Poughkeepsie, NY - The Nor'easter storm that dumped a lot of rain and crashed against the Jersey shore and Long Island beaches these past 2 days had blown through and Vassar hosted local rivals Marist University at the Preserve & Farm. The teams know each other well and all the players are currently residents of Poughkeepsie so the rivalry is fierce. The visitors came out with guns blazing and took the lead when flyhalf and team leader Syd Weiss made a spectacular dive to score in the corner and Marist led 5-0. The gauntlet had been thrown down and the home team had been jolted.

Vassar College Women 39 v 15 Marist University Women
Tries: Ellie Carr (1), Maisy Richardson (2), Rosie Perkinson (1), Rahmat Gambari (1), Leah Dourmashkin (1) & Nadya LaMarr (1).
Cons: Emma Niehaus (2).

Marist looked sharp in the opening minutes and certainly had some pace in their ranks. Ball carriers ran hard and the team was able to retain possession. It put Vassar on the back foot and it also put into perspective the previous week's game versus Columbia. The latter had been a run out with minimal opposition and the Marist team was charging forward and being aggressive.

But Vassar responded and marched upfield from the restart going through multiple phases. Eventually it was Number 8 Ellie Carr who barged her way over and tied matters up at 5-5.

The next 20 or so minutes the game was tied as both teams probed defenses. Possession was edged by Marist but Vassar was winning the territorial battle and keeping the visitors in their own half. Finally Vassar's scrumhalf, Maisy Richardson spotted a gap and darted through to score under the posts and Vassar led 12-5 after Emma Niehaus' conversion. Vassar generally looked organized on defense but too many tackles were passive and allowed Marist some yards gained. 

There was a big effort from all the team to get setup in both attack and defense and that bodes well for the future. This team needs to push standards higher and keep performing even when tired. Dourmashkin had some influential runs down the left flank and Richardson was busy making tackles. Marist's Weiss had a storming run from the 22 but was eventually brought down by Sabine Weil. The half finished 12-5 but the majority of the match had been played in the Marist half of the field. One would be remiss to not mention some solid tackles from Tate Wagner as well as a lineout steal. The Vassar scrum was pushing Marist back but the ball was being passed away. Jo Ellis too was carrying the ball and making tackles.

The second half started badly for Vassar with a couple of knock-ons but Marist didn't capitalize on the possession and when Vassar next got into the Marist 22 fullback Rosie Perkinson cut a path through to go under the posts and Niehaus converted so Vassar led 19-5. But this was still a close game  and a missed tackle could change the complexion. Vassar laid out their stall and moved the ball from deep in their own half as fullback Perkinson went 50 yards , linked with winger Dourmashkin and it was only a wonderful cover tackle by Weiss that prevented the winger from scoring. But Vassar was in the Marist 22 now and moments later Sabine Weil put Perkinson away but the last pass to Dourmashkin was judged to be forward so the try was not given.

Marist's Weiss broke through the Vassar defense from that ensuing scrum and went almost half the length of the field before she was slowed by fullback Perkinson and both Weil and Ellis hustled back to finish the tackle but now Marist was on the attack. Cue Ella Maniatis and a couple of tackles as well as a strong run and the danger had passed for now. Maniatis threw her body around and really commits for the team. Another unsung hero is her center partner Makaela Weldon who ran fearlessly into heavy traffic. The work of the centers frees up the space outside and helps the team be so effective.

A crucial next score came from Rahmat Gambari after the back division had again got the ball wide. Gambari bravely picked the ball just prior to the ruck forming and sprinted in for a wonderful try and 24-5 looked like a winning score. Leah Dourmashkin collected the next try on the left and at 34-5 Vassar began to make changes to the lineup.

There is no quit in a Marist team and they came battling back to score 2 tries to Vassar's one in that final 10 minutes. The final 39-15 was testimony to a good hard game.

Next weekend Vassar faces Fairfield and the kick-off is an early one, 11:00 am. The Brewers must be focused and prepared to work hard for each other for the full 80 minutes.

Team: 15 Rosie Perkinson 14 Rahmat Gambari 13 Ella Maniatis 12 Makaela Weldon 11 Leah Dourmashkin 10 Sabine Weil 9 Maisy Richardson 1 Cae Bardsley-Cutler 2 Emma Niehaus 3 Eleanor Jacoby 4 Tate Wagner 5 Jo Ellis 6 Annika Szturma 7 Lydia Hong 8 Ellie Carr. 
Subs: Nadya LaMarr for Rosie Perkinson, Chloe Ellis for Chloe Ellis, Sydney Oren for Emma Niehaus, Sadye Krell for Rahmat Gambari, AC Smith for Jo Ellis, Lila Gallivan for Lydia Hong, Dea Edwards for Cae Bardsley-Cutler.

Record: 2-0-0.

Next: Sunday October 4, 2026 Vassar College Women at Fairfield University Women at Grauert Field kick-off 11:00 am