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Rugby, anyone?

In high school, Christine Pulice never dreamed that her car would someday sport a decal that reads: “Saturday’s a Rugby Day.” Now a junior at Susquehanna University, Pulice dedicates five Saturdays a semester to rugby, an aggressive sport that combines football and soccer.

Games are split into 40-minute halves, where teams compete for points by carrying the ball into a “try zone.” The catch is, the ball must be passed backwards and the only protection players wear is a mouth guard.

Initially reluctant to play, Pulice, a native of Greenville, Pa., is now the president of the women’s rugby team, a Division II club sport at Susquehanna. Like several of her teammates, senior Heather Donald began her freshman year looking for a contact sport without the varsity commitment.

Though inexperienced, rugby intrigued her. Now she encourages even the most novice players to try the sport. “I didn’t know anything about the game before I started. Most people don’t, but you shouldn’t let that hold you back,” said Donald, a native of Montclair, N.J. “You need to be patient and trust the coaches. The game actually does make sense once you’re playing.”

Sarah Guill, a senior from Middlebury Center, Pa., shares Donald’s enthusiasm. “I decided to play because it looked like an amazing sport. Once I went to my first practice, I fell in love. Rugby was like nothing I had ever experienced before,” Guill said. In addition to an annual alumnae game, the women’s rugby team faces competition from the University of Scranton, Bucknell University and Bloomsburg University.

Very often, Susquehanna players experience a strong connection to their teammates and to the sport. Elizabeth Balduino, a 2006 graduate from Washington, N.J., described it best on the team’s Web site. “Great game, great team, great friends, great laughs. It doesn’t get any better than this,” she said.

— Tracey Markow ’07, Jackson, N.J.