“I think that in general this year we have more depth and we have more experience,” Schwartz said. “While last year was definitely challenging in terms of having a young team and having an inexperienced team, now...we have a little more depth and we're able to play people at the positions where they are more comfortable and more experienced.”

The team is looking to return healthy and has its sights set on playing in nationals after a hard-fought loss in the semifinals of last years American Collegiate Rugby Association National Championship 7’s.

“We were playing some of the top teams in the country, and we were able to compete,” Burns said.

Despite its youth, the team lost quite a bit of talent in last year’s senior class with captain Brooke Kantor and U.S. national team member and offensive power Cheta Emba.

However, the team still has several standout returning players in junior and Brazilian national team fly-half Taciana Pereira, sophomore Maya Learned, and co-captains Schwartz and Burns.

“The thing is, people step up every year, and it’s not just seniors,” Burns said. “There’s a lot that we’re doing, but it’s a team effort.”

—Staff writer Troy Boccelli can be reached at tboccelli@college.harvard.edu.