By Piper Howard

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After fighting their way through pool play, the Colonial Coast dethroned the reigning champion Eastern Pennsylvania (EPRU), 15-0, to claim the Small College All Stars title Sunday in Round Rock, TX. 

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Dakota Benson (Salve Regina University), Bailey Tymeson (Endicott College), and Live Houghton (UMass Dartmouth) were able to touch down on behalf of Colonial Coast, and Plymouth State sophomore Laryssa Landmesser earned MVP honors. 

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EPRU’s 3-1 record leaves them ranked second among the small college teams, as their impressive performance in a line-out heavy game against Great Waters earlier in the day had many thinking they’d be able to secure the trophy for the third year in a row. 

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Against Upstate New York, the Great Waters team pulled off a second-half comeback to earn bronze. After a season-ending injury in the fall, the University of Chicago’s Grace Hogue seemed all the way back, contributing heavily in attack. University of Wisconsin Platteville’s Ali Risley scored GW’s second try to secure the 10-5 win. 

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Allegheny’s Lexie Hulick (Gannon University) led Small College with 56 points and 10 tries on the weekend, but it wasn’t enough to put the 1-3 Bears in contention for a trophy. Prairie States’ Maurina Street (South Dakota) and EPRU’s Morgan Mattia (East Stroudsburg Univ.) round out the scoring leaderboard, each with 35 points via seven tries. 

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