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A combination of factors, including the ability to tailor fabric architectures, has led to the recent resurgence of interest in glass fiber reinforced resin transfer molded composites for use in energy absorbing, impact resistant structures. In this paper we report the results of an investigation aimed at understanding the effects of fabric architecture on impact resistance with the end goal of designing suitable architectures. The damage process is described through the application of a series of instructive plots called elastic energy curves, which present significant insight into materials behavior. It is shown that the results can be used in optimizing energy absorptivity through the use of appropriately designed architectures and hybrid systems.