The women’s DI-AA national champion was crowned in Houston today, as the Northeastern Huskies capped off an epic run through the playoffs with a huge 44-10 win over the Buffaloes of Colorado.
The Mad Dogs, ranked #4 in the final coaches poll of the season, had to work their way through the bracket of death to even get to this game, facing off against #1 Notre Dame and #2 Virginia in the regional round. But they showed no fear as they walked through that valley, crushing the Fighting Irish 41-7 before dispatching Virginia 38-24 to punch their ticket to ‘ship.
The Buffs had an equally impressive run through the regional round, surviving a physical contest against Lander before upsetting #3 UNI 34-14. Lucia Hoffman and Noelle Behr were the leaders for Colorado, driving their winning ways with their emotional leadership and physicality on the pitch.
But Northeastern has dealt with their fair share of superstars in the postseason, and they deployed that formula once again to keep Colorado’s superstars in check. Behr was able to cross the whitewash once, and Hoffman had plenty of dominant runs and tackles. But the only other Buff to score was Sophia Trahan as the Huskies didn’t allow Colorado’s strong runners to stampede down the pitch.
The Huskies aren’t just defensive specialists, though, they have poured on the points throughout their championship season and today wasn’t any different. Alex Muelas Del Moral got the scoring started for Northeastern with an impressive open-field run and mugged for the cameras after the score showing off the supreme confidence and joy that the Dogs play with. Flyhalf Alex Peterson was again an unbelievable field general, picking the right passing line every time the ball came out to the backs and setting her teammates up for success while also scoring a try of her own.
Muelas Del Moral and Sydney Joslin were the biggest beneficiaries, but Isabella Hernandez Jolene Russo, and Sierra Palecek also crossed the whitewash to keep the scoreboard ticking up. All-American Molly McAlevey, returning from an injury that kept her out of both Regional games, was named the MVP of the championship win, making some hard meters and nailing two conversions off the tee.
The Buffs had their opportunities after Northeastern jumped out to an early lead, with blazing-fast winger Amanda Ridore getting the ball in open space and nearly gaining the corner a couple of times, but they could never really string together the phases necessary to get themselves back in the game.
Northeastern has now won back to back National Championships, after capturing the crown at CRC 7s in the spring. The sky’s the limit for this Huskies team under coaches Keith Cattanch and Marge Reiss, as they’re sure to be competitive again in 7s in the spring and should have the horses to make another run at a national XVs title in the fall of 2026.
Senior number 8 Molly McAlevey was crowned MVP for her two tries, dominant defense and leadership on the pitch.
You can rewatch all the action at tv.ncr.rugby.
