By David Gordon, Managing Editor

Jessica Gohring, captain and dear friend of the University’s Women’s Club Rugby Team, passed away in July, 2009. On Saturday, March 20, the team will hold a daylong tournament in Gohring’s honor on the Intramural Fields.

“All the proceeds are going to her parents, who are going to donate it to a charity of their choice,” player Kaitlyn Luera said. The University’s Club Rugby Team will be playing along with teams from New Paltz, Fairfield University and Sacred Heart.

“They are coming to Hofstra to play in memory of her [Gohring’s] greatness,” Luera said.
The Women’s Club Rugby Team, formerly a division three team, will become a division two team in the fall, following great successes over the past two years. “This past season, for the second year in a row, we were the MET NY Division Champions,” Luera added.

The rugby schedule depends on the fall season, the “one that actually counts,” according to Luera. The MET NY Rugby Union schedules the games based on the division standings. The spring season is considered the “off-season,” where individual games are scheduled. In the past the Rugby Team has participated in  the Beast of the East and the Big Apple Classic.

In the past, three members of the University’s team, including Gohring, have made it to the MET NY U23 team, which is considered to be the “all-star” team.

The passion  and the memory of their late teammate shines through conversations with the members of the team. “The reason we stayed on the team is because of her [Gohring]. Everyone that she influenced, even played against, is gonna recognize who she is,” Luera said.

The Hofstra Women’s Rugby Club in the midst of a game in the fall of 2009. The club will be holding a tournament and fundraiser in memory of their late teammate Jessica Gohring, who passed away in July, 2009. (Photo Courtesy Christina Rega)