USA Women’s Sevens continue top five finishes in Perth

The USA Women’s Sevens had another positive showing in Australia for the third of seven HSBC SVNS tournaments this year, finishing 5th in Perth.

Kristi Kirshe returned to the squad for the first time this year, joining a roster of new talent who continue to keep pace with the top teams. In a special occasion, residency veteran Autumn Czaplicki made her HSBC SVNS debut in the Perth quarterfinal. The USA Women went 3-2 on the weekend, steadily moving forward with Head Coach Emilie Bydwell’s progression towards the series finale at home in Los Angeles in May. Next up for the USA Women’s Sevens will be a familiar timezone in Canada for the Vancouver SVNS, Feb 21-23.

Head Coach Emilie Bydwell said on the weekend, “We’re definitely happy with how we started the weekend—gritting out a tough win against Fiji and following that with a dominant performance against Great Britain. However, we fell short against Canada, both tactically and in our mindset, which was frustrating. But we took that game as a brick on the wall, using it to learn and elevate our performance throughout the tournament. While we ultimately fell short against France and Japan, the intent and intensity with which we competed were noticeably stronger. Moving forward, our focus will be on sharpening our decision-making and maintaining defensive structure under pressure, especially in chaotic moments and through phases. These areas will be a priority as we head into our next training block.

Three tournaments into 2025, Bydwell added on the teams progression in this foundational year, “There have been several positives this season. We've successfully capped seven new players and navigated significant turnover, all while continuing to compete in tournaments and providing valuable experience to a range of players. We've shown just how dangerous and dynamic we can be, with our ability to score tries quickly as a testament to that. But above all, what's most important is that our players have remained fully committed to carrying the torch of the Highwomen, consistently working to deliver our team values both on and off the field.”

Pool play saw fixtures against Fiji, Great Britain and Canada with the team finishing 2-1 to earn a third straight quarterfinal appearance. Match one against Fiji was a close contest where breakout star Nia Toliver continued her winning ways with a pair of tries, the second a game-winning score in the final minute to finish 21-19. The USA also opened against Fiji in Cape Town, dominating in a 31-0 win so the sequel in Perth proved to be more competitive.

Ariana Ramsey hit a stride in match two with a hat trick against Great Britain. The 26-5 win was clinical on both sides of the ball, with a fair amount of pace from Ramsey and again Toliver who added another try in the win. After the match, Co-Captain Kayla Canett told the broadcast that even with the 20+ win, there were still a few elements the team recognizes they can improve on, showing a strong confidence in the team’s capabilities.

Pool A finished with an always exciting North American showdown against Canada, though the northern rivals would come out on top 21-7 as the USA had trouble keeping Piper Logan in check. The squad came away with a few defensive work-ons for the knockout rounds after the last pool match, however the highlight from this game was a creative try from Canett. With a penalty at the restart, Canett was able to start with possession at midfield and opted for the fake pass to catch the Canadian defense sleeping and sprint forward for the try.

Now in the quarterfinals, France was paired with the Eagles. France’s Anne-Cecile Ciofani took the game in hand early with two tries up the middle before the 5th minute, and eventual 19-7 win to France. A challenging match in hindsight where the USA struggled to organize an attack, outside a fancy footwork score from Ramsey who tallied five tries on the weekend. Coming off the bench, Autumn Czaplicki stepped on to the HSBC SVNS pitch for the first time in her sevens debut. Czaplicki has trained in residency for a few years and has played the 15s game with the Women’s Eagles since 2023, with five test match caps to pair with her official debut on the sevens side.

Day three consisted of only one match for the USA, facing Japan for the first time this year in the 5th place playoff. Ramsey picked up right where she left off with two tries in the first three minutes with open space on the outside. The USA controlled the match early, jumping out to a 15-0 lead at halftime, but Japan made it a contest in the second seven minutes. Japan were able to tie it up at 15 in the first few minutes before both teams began trading tries. Jess Lu notched her first career SVNS try with a sleek move on the inside, but Japan were able to answer and get the last points of a tied game in expired time. Japan win, 29-22.

While another podium finish was the goal for the USA Women’s Sevens, Bydwell and the team continue down the right path of development in the early stage of this Olympic cycle. Multiple rookies earned another tour experience with the philosophy of progression at the forefront. Next up for the USA Women’s Sevens will be the Vancouver SVNS, Feb 21-23 - all leading to the series finale at home in Los Angeles for the World Championship, May 3-4. Ticket now available for the home stop.

Emilie Bydwell | Head Coach

Zack Test | Assistant Coach

Trey Ford | Head of Athletic Performance

Nicole Titmas | Manager of Medical Services; Head Athletic Trainer

Liz Strohecker | Head of Operations - Sevens

Tries: N. Toliver (2), A. Ramsey

Conv: K. Canett (3)

Tries: N. Toliver, A. Ramsey (3)

Conv:K. Canett (2), S. Ibarra (1)

Tries: K. Canett

Conv: K. Canett

Tries: A. Ramsey

Conv: S. Ibarra

Tries: A. Ramsey (2), K. Canett, J. Lu

Conv: S. Ibarra