What they discovered was a Brandywine Women's Rugby Club practice session. The women were loud and lively but not disrespectful or disorderly. The police issued no citations, and they even stopped to watch for a while.

And the club, which was founded in 1999, finally had a nickname. Since the encounter with the police, they've been officially known as the Brandywine Riot.

"Somebody thought there was a riot and called the police," said Joanna Boissonneault, a player who also serves as the club's treasurer.

"Everybody decided we needed to be called the Riot," added Carrie Makoid, who has been with Brandywine since 2000.

While the women's club shares a name and some facilities with the men's Brandywine Rugby Club, the two organizations are not affiliated.

The scene was also spirited but somewhat subdued when the Riot practiced at West Chester's Green Field last month. About half of the club's 30 active players drilled before playing West Chester University on April 26.

West Chester University has a traditionally strong college program, and high schools throughout Chester County have girls' rugby clubs.

Brandywine has both benefited from the growth and spawned it. The club was founded by West Chester University graduates who wanted to continue their careers, and West Chester is still tabbed for talent.

"We recruit a lot of West Chester girls," said Kimmie Winnemore, a former West Chester University captain. "West Chester plays at a high level, and we're still maintaining a higher level of play."

Four Brandywine players also coach at the high school level: MaryKate Murphy with Downingtown, Heather Stephenson and Rachel Russo with Wilmington, and Sarah Sall with West Chester Henderson.

"The girls that come out are very dedicated, and I think most are continuing," said Stephenson, who began her rugby career at Drexel.

Sall, the most acclaimed of Brandywine's players, has toured nationally and internationally with different all-star teams.

Deb Yates, one of the club's founders and still a social member of the club, coaches at Unionville.

"Deb Yates is the old girl extraordinaire," said Brandywine cocaptain and president Lindsay Watson about Yates' status as a club founder and elder stateswoman.

Watson began playing rugby in 2000 at Franklin and Marshall College. At Penncrest High, she was on the basketball and softball teams.

"I always led the team in fouls," Watson said. "Rugby was kind of natural progression. I had a hall mate who went out for rugby, and we got to talking. It's rough naturally, and it's the ultimate team sport."

Cocaptain Karen Rodenich, who was on the field hockey, basketball, and track-and-field teams at Upper Moreland, also was looking for something fast and even furious. She considered roller derby before deciding on rugby.

"It's exciting and fun, and everybody on the team is very supportive," Rodenich said.

While it is a contact sport, the women agreed serious injuries are uncommon, with strains or bruises more likely. These are serious athletes who devote four hours to matches each Saturday and attend two-hour practices each week.

Furthermore, there are three competitive seasons a year. Brandywine plays its Eastern Pennsylvania Rugby Union schedule in the fall, an independent schedule in the spring, and a seven-tournament schedule in the summer. The fall and spring matches are 15 vs. 15, while the summer matches are seven vs. seven.

One of the club's feature events is the Cheesesteak 7s tournament it hosts July 12 with the Schuylkill River Exiles at Philadelphia's Pennypack Park. The tournament features premier, open, and high school matches for men and women.

"It's a real goal for many of us to grow the sport," Watson said.

It's not just women who are helping to build the women's sport. Rob Sanderson, a former Brandywine men's player, has been coaching the Brandywine women for "seven or eight years."

"My time was winding down as a player, and they asked me," Sanderson said.

A man of few words, Sanderson fits in well with his enthusiastic players.

"In 10 years, women's rugby will be huge," Makoid said.