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In an intense rematch of last year’s national championship battle, Harvard’s women’s rugby team (8-1-1) retained its title on Nov. 23 by defeating Dartmouth (8-1-0) — the top-ranked team in the nation, by a final score of 19-12 in the NIRA National Championship game.

Harvard avenged its only loss earlier in the of the season against the Big Green and earned its third championship in five years under Head Coach Mel Denham, who is serving in her eighth season.

On the chilly afternoon in Hanover, points were hard to come by. The game remained scoreless after 20 minutes, as both teams struggled to keep the ball, with the defenses forcing several turnovers in a physical contest.

According to senior fullback Chloe Headland, the team remained undeterred at the slow start, knowing the work they put in to be in this position would pay off.

“Going into this season there was a lot of pressure riding on us as National Champions but we were prepared,” Headland said. “Before the season even began we talked about having the ‘earn it’ mindset and locking in to all that was to come in the upcoming season.

“By the end, it was evident that everyone bought into our team value, ‘earn it’, and used that every day whether it was a win or a loss to become a better player, which helped us win the championship,” Headland added. “That buy-in from everyone is what allowed us all to keep pushing and keep fighting for what we knew we could achieve together.”

Harvard struck first in front of a packed crowd. Junior Tiahna Padilla, the 2024 NIRA Championship Most Valuable Player, found Headland, who crossed the try line in the 24th minute to put the Crimson up 5-0. Headland subsequently converted the kick, extending the advantage to 7-0.

Along with the strong performances of upperclassmen, senior flyhalf PK Vincze emphasized the importance of contributions from younger members of the team in maintaining their national champion status.

“I feel like some big impacts from our first-year class and the sophomores stepping up from last year was the piece that we needed to do it again,” Vincze said.

Seven minutes after the opening score, Harvard continued to build on its lead. After Padilla fell just short of the try line, the ball wound up in Vincze’s hands. Out wide on the play, the senior dove across the line to make the score 12-0.

The Big Green, however, wouldn’t bow out without a fight. As the first half wound down, the Crimson allowed a try, tightening the score to 12-5 as the teams looked to recharge during halftime.

Momentum continued to swing in Dartmouth’s direction as the second half started, with the Big Green tying the game at 12-12 after another successful try.

Coming off of its 20-12 15s victory over the Big Green in 2023, Harvard knew the pressure was on.

“This was a tough year because we knew that we had a big challenge coming off two national championship wins in both 7s and 15s last year and some early close games and a tie,” said Vincze.

Despite the adversity, which included the tie against Quinnipiac University and close games against Sacred Heart and Brown, Headland said the Crimson remained levelheaded.

“This team, when compared to last year, has definitely experienced some more lows than I think we were originally expecting, but it also wasn’t something we ever wanted to shy away from,” Headland said. “We expected a challenge and embraced it. It showed us what we needed to work on and every single player took those challenges personally, doing the most to correct them in order to move forward. No one ever backed down from the challenge and we all were ready for it.”

In the 58th minute, Harvard’s decisive, championship-winning moment arrived. A strong maul from the Crimson resulted in senior Carly Lehman crossing the try line, with several members of the team advancing her into the try zone. The scoring play gave Harvard a commanding 19-12 lead entering the final 20 minutes of action, and drove the dagger into Dartmouth’s hopes of winning the national championship.

After several strong defensive stands from the Crimson, whistles blew in the 81st minute, marking just the third time that the away team won the NIRA title.

As the game ended, the team joyously celebrated, with all emotions letting loose.

“Entering the final as the second-place team, after losing to Dartmouth just a month earlier, was a scary realization,” Headland said. “Yet, our team's connection and shared sense of ‘RadLove’ gave us the drive to lean on each other and leave everything on the field in order to win.”.

In pursuit of sustained success, Vincze emphasized the determination that allowed the pack to repeat as national champions.

“I think that in the final we wanted it more, and I remember turning to Chloe at approximately 15 minutes into the game and thinking we can absolutely win this,” Vincze said.

“Overall, a really good way to end my career at Harvard and I am sure I can say the same for the rest of the senior class,” Vincze added.

—Staff writer Praveen Kumar can be reached at praveen.kumar@thecrimson.com.