WEST CHESTER, Pa.- The West Chester University women's rugby team (0-1) opened its 2026 season on Saturday morning on South Campus against National Intercollegiate Rugby Association (NIRA) Division II rival and perennial power Davenport (2-0). West Chester battled throughout the afternoon but fell to the visiting Panthers by a 44-0 final score to open the new season.
West Chester held the high-powered Panther offense scoreless through the first 12 minutes of the match before Davenport broke through with a pair trys in the span of two minutes to jump out to a 12-0 lead.
Davenport added two more trys before the halftime whistle to carry a 22-0 lead into the halftime break.
Early in the second half, Davenport stretched its lead to 27-0 before the West Chester defense stiffened and held its visitors scoreless for the next 13 minutes.
During this stretch,
Emma Davies (Kennett Square, Pa./Kennett) broke free for a 20-meter run and got West Chester deep into Davenport territory. With West Chester knocking on the door, just meters away from its first try of the season, Davenport forced a turnover and converted it into points the other way as the Panthers extended their lead to 32-0 with under 20 minutes to play.
Christelle Adikpeto (Abomey Calavi, Benin/Moon Area) broke free for a long run of her own with under 10 minutes to play before she was chased down by a Panther defender deep in Davenport territory. The Panthers' defense came up big once again, forcing another turnover deep in its defensive zone to thwart the Golden Ram offense.
Davenport added 12 more points in the final seven minutes of the match to depart South Campus with a 44-0 victory over West Chester to open NIRA play.
Up Next
West Chester will be back in action next weekend at Princeton at 12 p.m.
