The Panthers won their opening round game against Northern Iowa, then lost to Navy in the quarterfinals and defeated Pittsburgh in a consolation game to wrap up the fall season.
 
    Davenport hosted the first round of playoffs last weekend, where the University of Northern Iowa traveled to meet the Panthers in a clash of strengths. It was a beautiful day out, and the weather contributed to the solid play by both teams. 
 
UNI brought their best squad, and provided DU with good competition and resistance. However, the first half was completely dominated by the Panthers, who went into the second half of the game with a score of 50-0. In the first half, tries were made by Bethany Gable (3), Ashleigh DeWitt, Megan Bird, Lily O'Connor, Sonja Groters, and Adara Benton. Five conversions were put through the posts by Lily Hartbarger as well.
 
Going into the second half, UNI wanted to make a big push on their previous attempts to get into the try zone, and that they did, scoring 26 points in the second half. One of these tries and the conversion was the result of a penalty try on the basis of a yellow card on a DU athlete. However, their scored points did not go unanswered, with six more tries scored by the Panthers in the second half by Bird, DeWitt, Emily VanDyke, Gable (2), and Lori Lewis. Hartbarger was also successful in the majority of her conversion attempts, with four more.
 
The forwards of the match were the forward pack for their intensive effort and control of the entire game, and the back of the match was Lauren Leitzelar.
 
This game provided a boost of confidence going into the next two rounds of playoffs, which were hosted at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.
 
    The Panthers took to the road, traveling to Poughkeepsie, N.Y., for the D-1 Playoffs (quarterfinals and semifinals).
 
In the quarterfinals, the Panthers faced the Navy, who had provided them with one of their few losses earlier in the season. However, it would be a completely different squad facing the Midshipmen, with many positive lineup changes. The young squad trained even harder after the losses of their regular season, and headed into the highly anticipated match with confidence.

Navy's back line and pack play paired nicely together, and they scored early into the first half. This didn't fare well in the Panther's minds, and a fast try by Bird would even the game up. Davenport capitalized off of their first try, with back-to-back tries by Gable and DeWitt. These loose forwards worked hard and with momentum, fighting off the Midshipmen to get into the try zone. But then, Navy struck again, leading into half, by the work of the efficient back line. Navy was in favor going into half-time, with the score at 19-15. 
 
The Midshipmen were in possession for much of the second half, causing Davenport to focus on their defense as they attempted to create a turnover ball. But Navy kept pushing at the defense, until they marched the ball into the try zone. The Panthers began to work harder to create space for the speedy fullback, Bird, who ended the game with another try. Hartbarger made one successful conversion. The final score was 45-27.
 
The forward MVPs were Cole Schield for her line breaks and intensity, and Gable for her quick-thinking, skills, and brute force on the field. The back MVPs were Hartbarger for her solid defense and constant pressure on Navy's ball, and Bird, for her punishing runs, communication, and tackles.
 
The game did not end in the Panthers favor, but instead, set a friendly rivalry to look forward to in the future. The young squad, headed by Coach Greg Teliczan, only has room to grow and flourish, as they push each other to work harder, on and off the field.
 
    The Panthers headed into a fifth/sixth place match against the University of Pittsburgh, and wanted to positively capitalize off of the program's success in the regular season.
 
The weather and fields were not in favorable conditions for either team, with puddles and ruts scattered across the field, and with blinding rain and wind.
 
Both sides struggled to control the ball in rucks, passing, and kicking, as the ball was wet, and the field conditions were miserable. Still, Davenport's pack took hold of these conditions, making a positive of it, and controlled the flow of the game. They were directed well and with confidence by the person in the number nine jersey, Benton. 

There were plenty of scrums, as the ball was slippery and difficult to control on both sides. Both backs and forwards made strong runs by the Davenport squad. Six people scored for DU in this game: Benton, Addy Ochoa (2), Gable (2), Bird, Schield, and Jasmine Hernandez. Hartbarger kicked the ball through the posts on one occasion, giving her two points in the match as well.
 
The forward MVPs were Gable and Mariah Pruitt, who both capitalized off of the sloppy conditions to keep the ball moving up field, and the back MVPs were Ochoa for her key distribution of the ball and solid offense, and Hartbarger for her control of the ball and pressure to regain possession of it when on defense.
 
This concluded Davenport's 15s season on a positive note, and the team looks forward to beginning 7s training and conditioning in the near future.
 
Story by: Maggie Wetter

Picture credit: Kara DeVries