Indiana and Michigan were both undefeated as they entered last weekend’s match, and had enjoyed some good warm-up matches to prepare for the competitiveness of the Big Ten. Both teams are working with large pockets of young, developing players, which bodes well for the future, but adds some stress to the present. The Redstorm did a better job of leaning on its senior players and beat Michigan 48-12.

“The difference-maker was the scrums,” Indiana coach Vaughn Mitchell explained. “And with the rain and wind being factors, we had a lot of scrums, which gave us the upper hand.”

That’s where Indiana’s experience lies – in its pack. The front row of Karen Strunk, Angela Korori, and Brittany Reedy have stepped into leadership positions this fall, and Mitchell believes the tight five has the potential to be one of the strongest groups he’s ever coached.

In fact, the entire team has the potential to be one of his best – it just has to put in the work. The backline is young, as is the flanker position, but the units did well to subdue a Michigan backline that sported two hard-running centers. Led by senior Ambrie Cwik and freshman flyhalf Lauren Lad, the backs exerted good pressure in the breakdowns and limited Michigan’s breakaways.

“We had some competitive competition the first three weeks of the season and they needed to learn on the fly,” Mitchell reflected on the Lindenwood and Davenport friendlies. “The younger players have improved tremendously since the beginning of the season.”

Michigan has one of the biggest rookie classes it has ever experienced, and first-year head coach Shaina Warner is leaning on men’s coach Brandon Sparks and alum Anna Dauod for support.

“The motto for this season is, ‘It takes a village to raise a rugby team,’” said Warner, who served as assistant coach last year. “The whole team is very coachable and we are beginning to have a more established and sophisticated backline. Once we have the team communicating efficiently and working together, the girls will be very successful.”

Michigan won its first two conference games over Ohio State and Michigan State thanks to superior fitness and rugby knowledge, but a structured game plan is still in the works.

“As long as we learn from our mistakes each game and continue to grow our understanding of the game, the girls will be very successful,” Warner summarized. 

The Wolverines have it tough this weekend, taking on Penn State, which defeated Notre Dame 75-7 last Saturday. Indiana gets the weekend off and will resume Oct. 16 against the Irish.