In the battle between the growing number of varsity teams and the improving club programs in women's college rugby, varsity won out at the USA Rugby College 7s Championships in Glendale, CO, on Sunday.

The top five finishers in the three-day tournament were all varsity squads, culminating with Lindenwood's 31-12 win over Life for the Lions' first national title. The two finalists were followed by third-place Central Washington, fourth-place Dartmouth, and fifth-place Army. While the varsity teams were able to reload after 15s season and control the opposition at Infinity Park, the top-finishing club team, Penn State (which is pretty close to varsity anyway), might also point to the fact that two weeks ago it was playing a DI Elite 15s final.

Lindenwood joined Life and Penn State in dominating pool play competition, as all three went 3-0 with similar points for and against (average of 110-17). Hannah Gauthreaux and Richelle Stephens paced the Lions' performance in their biggest pool play game -- a startlingly in-control 31-0 shutout of Dartmouth.

Life put together an impressive 24-17 defeat of Central Washington in pool play, and Penn State stayed undefeated after a somewhat worrying 19-17 win over Army. Penn State led 19-7 thanks in part to two tries from Tess Feury, only to see Army storm back to score twice. But one missed conversion left the Nittany Lions with a two-point victory.



But it's not a one-day tournament. It's a two-day tournament. And how teams rebound and reload for day two often tells the tale. Central Washington had a nice one-two punch in Cassidy Meyers, a small, scrappy playmaker and finisher, and Sui A'au, a straight ahead power forward. In a 17-12 win over Army, the Wildcats fell behind 12-5, but Meyers and A'au scored -- the latter finishing off the game with her try -- to capture the quarterfinal.

Life had difficulty with UC Davis after running out to a 14-point lead thanks to the try-scoring touch of Alexandria Sedrick. Davis stormed back but couldn't quite tie it in a 19-17 loss. Lindenwood shut out Michigan 17-0, content to let its defense shine. Meanwhile, Life outlasted Penn State 20-14, with Feury and Corinne Heavner scoring for the Nittany Lions.

It was at this point that the experience and fitness of Life and Lindenwood began to show. Lindenwood clamped down on CWU and produced a 21-0 shutout that was impressive considering Central's many offensive weapons. Lindenwood's scorers were the usual suspects -- Natalie Kosko scoring two, Gauthraux going over for one, and Stephens converting all three.

Life hit Dartmouth hard, running aggressively and tackling even more so. Sedrick, Kimberly Semiglia, and Madison Ohmann staked the Running Eagles to a 21-5 lead, and they cruised from there.

The final, then, was about two relatively new varsity programs with solid athletic credentials and a commitment to playing sevens. In the end, both teams had made it there thanks to their defense, and it was defense that dominated. Tired, a little battered, and with onrushing defenders in their face, players from both sides struggled to piece together the kind of scoring movements they really wanted. Lindenwood did a better job, and the Lions also did a better job making life pay for mistakes.

It was 7-5 for Life when Gauthreaux burst through to give her side the lead. McKenzie Hawkins then scored twice in the second half, and despite losing Stephens to a worrying arm injury, the Lions were champs. Central Washington dominated Dartmouth for third, while Army held off a late Penn State charge for fifth.

Gauthreaux was named MVP, but it was clearly a full-squad effort.

Full Women College 7s Placement

1. Lindenwood
2. Life
3. CWU
4. Dartmouth
5. Army
6. Penn State
7. Michigan and UC Davis
9. Davenport
10. Princeton
11. Montana State
12. Texas A&M