KUTZTOWN, Pa. -- The Kutztown University women's rugby team will take a major step up in competition this weekend when it competes in the Women's Premier Cup bracket of the Collegiate Rugby Championship Nationals 7s at the Maryland SoccerPlex in the Washington, D.C. metro area.

The Golden Bears are making a return trip to the national tournament after competing in the D1 Club section of last year's tournament, which was held in New Orleans. Kutztown won a pair of matches in pool play, before defeating IUPUI 22-5 in the fifth-place consolation semifinals. The team went on to finish sixth in its section, dropping the fifth-place match to Iowa State, 22-10.

This year's tournament will be a wildly different experience as one of the final entrants into the Premier Cup bracket. Kutztown will be up against the best of the best in the 16-team knockout tournament. As the No. 8 seed in the West, the Bears will square off with top-seeded and heavy favorite, Brown University, in the opening round. Brown is expected to compete for the national title, but the Maroon and Gold would like to throw a wrench into those plans. It may seem a tall order, but the Bears have a victory over West No. 2 seed Navy to claim February's Frostbite 7s tournament title in Landisville, Pa., so make no mistake, they'll be ready to compete.

Teams are guaranteed at least four matches this weekend. The winner of Brown/Kutztown will move on to the Premier Cup quarterfinals against the No. 4 Northern Iowa/No. 5 Indiana winner. The rest of the West bracket is made up of Navy, No. 3 Michigan, No. 6 Iowa State and No. 7 Texas A&M. The eight first round losers from the Premier Cup fall into the Survivor Bowl. Four first round losers from the Survivor Bowl drop into the third-tier Challenge Shield. Four teams that fall in the second round of the Premier Cup go immediately into the Contender Plate bracket. Teams will compete for places 1-4 in all brackets: Premier Cup, Survivor Bowl, Contender Plate and Challenge Shield.

Following their late February appearance at the Frostbite 7s, Kutztown and first-year head coach Teresa Brutto, competed in tournaments against Mid-Atlantic Rugby Conference (MARC) opponents throughout the remainder of the spring season. The Maroon and Gold were in action at Bloomsburg, Temple (Philadelphia), Temple (Ambler Campus) and the MARC D2 7s hosted by Rowan.

This weekend's tournament is under the direction of the National Collegiate Rugby (NCR) organizing body for the second year. Some teams, including defending Premier Cup champion Lindenwood and runner-up Life University, have opted to play in USA Rugby's College Rugby Association of America (CRAA) 7s Championship in early May.

All matches this weekend will be streamed through NCR's YouTube account. Some matches will be simulcast by The Rugby Network. CLICK HERE for the link to NCR's CRC streaming gateway. The link provides ease of streaming to all different fields. Kutztown opens Premier Cup play at 10:28 a.m. Friday on the stadium field against Brown. The Rugby Network and NCR YouTube will carry that match. Follow the linked weekend schedule for subsequent game times, opponents and field locations to locate the proper stream.


KUTZTOWN UNIVERSITY WOMEN'S RUGBY CRC NATIONAL 7s LINEUP
1. Gabrielle Quigg (Marlton, N.J./Cherokee)
2. Jenna Wilson (Glenmoore, Pa./Downingtown West)
3. Cassie Frisch (Suffern, N.Y./Suffern)
4. Kaylee Brulliea (Quakertown, Pa./Quakertown)
5. Emily Duff (North Wales, Pa./North Penn)
6. Sara Canepa (Shamokin, Pa./Line Mountain)
7. Bella Cimino (Pearl River, N.Y./Nanuet)
8. Anna Dant (Sellersville, Pa./Pennridge)
9. Alianna Yenser (New Tripoli, Pa./Northwestern Lehigh)
10. Gianna Marchese (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth)
11. Sam Abbonizio (Warrington, Pa./Central Bucks South)
12. Ciyani Hough (Philadelphia, Pa./Central)
13. Abigail Miller (Downingtown, Pa./Downingtown West)
14. Emaleigh Greb (Mifflinburg, Pa./Mifflinburg)
15. Nicole Parker (Prospect Park, Pa./Interboro)