January 24, 2026
Steuber Rugby Stadium
Stanford, CA

Stanford 57 – UC Santa Cruz 7

Stanford Women's Rugby opened their 2026 conference season with a 57–7 victory over UC Santa Cruz at Steuber Rugby Stadium. The Cardinal welcomed the Banana Slugs to the CRAA D1 Pacific Mountain Rugby Conference (PMRC), a division up from Santa Cruz's former D2 season.

Flanker Jara Emtage-Cave '30 opened the scoring early for the Cardinal, running a hard line off Captain Leila Wang-Gaouette '26 to break through the Santa Cruz defense and outpace the backfield on her 50-meter sprint to the try line. In the 20th minute, Sydney Davis poached Santa Cruz's ball in the Banana Slugs' 22-meter zone. A multi-phase Cardinal forward attack inched toward the try line, drawing in the Santa Cruz defense. This opened space on the edge, where Chisa Ogaki found Josie Davidson in 30 meters of space for the try.

In the 28th minute, a Cardinal lineout inside the attacking 10-meter area set a platform for lock Paige Fitzpatrick '28 to barrel through three defenders on her way to the try line. Ogaki converted for the extra two. This marked the first of two tries on the day for Fitzpatrick.

In the 30th minute, Ogaki again found Emtage-Cave for a familiar 30-plus-meter line break, though Santa Cruz forced a turnover. Credit to scrumhalf Vivian Studdert for regaining possession for the Cardinal in scoring position. Emtage-Cave then finished the sequence with a powerful run into the try zone.

Wang-Gaouette added a try of her own before halftime to bring the score to 31–0 after Ogaki slotted three conversions.

The second half showed continued gain-line success and consistent 22-meter entries for the Cardinal. Off the opening kickoff, Stanford stole possession. On her first touch of the match, Hope Adhanom-Shipman accelerated through two defenders for a try—an immediate impact off the bench. Ogaki converted.

In the 55th minute, an unfortunate obstruction penalty awarded Santa Cruz a five-meter attacking scrum. The Banana Slugs capitalized to score and narrow the margin to 38–7. Stanford responded immediately. Strong carries from Wang-Gaouette and Adhanom-Shipman put the Cardinal on the front foot, and quick ball from Studdert found lock Zoe Colloredo-Mansfeld '26 and No. 8 Sydney Davis '26 in space. Davis was brought down just short, and Fitzpatrick finished for her second try of the match. Ogaki converted once again.

Winger Journey Washingtonhigh '26, Stanford's leading try scorer for the past two seasons, tallied her first conference try of the year. Adhanom-Shipman closed out the scoring with her second try off a Stanford lineout.

Special recognition goes to rookies Audrey Kaplan, Anabella Hernandez, Anna Frost, Emma Lewis, and Thalia Revilla, whose First XV appearances brought energy and impact.

Head to Steuber Rugby Stadium next Saturday, January 31, 2026 for an 11:00am kickoff vs UC Davis, or watch on the @StanfordClubSports YouTube channel. Follow @stanford_rugby on Instagram for schedules and game photos.

Tries: Jara Emtage-Cave, Josie Davidson, Paige Fitzpatrick (2), Hope Adhanom-Shipman (2), Journey Washingtonhigh

Conversions: Chisa Ogaki (5)

Stanford Women's Rugby First XV vs. UCSC

1. Leila Wang-Gaouette

2. Audrey Kaplan

3. Eva Lieberman

4. Zoe Colloredo-Mansfeld

5. Paige Fitzpatrick

6. Ana Palacios

7. Jara Emtage-Cave

8. Sydney Davis

9. Vivian Studdert

10. Chisa Ogaki

11. Journey Washingtonhigh

12. Jackie McLean

13. Anabella Hernandez

14. Ah'Myah Hicks

15. Josie Davidson

16. Hope Adhanom-Shipman

17. Jana Gomri

18. Nancy Bao

19. Anna Frost

20. Emma Cruz

21. Emma Lewis

22. Thalia Revilla

23. Isabelle McNabb

Stanford Women's Rugby Second XV vs. UCSC

1. Jana Gomri

2. Nancy Bao

3. Esperanza Collazo

4. Anubha Mahajan

5. Anna Frost

6. Artem Arzyn

7. Willow Black

8. Emma Eisemon

9. Karina Byzek

10. Emma Cruz

11. Priyanka Patel

12. Emma Lewis

13. Ana Palacios

14. Isabelle McNabb

15. Thalia Revilla

16. Hope Adhanom-Shipman

17. Anna Frost

In a strong display of depth from both programs, a B-side match followed the conference matchup. The match provided valuable minutes for players seeking experience and development, offering rich learning opportunities and meaningful game context for newer athletes. The staff looks forward to continued growth as these players compete in additional development matches this season.

Tries: Emma Lewis (3), Jana Gomri (2), Emma Cruz, Hope Adhanom-Shipman

Conversions: Karina Byzek (4)