The Mason Dixon quarterfinals didn’t unfold as predictably as assumed – the hallmark of an interesting post-season. On one end, North Carolina posted a shocking 153 points on Maryland; and on the other end, semifinals’ host James Madison dropped a big game to Virginia Tech.

James Madison finished second in the North division, so a 66-5 loss to South #3 Virginia Tech was far from expected.

“One of our biggest advantages as a team is our fitness,” Virginia Tech coach Lindsay Kahle explained the difference-maker. “We were able to tire them out and continue beating them on the outside with our consistent speed.

“JMU came out hard, and their rucking ability was certainly noticeable,” Kahle added. “I kept telling my girls, ‘If we want to beat this team, we've got to beat them in the rucks.’ And we did.”

Virginia Tech ran in 10 tries, and Abbey Coleman converted eight of them, in addition to dotting down a five-pointer herself. Serena Shantz and Emily Lessner scored three tries apiece; Susie Hoops touched down two; and Jennifer DeLong scored as well.

“The girls simply never let up,” Kahle finished. “Their heart and desire to play the best rugby that they can play, for a full 80 minutes, sets the bar high for any team we face.”

Virginia Tech must get past North Carolina for its post-season to continue, and that’s quite the ask. When the two played each other less than a month ago, UNC won 92-12. On Saturday, the Tar Heels sent 12 different players into Maryland’s try zone while keeping the Terps off of the board.

“During this game, being able to keep our shape and stay disciplined were the reasons the outcome of the game is what it is,” UNC star Naya Tapper explained. “We went into this game wanting to execute our passing skills and tackling techniques, which we believed would lead us to victory, and that's exactly what happened.”

As a result, the Tar Heels synced early and played a fluent game, even when the bench cleared.

“We showed that our team is more than just specific players making all the tries,” continued Tapper. “We are all capable of contributing to a victory, and we showed that during this game.”

Scoring tries were Tapper, Tanya Houston, Cameron Gunn, Ariel Esperancilla, Tavoiyah Whitworth, Lindsey Oliver, Brittany Lademann, Nicole Davis, Ria Sethi, Alicia Wood, Katie Lutton, and Charlotte Randolph.

On the other side of the semifinals, West Chester will take on Virginia, which defeated North #3 Pittsburgh 60-5 on Saturday. The Golden Rams are the only North division team in the final four and advanced after a forfeit win against South #4 NC State.

Stay tuned for this weekend’s results.