Op-Ed: Quinnipiac Eliminating Rugby as Varsity Brings Up Previous Title IX Issues

04.28.2026College Women

Author: GRR Contributor

Op-Ed: This Op-Ed is authored by Tyler Kania, author of The Maniac with No Knees,Tyler has been monitoring and covering Quinnipiac University's decision to eliminate rugby as a varsity sport for women.

Quinnipiac’s Termination of Women’s Rugby Reminds Some of the Title IX Case that Reinstated Quinnipiac Women’s Volleyball.

After Quinnipiac terminated its women’s volleyball program (as well as two men’s programs while adding competitive cheerleading) in 2009, a district court found that it had systematically and artificially increased the women’s team’s roster and decreased the men’s team’s roster to create the appearance of compliance with Title IX, leading to the women’s volleyball program’s eventual reinstatement. (https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/9214951/quinnipiac-bobcats-settle-gender-discrimination-lawsuit)

The move earlier this month by Quinnipiac to terminate its three-time NIRA championship Women’s Rugby program and replace it with a men’s long-distance track team composed of current varsity athletes from the Men’s Cross-Country team is reminiscent of the precedent set by the Women’s Volleyball program, as the long-distance track program will not create any new varsity opportunities ( https://frontofficesports.com/quinnipiac-varsity-womens-rugby-to-club/)

I spoke with a half-dozen or so former Quinnipiac Women’s Rugby players and learned of a long history of unequal treatment toward their program.

This includes a school President who did not know of or attend a NIRA National Championship celebration, an administration that did not provide team memorabilia or press coverage, and inadequate space for practice or games.

Former Quinnipiac All-American, Olympian, and 2016-2017 MA Sorenson Award Winner as the nation's top women's college rugby player, Ilona Maher, is the most famous women’s rugby player in the world. In addition, Quinnipiac Women’s Rugby boasts at least twelve other former All-Americans, including Tayler Schussler, whom I interviewed for this story.

“My Junior year, we won the national championship, but you wouldn’t have known it if you were a student following the Quinnipiac sports accounts on social media. No one really knew the history we had just made. The school gave us shirts, but they were misspelled.”

The following year, they won another NIRA Championship, and Quinnipiac President John Leahy seemed unaware. After being asked why he didn’t attend the team pep rally, he remarked, “I have no recollection of any event to which you are referring. Unfortunately, with 20-plus athletic teams, I’m sure I missed more than my share of athletic events.”

Former All-American Wing Rebecca Haight said, “It didn’t feel like we were supported by the university, so I remember being deeply disappointed.”

Next Steps

The women would like to hire a legal team, but, despite numerous attempts to request access, the university is withholding $60,000 in donations explicitly designated for the women's rugby program, including $18,000 raised at the Bobcat Challenge Fundraiser last fall.

Associate Vice President of Communications, John Morgan, stated that the money has been reappropriated for the club women’s rugby program, but the administration has not provided the program with guidance on how to access it.

As of April 27th, there is no club women’s rugby contact or page on the website (https://www.qu.edu/student-life/athletics-and-recreation/club-sports/)