HOUSTON – For the second year in a row, Notre Dame College women's rugby has finished in the top three of Division I National Collegiate Rugby (NCR). The Falcons won the regional championship, again, by defeating No. 10 Clemson (57-5) and No. 7 Iowa (41-19) in the NCR Tournament. On Sunday afternoon, NDC fell short against the top ranked University of Michigan, by a score of 41-14, in the NCR Championship game.
 
Michigan kicked the ball away and Notre Dame started the contest with possession. Just before the three-minute mark, UM grabbed the ball and went down the field to score the first try. The kick was not successful and the Wolverines led, 5-0.
 
With 13:30 on the clock, NDC took over and pushed back on the Michigan defense. Charlee McCormick powered in for a Notre Dame try and Isabella Gullatta put the kick through the uprights to give NDC a 7-5 lead.
 
With 18:38 on the clock, NDC took the ball again, but could not put points on the board.
 
A big run by Michigan resulted in another try, in the 31st minute. One last pass near midfield gave the Wolverines the space needed to work down the sideline.

In the 35th minute, the ball changed possession several times. Michigan would come away with it and scored once more before halftime to lead 19-7.
 
UM controlled possession for the first six minutes of the second half, and Ember Larson finished it off with her third try of the day.
 
After an NDC injury, a ruling on the field was made that the Falcons had to play one woman-down for the final 32 minutes of the contest. However, Notre Dame continued to play extremely hard on both sides of the ball.

The NDC defense pounced when Michigan lost control of the ball and the Falcons took possession with 24:30 remaining. Notre Dame moved the ball down the field quickly and Gabby Dispenza pushed it in for a try and the Falcons' final points of the match.
 
Notre Dame ends the fall season with a record of 7-2. In the team's seven wins, NDC outscored its opponents 411-56. That includes two shutouts.