The USA Women's Eagles Sevens finish 11th place at the HSBC Singapore Sevens.
After a short turnaround from the previous stop in Singapore, the Eagles reset and found their groove in the final match against Brazil. This moves the team into the 5th spot on the ranking list heading into the final stop on home soil in Los Angeles next month.
Head Coach, Emilie Bydwell commented; “This has been a tour full of lessons for our team. Winning on the World Series is hard and winning consistently is even harder. Throughout the tour we’ve had to deal with adversity on field and off and learning how to manage that is all part of us growing together.
"While the outcomes were not what we had set up to do, nor what we had the potential to do, the learnings that have come from this tour will drive us forward as a team. It’s encouraging that we saw glimpses of what we are capable of throughout the weekends so the task now is to maintain the focus required to deliver those instances more consistently.
"The goal this season was to expose new players to the World Series while also qualifying for the Grande Finale in LA. We have done that so the mission is now clear - deliver a podium performance in front of a home crowd in LA. As a program we are proud of what our program represents for USA rugby and this is the stage of the season where we must lock in, take ownership and prepare for the challenge that lies ahead. We are excited and honored to have this opportunity and we are hungry to embrace it.”
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Pool C challenged the USA starting with Great Britain who set the tone first. After dotting down for a try, Nia Toliver was high on the Brits radar and given little space.. Eliciting Ariana Ramsey’s blistering pace, the Eagles shifted the ball wide as she stepped outside the last defender to find the line. With the US poised to close down the clock, the US get held up and Great Britain manages to makes sense of a chaotic ruck, picking and going across the line to turn the result in their favor.
With only two pool matches in the condensed programming, the North American rivalry swung in our Northern neighbors favor. Canada opened with the first points on the board, but Ariana Ramsey managed to find space and find the line. A dynamic Ramsey - Toliver duo turned up the pace to see Toliver touched down for her 20th try. With the Canadians ahead, the side began to slow down the clock and stymie the Eagles attack. However, Sariah Ibarra does not relent and finds space just after the buzzer to run in one more try for the USA
Day two, USA lined up against Spain in the 9th place Semi Final. A persistent Spanish attack slipped through soft USA tackles giving Spain the lead at half time. Handling errors prevented the Eagles go-forward and they struggled to find the gain line while Spain continued to control the attack. Alyssa Porter turned on the speed in the last play and dotted down to put American points up.
The USA reload and hit their stride in the 11th place play - off. Brazil put up the first points, but Nia Toliver saw an opening, backed her speed, and bullied her way down the pitch to equalize. Keeping it one for one, both sides are penalized with yellow cards within the same minute. Kristi Kirshe sees the extra space on the pitch and picks and goes from the base of the ruck to run in under the posts. Ariana Ramsey adds her name to the points list with a speedy try. Alyssa Porter collects a wide pass and runs it in to seal the Eagles victory in their final match of the tournament.
The USA Sevens return to their home base in Chula Vista, California ahead of the final stop of the HSBC SVNS series in Los Angeles with the added bonus of playing in front of family and friends and a home USA crowd at the SVNS World Championship in Los May 3-4. Tickets available at lasevensrugby.com
| Name | SVNS Tournaments |
|---|---|
| 1. Ariana Ramsey | 13 |
| 3. Kayla Canett | 35 |
| 6. Alena Olsen | 30 |
| 12. Kristi Kirshe (C) | 29 |
| 15. Rachel Strasdas | 7 |
| 20. Autumn LoCicero | 6 |
| 22. Sammy Sullivan | 16 |
| 24. Su Adegoke | 6 |
| 28. Sariah Ibarra | 6 |
| 29. Hann Humphreys | 5 |
| 30. Tessa Hann | 2 |
| 32. Alyssa Porter | 6 |
| 33. Nia Toliver | 5 |
Emilie Bydwell | Head Coach
Zack Test | Assistant Coach
Trey Ford | Head of Athletic Performance
Nicole Titmas | Manager of Medical Services; Head Athletic Trainer
Peter Haberl | Sport Psychologist
Liz Strohecker | Head of Operations – Sevens
Tries: A. Ramsey, N. Toliver
Conv: S. Ibarra
Tries: A. Ramsey, N. Toliver, S. Ibarra
Conv: S. Ibarra (3)
Tries: A. Porter
Tries: A. Ramsey, N. Toliver, K. Kirshe, A. Porter
Conv: K. Canett (3)
