The South Sound’s newest sports club is the Steller Sea Lions Rugby Club, founded this spring to bring competitive and recreational rugby to women in the Thurston, Mason, Lewis and Grays Harbor regions.
The club was born from the South Sound Assassins, which started in 2017 but ceased play during the COVID-19 pandemic and endured multiple iterations in the following years. Twenty players make up the roster, and the Sea Lions recently finished their sevens season — featuring seven players on each team — during the summer and are preparing for the fall 15s season.
The Steller Rugby Club’s founders identified a need for an inclusive environment to foster the growth of rugby for women and girls in western Washington. The team is invested in promoting a safe, enjoyable and equitable place for players of all skill levels to learn the fundamentals of rugby.
Head coach Ellie Parrish said the team is hoping to grow to 30 players and accepts players with and without experience in rugby.
“We’re really protective and concentrating on our team culture. We want everyone to have a good time. It’s a recreational sport, so it’s gonna be awesome and fun,” she said. “We like doing things together on and off the pitch.”
Samantha George, a 2011 Yelm High School graduate, joined the team after a 10-year hiatus from playing rugby. She was one of the founders of the YHS girls rugby club team her senior year.
“I’ve been looking for a team that felt like home. I’ve tried a couple of teams in a few different states, and I found this team and it fits right,” George said. “There’s a lot of really great things between our support of each other, but also pushing each other to do the best we can. I’m a parent, so I can also bring my daughter [to practice], and I’ve got a whole other family to help.”
The Steller Sea Lions, which are named after the large marine animal found in the Pacific Northwest, compete in the PNW Rugby league with teams in Washington, Oregon and Idaho. They will be a competitive team this fall and will play three home matches at the Regional Athletic Complex in Lacey and three road matches across the Pacific Northwest.
According to World Rugby, the number of registered women in rugby has increased by 28% since 2017, and the Steller Rugby Club aims to provide opportunities to women of all ages across the region to continue that upward trajectory.
“There aren’t that many women’s adult sports programs, especially contact programs. We’re also looking at building a high school girls program in the spring,” Parrish said. “I wanted to bring a place for women and girls to play rugby that’s safe and welcoming and awesome. It’s 80 minutes of fast-paced, intense tackling and passing. Rugby is focused on non-stop play.”
George appreciates the opportunity to continue to play the sport she loves after a long pause and to compete at a high level while having fun doing it.
“Rugby has been a huge part of my growing up and my character building. It’s gotten me through a lot. It’s a great outlet,” she said. “To be able to have that socialization in my home is great, and then knowing that we’re getting to represent women and getting to show little girls what it means to be a woman in a sport is really great.”
The Steller Sea Lions Rugby Club is currently holding a kit fundraiser to help raise money to purchase new kits. The first batch closes on Wednesday, Aug. 7. The team practices at 6 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays at LBA Park in Olympia. To learn more about the club, visit South Sound Rugby on Facebook and Instagram.
