The Girls Herriman High rugby, became a part of the schools’ club sports in 2015 and died out for a couple of years. It later started back up in 2022 with CJ Dunn as the head coach of the girls rugby team.
Dunn has been coaching rugby for 12 years, first it was little league but then he got ‘the bug’ to coach women’s rugby. Since then, he and the girls have been doing as much as they can to help the sport grow. One way they did this was by talking to the HHS women’s wrestling team.
Lidia Anderson is a wrestler whose first time playing rugby was the 2025 15s season, and the team won Tier Two State. Anderson talks about how some of the girl’s wrestlers came to play rugby and that their tackles were amazing, she said that they were “monsters on the field.” Anderson declares that, “wrestling helped with my tackles,” meaning that the two sports can go hand in hand with each other to help improve the athlete.
Another wrestler who also plays rugby is Addie Plouzek. Her first time playing rugby was the 2025 15s season. She later played in the 2025 7s season where they won another state championship in Tier Two. Plouzek says rugby has helped her grow as an athlete and a person. She points out that it has helped her to “work on my team work and compassion.” Her favorite part about rugby is getting to bond with her teammates and her coaches.
Sophie Venema has been a part of girls rugby for about four years. She encourages everybody to play the sport and has been an advocate for it. Venema has played nine seasons of Rugby, both 15s and 7s. She has won three championships, one in 8th grade, and two in high school. Venema states that, “rugby made me tougher, made me more grateful, made me more athletic, made me stronger.” Rugby is a fulfilling sport, and it makes the girls feel powerful, and makes them feel unity. One of Venmas’ favorite parts of rugby was traveling and getting to play with a bunch of other teams. She knew the sport was for her when she had her first season in 8th grade.
Evie Watson is one of the team captains of the 7s season for 2025. She has played four seasons of rugby with two being for 7s and two for being 15s. Herriman rugby, both boys and girls, talks about not just being a good person on the field but off the field also. Watson states that her coaches make the girls know the term, “be comfortable in uncomfortable situations.” That term is used to help them get out of their comfort zones. She then acknowledges that rugby has “helped build my confidence more.”
With that in mind, rugby is an incredibly tough sport. With how aggressive you need to be, rugby tends to be more of a mental game. You also need to focus on bettering yourself. One of the main focuses for both boys and girls rugby is making sure the kids are good people. The team is not just about winning, it’s about loyalty, leadership, and kindness.
