The USA Women’s Eagles Sevens found their stride in Vancouver opening the weekend with a win over the home team before going on to secure Bronze over France in the 3rd place Play- Off.
After a streak of 4th place finishes, the Women’s Eagles targeted the VAN SVNS podium and delivered with the bronze medal.
Proud of her team and the standard they held throughout the 5 matches, Head Coach Emilie Bydwell commented;
“We came into Vancouver knowing that we were going to have to absolutely show up from minute one in game one against Canada. They're a great team with a lot of great players so we focused on delivering our core behaviors and playing how we wanted to play, despite all the feelings and emotions that go with playing against our rivals in Canada.”
“It was a really special performance that the players put on the field. We leaned into courage for that game with the courage to play how we wanted to play, empowering each other to perform. Once that game was done, we focused on building brick by brick throughout the tournament, making sure that we could shift gears and find 5th on day two, because that's where we felt like we'd been falling short the last three tournaments.”
“I’m really proud of the players for how they executed. We fell short against Australia, but we put in a really aggressive and physical performance against New Zealand, which is something that we've elevated across the series. The way we turned around from the New Zealand game into the France game shows there's definitely some different energy, and a level of commitment to the things that we said that we needed to do to move the needle and switch the dial - and that's why we ended up with the medal this time.”
“As a team, we came and accomplished what we wanted in Vancouver. But we’re not satisfied either. We know, we can level up, and find another gear. We can play better than we played this weekend, but will take the learnings that we had across the weekend, and put those learnings into action next weekend at home. We're not going to look past anyone on day one at NYC SVNS. We know we've got a job to do and we're targeting a podium at home. Once we land, we'll focus on recovering and reflecting on this weekend and making sure that we level up the gears one game at a time.”
Opening with a statement to seal a 40–7 victory, the USA Women’s Sevens Eagles had a dominant first half against Canada with brilliance from Su Adegoke serving up a hat trick establishing the lead 19-0 in the first half while leaving the home team scoreless.On the restart, the USA stretched Canadian defence to find space allowing Kristi Kirshe to power through and run down a 60 meter try. Kaylen Thomas punctuated the win capitalizing on a long kick chase down and Autumn Czaplicki sealed the verdict with a try just after the buzzer.
Su Adegoke came in against Fiji with the same momentum scoring the USA’s opening try.Fiji responded, but Sammy Sullivan charged down a support line off Sariah Ibarra and Tahna Wilfley exploding onto the ball and finishing the first half 14-7. Fiji struck first on the restart taking advantage of the overlap, but Sariah ibarra responded with points. Trading momentum, the Fijians dotted down again, leveling the score 19 all. Service from Sarah Levy ran in a strong line and clinched the USA’s winning try 26-19.
In the final match of pool play, Australia came out strong scoring two tries to lead by 12 at half time. Sammy Sullivan came out firing, breaking through contact to score in the opening minute. Australia responded, extending the scoreline with two further tries taking the pool lead with a 22-7 win.
USA kicked off day two with the Cup Semi Final against New Zealand, who touched down first. The USA kept the Black Ferns within reach with a run from Kaylen Thomas bringing the USA Eagles ahead 7-5 at the half. The Black Ferns restarted strong though and took a quick try. Threatening to score again, Ariana Ramsey did well to hold them up, but New Zealand relentless in attack managed to get over. A response from Sarah Levy brought the Eagles back within touching distance but not with enough time on the clock leaving the Eagles down 12-19 at the final buzzer.
Taking on France in the 3rd Place Play Off, the USA opened strong with Ariana Ramsey running in the first try. France responded with two of their own. Strategic stepping from Sammy Sullivan cut through the French defense to run in a try and level the score at 14-all at the half. France opened with a try and Sullivan responded again to level. A stiff arm from Kaylen Thomas broke through to run in a try - and enjoying it so much, she repeated the break through again to clinch the 3rd place match win 35-21.
Coming off the Bronze place win, the USA Women’s Eagles travel back to home soil for the final stop of the Series. Heading to the East coast, USA fans have the chance to watch the USA Women’s Eagles live at the Sports Illustrated Stadium and bring the energy to cheer on the squad. Tickets can be purchased at https://sitickets.com/group/team/hsbc-svns-new-york Live streaming will be available on Paramount+.
| Player # | Player | Sevens Caps |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ariana Ramsey | 19 |
| 2 | Erica Coulibaly | 5 |
| 3 | Tahna Wifley | 5 |
| 12 | Kristi Kirshe (C) | 35 |
| 13 | Sarah Levy | 18 |
| 15 | Rachel Strasdas | 12 |
| 19 | Kaylen Thomas | 9 |
| 22 | Sammy Sullivan | 20 |
| 24 | Su Adegoke | 12 |
| 26 | Ashley Cowdrey | 6 |
| 29 | Hann Humphreys | 6 |
| 33 | Nalu Liufau* | 2 |
| 99 | Autumn Czaplicki | 7 |
USA v CAN | (W) 40-7
Tries: S. Adegoke (3) K. Kirshe, K. Thomas, A. Czaplicki
Conv: A. Cowdrey (3), S. Ibarra (2)
USA v FIJ | (W) 26-19
Tries: S. Adegoke, S. Sullivan, S. Ibarra, S. Levy
Conv: A. Cowdrey, T. Wilfley (2)
USA v AUS | (L) 7-22
Tries: S. Sullivan
Conv: S. Ibarra
USA v NZL | (L) 12-19
Tries: K. Thomas, S. Levy
Conv: A. Cowdrey
USA v France (W) 35-21
Tries: K. Thomas (2), S.Sullivan (2), A. Ramsey
Conv: S. Ibarra (3), T. Wilfley (2)
November 29 - 30 | Dubai - 5th Place
December 6 - 7 | Cape Town - 4th Place
January 31 - February 1 | Singapore - 4th Place
February 7 - 8 | Perth - 4th Place
March 7 - 8 | Vancouver - 3rd Place
March 14 - 15 | NYC
April 17 - 19 | Hong Kong
May 29 -31 | Valladolid
June 5 - 7 | Bordeaux
Emilie Bydwell | Head Coach
Tony Roques | Assistant Coach
Charlie Purdon | Technical & IDP Skills Coach
Ben Pinkelman | Support Coach
Lauren Barber | Performance Analyst
Trey Ford | Head of Athletic Performance
Ashley Morataya | Assistant S&C
Nicole Titmas | Head of Athlete Health & Wellness - 7s / Women's 7s Head ATC
Meghan Chambers | Rehab Specialist
Jackie Rodriguez | Athletic Trainer
Jacque Scaramella | Dietician
Peter Haberl | Sport Psychologist
Liz Strohecker | Head of High Performance Operations - 7s
Maria Adams | High Performance Operations Coordinator - 7s
