While the scoreline didn’t play in the USA favor tonight, women’s rugby took an exciting step forward in an all-important year.
10,518 fans crowded CPKC Stadium in Kansas City, shattering the attendance record for a Women’s Rugby match in the United States, while Hope Rogers officially earned her record 52nd cap as the starting prop. Much too be celebrated following a close and exciting match that the USA let slip from them in the end. Head Coach Sione Fukofuka, the coaching staff and team can be happy with the overall performance and will walk away knowing they had a chance to take down the No. 2 team in the world. The Women’s Eagles will remain in Kansas City for a short while before heading off to Australia to face the Wallaroos in the second round of the Pacific Four Series, live on RugbyPass TV.
The USA began the match with some positive defensive efforts. Though backed into their own 22 meters for a majority of the half, Canada was kept out of the try zone with a sturdy wall from the Eagles. Despite the defensive effort, penalties from the USA allowed Canada to keep control as the Eagles struggled to stage an attack. Canada eventually pulled play back towards midfield, but then took advantage of the spread-out defense to break through for a try. The Maple Leafs picked up pace from there, with two more breakaways – though two would-be tries are called back by TMO. The USA remained in the game until the 23rd minute when Laetitia Royer also found a line break. Captain Kate Zackary, playing for the first time near her home state of Kansas, answered right away with the first USA score. The USA started to move the ball well outside, eventually catching Zackary in full stride and up the line for a try under posts. From there both teams headed to the break, Canada up 14-7.
The second half saw back and forth play around midfield, for about the first 10min. Scrumhalf Olivia Ortiz created a spark with a brilliant 50-22 from the boot, giving the USA a short-yardage line out. A high tackle from Canada gave the USA the player advantage as they continued to strike the line but couldn’t come away with points. The opportunities were there, just couldn’t break through. Alev Kelter had the highlight of the night, picking off the Canadian pass and sprinting away for an 80-meter try that had all 10,000+ fans roaring. McKenzie Hawkins would also drill the corner conversion, tying the game up at 14.
The final 10 minutes of the match were a deciding factor, with both teams jarring for possession and opportunities. As reserves came in, Canada were on the attack with a player advantage and capitalized on two closing tries. Charli Jacoby picked up a late yellow card and time ticked away for the United States. Canada win, 26-14.
Despite the loss, the USA showed massive improvement over the previous year’s fixtures against Canada who have proved to be a worthy second best team in the world. Fueled by the home crowd energy and always exciting rivalry, the first Pacific Four Series match will be another stepping stone for the USA.
Head Coach Sione Fukofuka said after the match, "It was a fantastic contest, playing the world number two team was always going to be a challenge but the girls really lifted and improved from last week. Our set piece execution was much better, but it's still an area we can be world class in. We just have to keep pushing those standards.
We go caught again in our own half, which we'll have to improve on against Australia, however our potential to score points was fantastic. Defensively we like to make a lot of tackles, so we'll be happy with our defensive execution but unfortunately we spent a long time in our own half. Otherwise we're really happy with the mindset of the team to go out and compete."
| NAME | CLUB | INTL. CAPS |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Hope Rogers | Exeter Chiefs | 52 |
| 2. Kathryn Treder | Loughborough Lightning / Bay Area Breakers | 27 |
| 3. Keia Mae Sagapolu | ACT Brumbies | 16 |
| 4. Hallie Taufoou | Loughborough Lightning / Denver Onyx | 24 |
| 5. Erica Jarrell | Sale Sharks | 15 |
| 6. Tahlia Brody | Leicester Tigers / Denver Onyx | 12 |
| 7. Kate Zackary | Ealing Trailfinders | 42 |
| 8. Rachel Johnson | Exeter Chiefs / Denver Onyx | 34 |
| 9. Olivia Ortiz | Sale Sharks | 23 |
| 10. McKenzie Hawkins | Denver Onyx | 22 |
| 11. Erica Coulibaly | Denver Onyx | 2 |
| 12. Alev Kelter | Loughborough Lightning / Bay Area Breakers | 28 |
| 13. Ilona Maher | USA Sevens / Bristol Bears | 3 |
| 14. Emily Henrich | Leicester Tigers / Boston Banshees | 22 |
| 15. Bulou Mataitoga | Loughborough Lightning / Bay Area Breakers | 23 |
| 16. Paige Stathopoulos | Ealing Trailfinders / Boston Banshees | 15 |
| 17. Maya Learned | Denver Onyx | 17 |
| 18. Charli Jacoby | Exeter Chiefs / Queensland Reds | 34 |
| 19. Rachel Ehrecke | Denver Onyx | 20 |
| 20. Freda Tafuna | Lindenwood Lions | 11 |
| 21. Taina Tukuafu | Bay Area Breakers | 14 |
| 22. Gabby Cantorna | Exeter Chiefs | 33 |
| 23. Nicole Heavirland | USA Sevens / Boston Banshees | 11 |
Head Coach | Sione Fukofuka
Assistant Coach | Mel Bosman
Assistant Coach | Sarah Chobot
Head of Athletic Performance | Charles Dudley
Assistant S&C | Ashley Morataya
Lead Analyst | Caitlin Singletary
Performance Psychologist | Scott Goldman
Lead Physiotherapist | Emily Lauer
Physiotherapists | Natalie Frizzell, Alice Grellman
Team Doctors | Rebecca Rodriguez, Abbie Hamilton, Marvin Valencia
Team Manager | Alana Gattinger
High Performance Director | Tamara Sheppard
Media Manager | Jenni Burke
USA v Japan | 33-39 (L)
Wallis Annenberg Stadium, Los Angeles, CA
USA v Canada | 26-14 (L)
CPKC Stadium, Kansas City, MO
USA v Australia | Pacific Four Series
Sat, May 17, 2025 | 2:55am ET
Gio Stadium, Canberra, Australia
USA v New Zealand | Pacific Four Series
Fri, May 23, 2025 | 11:35pm ET
North Harbour Stadium, Auckland, New Zealand
