was clear as day. With a final score of 29-7, the team – “The Marauders” – continued to push Keene back from scoring, even when they were practically in the end zone while delivering their own crushing runs. 

“The forwards do the dirty work, and the backs look pretty” joked Laryssa Landmesser, backward captain, and the driving force behind half of those 29 points. This is her first time as backward captain, but her second year playing for The Marauders. 

“It’s so nice cause you can have anyone join,” Egan commented first-time forward captain Shannon Egan, “It’s just not a sport where you need to have a certain type of athletic build or a certain type of background”. Egan shared how she played a variety of different sports throughout high school, but had never touched a rugby ball before playing at PSU, a sentiment echoed by Hassell and Landmesser. “But we have some girls who have played every single sport you can think of, and some who have never touched a field before in their lives, so it’s kinda nice because it’s not really a sport where you feel like you can’t be welcome” 

Liz Hassell, veteran player, and the team’s social media manager, shared how even players who don’t necessarily get to play are still included, and as a whole, they all agree there is a strong sense of family surrounding the team. Most of the upperclassmen on the team are neighbors, if not living with each other, and their near familial bond is essential to the team at large.

The three also spoke about the nature of the game, in particular, how rough it can be, “especially if it’s your first year and you’re not really sure about yourself” said Landmesser. The EMT was on no less than four different times during the scrimmage. A woman from Keene State even needed stitches for a wound in her cheek. This may be how rugby goes, and perhaps a more dramatic case due to some player’s inexperience, but it is not helped by the fact the rugby team at PSU is a club sport.

The team not only had to hire the EMT for scrimmage, but the referee too – the three women spoke very much about doing a lot of background work to keep the ship afloat, as outside of transportation and some hotel housing costs, the school is largely uninvolved with the team.“We don’t have the facilities for it, and all those other teams are able to get team lifts, or have extra time to come to school two weeks early… People get hurt, and it’s a club sport, and it’s like where’s the trainer? We don’t have a trainer to go and get checked by, we just go to urgent care, [or] go to Shannon because she’s a nursing major.” Landmesser explained.

The captains wear the situation as a badge of honor. “Everything we do because we want to play,” Egan said. “We’re student-athletes, just like all of [the other school sports], but we run the show” Hassell agrees. The trio are confident that nationals might even be within their grasp this year. With a drive to play even when the odds are stacked against them, and a team of both new and old players, it’s easy to see why the women are so excited.