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Stanford Recreation

Alumni

Stanford Women’s Rugby has been a place where people can make some of their best friends in college and in life. In order to keep those friendships going, we are trying to build an active alumni community. We’ve put together an alumni email list to keep you updated on team events and reunions. If you’re interested in joining, please contact Head Coach Rich Ashfield at rgash@stanford.edu.

Young Alumni: Please join the young alumni Google group and e-mail list: http://groups.google.com/group/swr-young-alumni

The Stanford program has produced many top-notch players who have competed nationally and internationally.

Among our alumni:

  • Jennifer Chue ’82, played for the USA National team, the Eagles, as a hooker and a flanker
  • Jennifer Crawford ’86, was captain of the USA National team
  • Kalei Kim, flanker for the National team
  • Megan Himan, reserve hooker for the National team
  • Ann Latham ’86, played #8 for the National team
  • Kerry Kelly '87 law school, played scrum half for the National team
  • Pam Irby ’87, and a ’93 grad from the medical school, played wing for the national team and played for the National 7's team
  • Susie Hoffman ’98, All-American (fullback)
  • Brittney Blunt'01, All-American (center)
  • Sue Landsittel, All-American (prop), two caps as a hooker for Eagles in ’03
  • Heather Littlejohn ’02
  • Katrina Logan’03, All-American, flanker/prop for U23 National Team

Stanford Rugby Foundation

Rugby has been played continuously at Stanford since 1906 (it had been played intermittently since the University’s founding in 1891) and was a varsity sport with a history of national championships until 1977.  Faced with the loss of varsity status in that year, a group of enterprising students and rugby enthusiasts founded the men’s and women’s rugby clubs to continue Stanford’s proud rugby tradition.

By the late 1980s, however, it became clear that rugby’s future at Stanford would depend on quality coaching and financial resources not available to the student athletes or club sports program, so a number of generous alumni formed the Stanford Rugby Foundation.  The Foundation’s purpose is to provide financial support and counseling in support of the men’s and women’s rugby programs and to ensure that current student athletes have the same high quality of rugby experience that earlier generations have enjoyed.

All of Stanford’s rugby facilities—which are among the best in the country—were built with alumni contributions.  The Stanford Rugby Foundation oversees an endowed fund that annually provides all of the resources necessary for coach salaries, transportation, trainers, and equipment for the men’s and women’s programs.  In addition, the Stanford Rugby Improvement Fund provides discretionary funds for playoff travel and other non-budgeted expenses, including field improvements such as lights.  Finally, the Don Bunce Fund, named in honor of the 1972 Rose Bowl quarterback for Stanford whose first love was rugby and who served as the team’s doctor in later years, provides funds to assist elite individual Stanford players in their efforts to advance their game at the national or international level.

The generosity of Stanford Rugby’s supporters has resulted in the largest sports program on campus, with over 100 annual participants.  In the last decade, the men have been to the national playoffs several times including a 2002 National Championship, while the women have won four National Championships.  Both teams have toured all over the world, enriching their Stanford experience.

The Stanford Rugby XV

We are excited to announce the creation of the Stanford Rugby XV, an affinity group established by the Stanford Rugby Foundation to improve communications, raise money and build support for Stanford Rugby.

To join the Stanford Rugby XV, just print your own enrollment card here, fill it out, and mail it to:

Stanford Rugby
641 E. Campus Drive
Stanford, California 94305-6150

(415) 356-4626
dshanagher@mckennalong.com

Call or email Denis if you have any questions about the Stanford Rugby XV.

Thank you for being part of Stanford Rugby!

Team History

Student Leslie Potts founded the Stanford Women’s Rugby team in 1976. Among its members that first season was student Sally Ride, who was to become in later years the first U.S. woman astronaut.

In 1994, Franck Boivert, the head coach of the USA Women’s National Team took charge of the Stanford Women’s and Men’s Rugby Programs. In his tenure at Stanford Franck headed the program as well as coached the University of South Pacific teams during the American collegiate off-season. He left Stanford in 2003 to work full time as the national director of Rugby in Fiji.The chief coach for the Stanford Women’s team from 1995 to 2002 was Emile Bruneau, one of the star players of the #2 ranked Stanford men’s team. Philippe Farner joined the program in 2002 as the women’s coach. Philippe, who has competed internationally for many years, most recently played Lock for the USA National Team. In 2003 Stanford Rugby welcomed former Air Force coach Rob Holder as the new director of Stanford Rugby.

In 2005, Jonathan Griffin joined the Stanford rugby program as the new head coach of the women’s team. The Irish coach had previously lived in the UK where he coached a successful program at Loughborough University. Griff arrived at Stanford in late January of 2005 and, within a few months, was able to help the women’s team achieve a second National Collegiate Championship win.The most recent National Championship title was won in 2008 but the team made it to the National Championship Final five out of the six years Griff served as head coach.

In 2011, Matt Sherman joined the women’s rugby program as the new head coach. The previous year he served as the men’s head coach and is currently the head coach for both teams and the director of Stanford Rugby. Matt is originally from the Bay Area and picked up rugby as a young teenager in Piedmont, California.

The Stanford Women’s Rugby Team is consistently one of the top Women’s Collegiate Rugby Programs in the country, including five National Championships.

  • 1992: Competed in Final Four
  • 1993: Competed in Final Four
  • 1995: Competed in Final Four
  • 1998: Competed in Final Four
  • 1999: National Champions
  • 2000: Competed in Final Four
  • 2005: National Champions
  • 2006: National Champions
  • 2007: 2nd in Nation
  • 2008: National Champions
  • 2009: 2nd in Nation
  • 2010: 2nd in Nation
  • 2012: 2nd in Nation
  • 2013: 3rd in Nation
  • 2014: 2nd in Nation