Rugby leaves it all on the table

During every meal, Norwich's nationally ranked women's rugby team comes together at a designated table that is more than just territory. According to players, it's a safe haven.

"Our team's success is based strongly on our team dynamic," said Meaghan Weppner, a 20-year-old junior criminal justice major from Buffalo, N.Y. "Our table means a lot to us. There has been so many bonding moments there."

Team members say that there is no better feeling than being able to walk into the chow hall and always know someone will be there to sit with.

"You always have that person to sit with who will be there for you if you just need to vent, or rant about something, or tell a really exciting story to," said Margo Smutinck, a 19-year-old sophomore international studies major from Pomfret, Conn.

Christine Aye, a 21-year-old junior nursing major from Longmeadow, Mass., says that the rugby table is like a family spot.

"It's a good place to hang out, laugh and talk," Aye said. "We also do a lot of homework there; basically we hang out at the table all day, even if it's just for tea time between classes."

According to Smutnick, players are disappointed when other people sit at the table because it means so much to the team to have a meal at its family table.

"If we come back from practice and there are other people sitting there we will put our stuff down next to them and go to get food. By the time we come back to sit they are usually gone," Aye said.

The women can be territorial about their space, often coming up with creative ways to claim it as their own.

"Every once in a while we will flip around the card on the napkin holder and we will write on it ‘NUWRFC (Norwich University Women's Rugby Football Club) trespassers will be tackled'," Smutnick said.

According to Weppner, when other people sit at the women's rugby table the team will generally sit at a table nearby and make it known the unspoken chow hall custom has been broken.

"Most times we end up just starring at them to make them feel awkward," said Weppner. "Sometimes we get a little rowdy about it and yell a little."

Some students feel that the behavior of the team is disrespectful and inappropriate.

Smutnick emphasizes that the intentions behind the team's actions are never mean-spirited. "Rugby is more based on respect than scare tactics. People think ‘Hey, that's the girls rugby table, don't sit there' because they have respect for our team and what we do."

The women's team will be competing on the national level as one of the top 16 teams in the country for the championship in the spring, said Aye.

"We have also been selected as one of 12 teams to compete in the rugby seven's national championship in December," Weppner said. "With seven's you only have seven players on the field with seven-minute halves. We've never even played seven's before."

Team members attribute their success on the field to a bond comparable to a family.

"We see so many teams out there falling apart because they don't have the chemistry that we do," Smutnick said. "A lot of the teams that we see could play really well if they had a stronger team dynamic."

Having a central location that the team can call its own strengthens the bond the players have on the field, Weppner said.

"We can walk into the chow hall at any time of the day and see somebody else sitting at the table. It's a good feeling to know that you're part of a group; something bigger than yourself," Smutnick said.

Players recall a number of memories from the women's rugby table that have laid the foundation for the bond they share.

"Even rook year I knew exactly what table the team sat at," Aye said. "Once, I threw pasta down from my rook table, over my shoulder without looking, and got it right in someone's cup."

The table has been host to many more aspects of the teammates' lives than just eating meals.

"People do a lot of homework and studying at the table between classes," Aye said. "Once, someone asked a teammate to review their paper at chow, and she said sure it will be under the tree when you get back. It sounds funny but we all knew where it was."

Some of these memories have evolved into traditions and guidelines that are now a part of the team's table.

"Sometimes one of the girls will invite someone to come sit at the table with us," Aye said. "If only one person knows them you have to pretty much go around and introduce them to every other person at the table, which can be anywhere from two people to about 15 or 20."

According to Weppner, people from outside the team are usually pretty intimidated by sitting at the rugby table.

"When I first became connected with the team, I was too scared to sit at the table," said Felicity Porto, a 20-year-old junior criminal justice major from San Antonio, Texas. "I would sit at the table right next to them until someone would personally invite me over."

The women's presence in the chow hall can be seen through other traditions as well.

"We have the chow hall challenge, that is an event where you come in at 8 in the morning and you stay until the chow hall closes," said Aye. "It's something really fun to do with your close friends."

When there are too many people to fit at the table, team members will bring smaller tables over to expand their family table, according to Smutnick.

"We have to be together. We have to sit together because that's just part of who we are," Aye said. "Literally, I don't ever sit anywhere besides the rugby table, if someone else wants to eat with me I will invite them over."