HOUSTON, Texas – The Crimson rugby team put on a show in Houston to start day one of competition at the Sevens National Championship Tournament after winning three games in pool play, advancing to the quarterfinal, and defeating American International College to move on to the Cup Semifinal. Harvard only allowed five points from their opposition and won games by scores of 53-0, 34-5, 34-0 and 32-0.
Pool Play Game 1 | Harvard 53, New Haven 0
The Crimson got on the board early with two tries from
Cameron Fields, the first followed by a conversion from
Chloe Headland. Harvard only built on their lead from that point on, as
Alex Pipkin joined Fields in a multiple-try game. An outstanding defensive effort held New Haven scoreless as the Crimson ended game one of the day with a 51-0 victory.
Pool Play Game 2 | Harvard 34, Grand Canyon 5
Harvard once again put the ball in the hands of Fields to score the first try of the game.
Lennox London then took over and scored her first of what would be three tries in game two. Grand Canyon was then able to put five points on the board, but it was all Crimson from there. Highlighted by
Brogan Mior's try followed by her own conversion and two more tries from London, Harvard paved an easy path to the quarterfinal with a 34-5 victory over Grand Canyon.
Pool Play Game 3 | Harvard 34, Penn State 0
In what appears to be the new standard for pool play, Fields got the ball across the line early in game three to score the first try over the Nittany Lions. From there, Harvard held strong defensively to keep their opponent from scoring a single point as Mior,
Reese Morgan and
Victoria Stanley added to the Crimson's score with
Skylar Jordan and Headland making conversions. With this win, Harvard secured the top spot in their pool and advanced to the cup quarterfinal against the second seed in pool c.
Cup Quarterfinal | Harvard 32, American International 0
Stanley was first to cross the line in the Cup Quarterfinal, putting the ball in a good position for Headland to make the first conversion. The Crimson then made four perfectly executed passes to cross the field and bring Mior in for a try. To end the first half, Harvard held American International on their end of the field without allowing them to score a point.
The second half went similar in fashion to the first, with the Crimson dominating the play on the field and holding American International to zero points. London scored her fifth and sixth tries of the day and Pipkin and
Jordan Roe added tries to their championship resume.
Up Next
Harvard will face Life University at 10 a.m. EST in the Cup Semifinal. The game will take place in the stadium and air on the Rugby Network. The winner of the semifinal will advance to the Championship game at 4 p.m. EST while the loser will play for third place at 3:20 p.m. EST. Keep up with GoCrimson.com and the team's social media for score updates.
