Army West Point Athletics
Army West Point
Harvard University
Women's Rugby Falls in NIRA Semifinal at Harvard
November 12, 2022 | Women's Rugby
CAMBRIDGE, MASS – Army West Point women's rugby fell in the NIRA National Semifinals to Harvard by a score of 41-24 on Saturday afternoon. Army jumped out to a 7-0 lead before the Crimson scored three unanswered tries to take a 19-7 lead into the half.
After a wire-to-wire battle at West Point just two weeks ago, the teams traded possession over the first ten minutes in the midfield. The first inspiring action of the contest came from Gillian Scott, who picked off an errant offload right at the midway point. Scott was able to snare the takeaway in stride and touch down right in between the goal posts, giving Alissa Eisenhart an easy conversion to give Army a 7-0 lead.
GILLIAN SCOTT GIVES ARMY THE LEAD! ??
— Army Women's Rugby (@ArmyWP_WRugby) November 12, 2022
?? https://t.co/egnq0Dr4gJ#GoArmy pic.twitter.com/ToUpbPIq3f
The Crimson would answer right back just a few minutes later, with Alex Pipkin ultimately tying the score with a try after finding space down the right side. With 9 minutes left in the half, Army got the ball deep into the Harvard half, but the Crimson was able to regain possession at the goal line and go on the attack.
Harvard took its first lead of the contest with seven minutes to go in the half after a line break and try from Brogan Mior, making it 12-7. With Army seemingly holding the final possession of the first half, a costly turnover led to a last-second try and conversion to make it 19-7 in favor of the Crimson at the break.
The Black Knights would not get out on the front foot in the second half, with an early try from the home side making it 24-7 with just over 36 minutes remaining. However, Army responded immediately with Kaylee Cargile plowing her way through multiple Harvard defenders on her way to the try line. Eisenhart battled through tough winds to knock in the conversion and make it a ten-point game.
The Crimson would score back-to-back tries in the ensuing minutes to get out to a more comfortable 34-14 advantage. Eisenhart pulled the Black Knights closer with a rare drop kick to make it 34-17. After another try from Harvard, Molly Murtagh added a try with one minute remaining to bring the final score to 41-24.
Cadets Capsules
- Alissa Eisenhart led the Black Knights with nine points after starring as Army's number 10 all season.
- Kaylee Cargile scored her third try of the season while scoring a try against the Crimson in the home fixture.
- Gillian Scott broke the deadlock with her second try of the season.
- Molly Murtagh concluded her junior campaign with a last-minute try.
Army concludes the 2022 15s season with a 6-2 overall record and will look ahead to the 7s season in the fall.
Players Mentioned
