In what has become the standard, the Army (4-2) vs. American International College (2-3) game came down to single digits. Saturday’s game was the tightest contest to date, as the Black Knights went ahead 19-17 in the 70^th minute and held on for the win.

Army’s Kirsten Redmon scored first, and Nicole Heavirland’s conversion put the host up 7-0. AIC answered with back-to-back tries from freshmen Anne-Laurence Harvey and Bulou Mataitoga. Harvey handled the conversion for the 12-7 lead into the break.

Heavirland opened up the second half with a try, tying it up, and then a third AIC freshman, Shanell Rosso, dotted down for the 17-12 lead after 55 minutes.

“We played a lot of defense,” AIC coach Dimitri Efthimiou said. “We spent, maybe, 40% of the second half on our 22 trying to stop Army. We’d kick it away, and then they’d come right back.”

Finally, the Black Knights were able to capitalize on that territory, and Zye Crittington scored the tying points. The centered try was an easy conversion for Heavirland, 19-17.

But there were 10 minutes left, and AIC had its opportunities to take the win. Muneera Patton, AIC's only senior, was particularly adept on defense, causing turnovers and putting the ball back in her team's hands. 

It came down to the last play of the game, and AIC was attacking in Army’s end. But one too many offloads in contact saw a handling error essentially end the Yellow Jackets’ chance to score.

"We have trouble being patient sometimes,” Efthimiou said. “We have a lot of players who can move the ball from sideline to sideline quickly, but sometimes it’s better to settle down and work phase play.

“They know it," the coached added. "We’ve been talking about settling down, especially when close to the tryline, and not sending 50/50 passes. It really hit them this time, because the entire game was on the line. But I think going into next week, they’ll be much more careful and patient with the ball.”

The team was disappointed with the result, but Efthimiou is happy with how his young team is developing. For one, AIC is embracing a wider, faster game, and much of that has to do with the injection of freshmen speed and a solid halfback combo.

Angie Ramos is a little of both. The freshman scrumhalf is a great distributor, and the team’s ability to realize a faster game begins with her. She also links up well with new flyhalf Shamira Robles.

“She’s done a fantastic job so far,” Efthimiou said of the sophomore standoff. “A big part of her game is working on calming down in certain situations while being aggressive in others. It’s decision-making, taking cues from the defense when to move the ball quickly or go forward. It’ll come with time, and there’s plenty of season left.”

Canadian import Harvey leads the team with 114 points in five matches.

“She’s probably one of the quietest people to work with on the team, but she is very coachable,” Efthimiou said. “She knows she has to improve parts of her game; she runs a little too much and doesn’t lean on her ability to pass or read the field sometimes. She’s got a habit of tucking the ball and going, instead of realizing a big overlap out wide. She just needs to figure out that part of the game.”

With that said, no team has been able to silence the inside center. She pairs well with twin Elizabeth, who starts at fullback.

In the forwards, watch for sophomore Kayla Clark. She gets a lot of time in the second row, but she has the credentials to play anywhere in the pack, except hooker.

“She is definitely one who should be moving up the ranks,” Efthimiou praised. “She’s a big body but very fit. She skilled, a good tackler, rucker, tracker, and is becoming more dynamic. We move her around a lot.”

After Sacred Heart this weekend, AIC will zone in on Quinnipiac. The Yellow Jackets and Bobcats have posted similar results against Army and Norwich, so this Oct. 22 game has good potential for another single-digit decision.

Although AIC has found itself on the losing end of a few tough matches, Efthimiou confirmed that he would much rather play in a league where 100-point victories do not occur, for the most part. Every weekend is exciting, and these challenging games are only going to produce better, hardened rugby players.