CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – The Crimson capped a dominant collegiate 15s campaign with a perfect 9–0 record and a historic fourth NIRA championship, defeating Lindenwood in the national final. The title marked the first time any program has claimed four NIRA championships.
Harvard Women's Rugby was led by captains Charlotte Gilmour, Nafanua Malietoa Fitisemanu, and two-time NIRA MVP Tihana Padilla, who earned the honor for the second consecutive season.
Offensively, Gemma Ogoke paced the Crimson with nine tries on the year, followed by Sana'a Lunon with eight, Cameron Fields with seven, and Lennox London with five trys.
The season opened in emphatic fashion with a 55–7 victory over American International College, highlighted by Lunon's hat trick in the closing minutes of her collegiate debut. Harvard followed with a 26–7 win over Lindenwood, fueled by key conversions from Skylar Jordan to maintain control throughout the match.
In their third contest, the Crimson built a commanding lead against Brown University and closed out a 47–8 victory. Harvard then traveled for its first road game of the season, edging Army 32–27 in a tightly contested matchup. After trailing 20–12 at halftime, tries from Ava Ference and Josephine Mignone helped swing momentum, while Fields scored her first try of the season after returning from injury.
The Crimson next faced rival Dartmouth in a dramatic contest. Despite trailing 28–17 late, Harvard mounted a comeback behind tries from Ogoke, London, and Sophie Hayes, with Padilla playing a pivotal role in the rally. Harvard secured a 36–33 victory.
Back at home on Senior Day, Ogoke recorded her first career hat trick and Fields added two more tries as the Crimson defeated Sacred Heart 50–17. Harvard closed the regular season at home against Princeton, finishing conference play with a perfect 7–0 record.
In the NIRA semifinals, No.1 Harvard once again hosted No. 4 Dartmouth, earning a decisive 45–10 win. Ogoke scored twice, while Maya Hilger, Sophie Hayes, Courtney Taylor, and Neasa McLaughlin also found the try zone. Jordan added multiple conversions to seal the victory.
The championship match returned to Cambridge, where No.1 Harvard hosted No. 2 Lindenwood before an electric home crowd. Taylor, Hayes, and Gilmour added vital tries and Lunon hauled in a spectacular cross-field kick from Padilla to score the game-defining try, punctuating Lunon's breakout season and securing Padilla's second straight NIRA MVP honor.
Among postseason accolades, first-years Madelyn Hubbell and Sana'a Lunon continued to make their mark nationally, earning selection to the Team USA Global Youth 7s squad.
This season marked coach Mel Denham's fourth win in nine years as the head coach of Harvard Women's Rugby and her third year in a row winning the title.
