Rambelle Rugby
It's Not Ballet
By: Amanda Razani
Issue date: 11/6/09 Section: Features
Rugby is a mix of track, soccer and football essentially, according to Ally McKinney, president of the girl's rugby team.
"You need the speed of a track athlete, the endurance of a soccer player and the ability to lay a hit like a football player," McKinney said.
The girl's rugby team has already started a winning tradition since forming in August.
"We had two games against University of Texas and one game against Texas State, and we won all of them," said Terra Weden, secretary of the team.
McKinney said she did not know what rugby was until her boyfriend started playing it. She would go to his practices and games to watch.
"There was another core group of girls that would watch the guys as well, and we always talked about how awesome it would be to have a girl's rugby team," she said. "At one of the first meetings we had about forming this team, we discussed why we wanted the team, and the main reason was to be a part of a real team again. We wanted this team to start something ASU had never seen before."
However, McKinney said it was difficult to get the team started. They tried to develop the team last spring; beginning by watching the guy's team practice and by playing around on the sidelines, sometimes jumping into the scrimmages.
She and another member, sophomore April Zuniga, made about 200 recruitment flyers one evening and posted them around campus to recruit more members. Finally, in late August, they got 15 girls, which was enough for a team.
"I then asked Nick Flynn, the guy's team adviser, if he could recommend any coaches for us," McKinney said. "He said Josh Collins would be our best bet, so Nick and I emailed Josh, and he accepted and brought along two more coaches for us, Rustin Taber and Simukayi Nyakunika."
Girl's rugby is a club team, which is different than an intramural team or intercollegiate team. It is different from an intramural team because it is a school organization that plays against other schools.
"You need the speed of a track athlete, the endurance of a soccer player and the ability to lay a hit like a football player," McKinney said.
The girl's rugby team has already started a winning tradition since forming in August.
"We had two games against University of Texas and one game against Texas State, and we won all of them," said Terra Weden, secretary of the team.
McKinney said she did not know what rugby was until her boyfriend started playing it. She would go to his practices and games to watch.
"There was another core group of girls that would watch the guys as well, and we always talked about how awesome it would be to have a girl's rugby team," she said. "At one of the first meetings we had about forming this team, we discussed why we wanted the team, and the main reason was to be a part of a real team again. We wanted this team to start something ASU had never seen before."
However, McKinney said it was difficult to get the team started. They tried to develop the team last spring; beginning by watching the guy's team practice and by playing around on the sidelines, sometimes jumping into the scrimmages.
She and another member, sophomore April Zuniga, made about 200 recruitment flyers one evening and posted them around campus to recruit more members. Finally, in late August, they got 15 girls, which was enough for a team.
"I then asked Nick Flynn, the guy's team adviser, if he could recommend any coaches for us," McKinney said. "He said Josh Collins would be our best bet, so Nick and I emailed Josh, and he accepted and brought along two more coaches for us, Rustin Taber and Simukayi Nyakunika."
Girl's rugby is a club team, which is different than an intramural team or intercollegiate team. It is different from an intramural team because it is a school organization that plays against other schools.
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