PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The Navy women's rugby team (0-1, 0-1 NIRA) showed late resilience during a second-half rally but ultimately fell to Brown (1-0, 1-0 NIRA), 33-17, in a National Intercollegiate Rugby Association (NIRA) contest on Saturday afternoon at Berylson Family Fields in Providence, R.I.
 
"It was a strong team effort today as every starter and sub left it all on the pitch," head coach Murph McCarthy said. "We had six players competing in their first varsity game, and we still had a chance to come back and win. Ellie [Pierson] and Keira [Cole] were everywhere on defense, and Meagan [Alvarez] was a big spark for our offense."
 
Team captain Meagan Alvarez led Navy's offensive efforts against Brown, accounting for a team-high 10 points by finding the try zone twice during a three-minute span in the second half.
 
The Bears struck early, capitalizing on a Navy turnover deep in Midshipmen territory to set up a Charlotte Davies try in the seventh minute. Just three minutes later, a Navy penalty on the resuming kickoff sparked a length-of-the-field run for a try by Maggie Hoffman-Long. Davies added the conversion kick to give Brown a 12-0 advantage.
 
Navy's defense settled in from there, forcing timely stops to keep the game within reach. The Midshipmen broke through offensively in the 25th minute when Mia Young broke loose for a long run. Young offloaded to Cecilia Izquierdo, who quickly dished the ball to Arica Spencer for Navy's first try of the day, making it 12-5 heading into halftime.
 
Brown opened the second half swiftly. The Bears forced a turnover off a Navy offload in the 41st minute, and Priscilla Maalouf ran in untouched for a try. A successful conversion kick extended Brown's lead to 19-5.
 
Navy quickly answered with a dominant rushing attack. In the 45th minute, crisp passing down the field when Alexis Rohrbach found Young, who connected with Alvarez for the score. Three minutes later, Grace McDonald broke a long run into Bears territory. Giada MacNamara fought through a tackle to reach the 5-meter line, setting up a quick handoff to Alvarez for her second try. Young drilled the conversion kick, pulling the Mids within two points at 19-17.
 
Brown halted Navy's momentum in the 59th minute. After a Midshipmen penalty in a scrum, Val Detheux powered in a try, pushing the Bears' lead to 26-17 after the conversion.
 
Brown's Genie Dickens sealed the 33-17 victory with a final try in the 80th minute following a deep run into Navy's 22-meter zone.
 
The Midshipmen will look to bounce back when they travel to Springfield, Mass., to take on American International College (AIC) on Saturday, Sept. 19. Kickoff against the Yellow Jackets is scheduled for 11 a.m.
 
Box Score
6:34 – Try – Brown – Charlotte Davies (0-5)
 
9:50 – Try – Brown – Maggie Hoffman-Long (0-10)
Conversion kick – Charlotte Davies (0-12)
 
24:05 – Try – Navy – Arica Spencer (5-12)
 
40:40 – Try – Brown – Priscilla Maalouf (5-17)
Conversion kick (5-19)
 
44:01 – Try – Navy – Meagan Alvarez (10-19)
 
47:15 – Try – Navy – Meagan Alvarez (15-19)
Conversion kick – Mia Young (17-19)
 
58:57 – Try – Brown – Val Detheux (17-24)
Conversion kick – Genie Dickens (17-26)
 
79:52 – Try – Brown – Genie Dickens (17-31)
Conversion kick – Annie Hall (17-33)