Aces Cruise to 86‑68 Win, Sun Dropped Ten Straight
History Written in Black and Gold: Denver Onyx Dominate Inaugural Women’s Elite Rugby Legacy Cup
Lynx Edge Sky in Overtime Thriller Behind Collier’s Double-Double

History Written in Black and Gold: Denver Onyx Dominate Inaugural Women’s Elite Rugby Legacy Cup

Photo of WER Championship Game Photo of WER Championship Game

They came for the win, but they left with a legacy.

On June 29th, beneath a blazing sky and a stadium charged with anticipation, the Denver Onyx stormed into TCO Stadium in Eagan, Minnesota and made history. With a thunderous 53–13 victory over the New York Exiles, Denver didn’t just become the first team to hoist the Women’s Elite Rugby Legacy Cup—they cemented themselves as the standard-bearers of a new era in American sports.

This was no ordinary title match. This was the launch of a league built by women, for women, in a sport that has long thrived in the shadows. For decades, women’s rugby has grown in grit and visibility, but never before had the United States hosted a professional 15s championship of this scale. The atmosphere at TCO—home of the Minnesota Vikings’ training facility—buzzed with something different.

This wasn’t just rugby. This was revolution.

New York struck first, as if to say: We belong here, too. Within the opening twelve minutes, Exiles’ No. 8 Misha Green-Yotts thundered through traffic and touched down off a smooth offload, converting
opportunity into scoreboard pressure. Aly Cunningham, cool as ice, nailed the kick and then added a penalty shortly after to take a quick 10–0 lead. For a few electric minutes, it looked like the Exiles might
rewrite the script.

But Denver doesn’t do panic. Captain Rachel Johnson, equal parts enforcer and strategist, gathered her squad with the calm urgency of a team that had been here before—even if, technically, no one had. Her
voice sparked the ignition. What followed was less a comeback and more a recalibration of power.

The Onyx forwards responded first. Prop Kapoina Bailey barreled through a pile of bodies and slammed the ball over the line. Moments later, scrum-half Carly Waters—reading the ruck like a map—sniped
through a gap and flipped the scoreboard. The Onyx had seized the lead at 14–10, and from there, the tempo shifted like a storm front.

The Exiles fought to regain control, but Denver’s dominance was spreading like wildfire. Tahlia Brody, Denver’s flanker and the heartbeat of their defensive engine, played like a woman possessed. She
stripped balls in contact. She dominated collisions. She made tackles that echoed in the upper rows of the stadium. Every time New York tried to build momentum, Brody shut it down. She was a force of nature,
and by game’s end, she was crowned MVP.

Before halftime, wing Nana Fa’avesi added another dagger. A slicing break down the touchline turned into Denver’s third try, and with Bitter’s boot on point, the Onyx walked into the locker room with a 24–13
advantage—and their foot already on the gas.

What happened in the second half was nothing short of a masterclass. Within six minutes of play resuming, Rachel Johnson surged off the back of a dominant maul and powered over for Denver’s fourth
try. The Exiles were suddenly chasing shadows, and Denver was just getting started.

Fly-half McKenzie Hawkins orchestrated the next 40 minutes with surgical precision. Her long-range kicks pinned New York deep in their own territory. Her vision exposed every weakness. Fullback Kristin Bitter,
ever the silent assassin, sliced through defensive lines with ruthless efficiency, setting up try after try with perfectly timed counters.

As the Exiles tried to claw their way back, they leaned on the fire of fullback Tess Feury and scoring powerhouse Jetta Owens. Their runs were fearless, their effort unrelenting. Owens nearly broke the line
late in the match, and only a desperate, last-second tackle—and a TMO decision—kept her from scoring.

It was the kind of moment that defined New York’s day: full of fight, but up against a team that was simply
unbreakable.

With substitutions bringing fresh legs and no drop in intensity, Denver’s depth came roaring in. Mikaela Hall, Caroline Bullock, and Carson Hann added fuel to the fire. Hawkins capped off the demolition with a
late-game try that shattered any remaining doubt. Bitter’s final conversion brought the score to 53–13.

When the final whistle blew, black-and-gold confetti rained over TCO Stadium as the Onyx raised the Legacy Cup. It wasn’t just a victory lap—it was a coronation. The crowd stood in ovation, not just for a team, but for a movement. For a league. For every girl who’d ever laced up cleats and dared to dream of playing rugby on a stage like this.

Tahlia Brody stood at the center of it all, Legacy Cup in hand, eyes scanning the crowd. The moment belonged to her. To Johnson. To Bitter. To Hawkins. To every single woman who helped build WER from
the ground up.

This wasn’t just a match. This was a signal flare to every corner of sport that women’s rugby in America isn’t just emerging—it’s erupting. This is what happens when women are backed with investment, infrastructure, and belief. The product isn’t “just as good” —it’s groundbreaking.

The task ahead is clear: build on this. Fill the stands. Fund the talent. Broadcast the brilliance. Because what we witnessed at the Women’s Elite Rugby Legacy Cup wasn’t the end of a season—it was the start
of a legacy.

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