CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Harvard University women's rugby senior Tiahna Padilla has won the prestigious MA Sorensen Award, given each year to the top collegiate woman rugby player in the USA, becoming the first student-athlete in program history to win the award.
 
The MA Sorensen Award honors MaryAnn (MA) Sorensen, a trailblazing player, coach, and physician who captained the United States to a championship at the 1991 Women's Rugby World Cup and later competed in two more finals. Her legacy celebrates excellence on the field and beyond, and she continues to present the award annually at the Washington Athletic Club awards dinner in Seattle.
 
Padilla – a four-time finalist and a four-time nominee for the award – has made history as she earns collegiate women's rugby's top honor. The senior captain has been instrumental in leading Harvard to a historic three-peat, earning MVP honors for the second time this fall and First-Team All-NIRA recognition for the fourth consecutive year. A member of the USA senior pipeline since her first year, Padilla holds the program record for career assists. This season, she tallied 95 tackles, 11 turnovers, six assists, and 66 carries, while setting up two clutch tries — including the game-winner in the Dartmouth Ivy Title match with a last-second line break and offload.
 
Padilla will be formally recognized on June 13 in a gala at the Washington Athletic Club in Seattle.