US Rugby Foundation Announces 2022 Prusmack Award Recipients
The United States Rugby Foundation is pleased to announce that the recipients of the 2022 Prusmack Awards, awarded to the top female and male collegiate 7s player in the country, are Lindenwood University Graduate, Sativa Tarau-Peehikuru, and Life University Sophomore, Darius Law.
Over 60 collegiate coaches from across the country were asked to submit nominations for The Prusmack. Sativa and Darius were selected from an outstanding group of nominees.
The Prusmack award is to honor A. Jon Prusmack, who did more than anyone to make rugby sevens in the U.S. the success that it has become. The Foundation has established a Heisman-like trophy to be awarded annually to the best male and female collegiate 7s players.
Sativa Tarau-Peehikuru
2022 Prusmack Award recipient Sativa Tarau-Peehikuru was raised in the small town of Helensville, New Zealand, but her family now call Kaitaia, home. She is one of 11 children with two very supportive parents, Lisa and Hori. Sativa is a recent graduate of Lindenwood University where she earned her bachelor’s degree in Therapeutic Recreation. She is currently interning as an activity therapist for CenterPointe psychiatric hospital in the St. Louis area. When she is not giving opponents fits on the pitch, she enjoys arts and crafts, music and socializing with friends. She has also found time to volunteer with the Special Olympics MO the past few years. During her tenure at Lindenwood, Sativa had the opportunity of being a part of an elite training environment and was surrounded by great teammates and coaches. She has been presented with D1 Elite 15s 1st Team All-American honors multiple years, CRC 7s championship MVP, 15s D1 Elite Championship MVP awards and has captained Lindenwood to multiple 7s and 15s National titles.
Darius Law
From Charlotte, NC, Darius Law began playing rugby in 2015 for the Charlotte Junior Rugby Association (CJRA). He played with CJRA for two years before joining the high school team, the Charlotte Tigers. During his four years as a Tiger, Darius appeared on numerous representative teams including the North Carolina All-Stars, Eagle Impact Rugby Academy in both 7s and 15s, as well as the USA Rugby High School All-American team in both 7s and 15s.
Upon graduating from Butler High School in 2020, Darius attended Life University to continue his rugby career and to study Exercise Science. As a freshman, he appeared at the 2021 Collegiate Rugby Championship 7s where Life University finished runners-up. Darius was a starter for the 15s side in 2022 and earned Mid-South All-Conference First XV honors. He appeared at the 2022 USA Rugby 7s Collegiate Championships where he propelled Life University to win the national championship in sudden death extra time.
Darius plans to graduate in 2024 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Exercise Science.
