Hall of Fame
Katie Hathaway was an integral piece of the women’s rugby program’s emergence as a national powerhouse in its early varsity years. She helped guide the Cadets to their first two national championships with the USA Rugby 7s title and the USA Rugby Division II 15s national championship in her senior season.
Hathaway’s impact was immediate, helping the women’s rugby team to a Northeastern Regional Finals appearance en route to being selected as a member of the US Eagles U-20 squad in both her freshman and sophomore campaigns. She would serve as a key part of the Cadets’ next two trips to the national tournament, culminating in a Final Four berth her sophomore season and a National Quarterfinal appearance the following year, for which she was also team captain.
Hathaway would captain the squad for her senior season, leading the team to 25 wins over both 7s and 15s competition. Her leadership would pave the way for Norwich to topple premier competition in Oregon State, Indiana, Princeton, and Boston College to claim the program’s first-ever national title in USA Rugby Collegiate 7s, while earning All-Tournament team honors in the process.
Following the end of 7s competition, Hathaway and the Cadets secured another championship in the spring, defeating Washington State in a come-from-behind bid before dominating Winona State, 82-12, in the USA Rugby Division II 15s National Championship game. Hathaway was named the USA Rugby 15s Division II Final Four Tournament MVP and received Collegiate Division II Rugby All-American accolades.
A member of the Corps of Cadets, Hathaway commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army after graduation, first serving as a logistics officer in the 4th Infantry Division. After restrictions on women serving in combat arms were lifted, she would become one of the first women to command an armor company, spearheading two different armor companies in the 1st Cavalry Division at Fort Hood, Texas.
Hathaway has also been an instructor for the Maneuver Captains Career Course, instructing and training US Army junior leaders and foreign army junior leaders on leadership and doctrine. She continues to give back to Norwich in many ways, most recently during the fundraising campaign to construct a new rugby clubhouse. She has been a mentor to both current Norwich rugby players and alumni.
“Katie combined a raw athleticism with a demanding leadership style that took Norwich Rugby to the next level. Katie had so many heartbreaking moments during her first 3 years – getting to the national Elite-8 and the Final Four. Yet she never cowered. She fueled herself, continued to improve, and made us an unstoppable force during her senior year. Everyone around her became a better player with Katie on the field,” Head Coach Austin Hall said.
