7.1.08 - The US Women's 7s TU committee, in conjunction with the US Women's 7s Coaching Staff are holding an informal "7s Challenge Cup" tournament in Chicago, Illinois, July 18,19.

The US U23, and TU teams will be competing as a "warmup" venue for 7s ITTs to be held in Pittsburgh, PA, Aug 23-25.

This summer will mark the end of scouting opportunities for selection of the World Class Cup Squad, that will be practicing and playing together Sept 2008 culminating in the 7s World Cup, March 2009.

If you want to be seen, but haven't had the opportunity to make it to your TU camp, please contact Julie McCoy, the US Women's 7s coach for assistance. The US Team is interested in ANY player, which includes those in the Club 7s/15s system, collegiate, or the D2 level.

The Senior Northeast pack players were recognized as the MVPs of the 2008 Senior Women's competition.

The Senior Northeast Women hoist
the 2008 Championship trophy after
defeating the defending champs Midwest. 6.18.08 (from reports by USARugby.org) - The USA Rugby National Guard Under-23 and Senior Women's All-Star Championships wrapped up June 14 at Founders Field. In the Senior Women's Championship, the two-time defending champions from the Midwest proved no match for the powerful pack and swift footing of the Northeast. In a true team effort, the NRU side spread the ball around to go up 19-0 before the break and continued to grow its lead in the second half.

After switching sides, the Northeast would score three more unanswered tries before the end. Christina Hobson and Kelly McMahon contributed one a piece before speedster Jenna Flateman broke free and blazed down the side for her team's last try to bring the final tally to 34-0 - NRU's return to the top for the first time since 2005.

In recognition of an outstanding combined effort, the Northeast pack was recognized by Women's National Team Head Coach Kathy Flores as the MVP of the Senior Women's competition.

"I think we played really in our match against Pac on Friday, but we knew we had things to work on. In practice yesterday we spent an hour in the scrum machine fine-tuning and the results certainly showed through on the field today - both Christina Hobson and Phaidra Knight gave standout performances," said Northeast Head Coach Drew Fautley. "Although our forwards received the MVP award, I definitely don't want to take anything away from the backs. This was 100 percent a team effort."

The remainder of the Senior Women's division was also marked by other shutout victories, including the third place meeting between the Pacific Coast and SoCal, which saw the Pac Coast get out to 22-0 lead by the end of the first half, before sealing the deal in a 32-0 final. Following the loss, SoCal will be relegated to Tier B.

The MARFU Senior side overpowered its developmental counterpart in the 5th/6th place match, with a 31-0 final tally. Vanesha McGee led the way for the Sharks with a pair of tries, while fullback Elizabeth Black converted three of the six tries in the win, which earned MARFU I a promotion to Tier A for next year's all-stars.

In the Tier B consolation match, the lower seeded West team defeated the No. 5 seed South team 13-0. The Mustang's Deanna McGillivray started things off for the West with a drop goal, while Bethany Zick and Megan Knight added a try each.

U23 Results

Mid-Atlantic (MARFU) defended its 2007 Under-23 title and the Northeast snapped the Midwest's Senior division winning streak as the USA Rugby National Guard Under-23 and Senior Women's All-Star Championships wrapped up today at Founders Field.

In the Under-23 Women's championship match, the reigning champion MARFU team took control of its meeting with the Midwest early on, scoring three unanswered tries in the first half to go up 19-0 before the break. After switching sides, the Midwest still struggled to finish offensively and by the final blow MARFU had surged ahead to a final score of 29-0.

"We feel good about defending our title. We changed our plan from our Pac (Pacific Coast) game," Mid-Atlantic Head Coach Lisa Rosen said. "We knew that Midwest would have a steep backline so we switched up our defense and played an aggressive game."

Kate Daley, who led the scoring charge for the MARFU Sharks with three tries in the final match, was named the National Guard Under-23 All-Star Championships MVP by Women's National Team selectors.

Meanwhile, Pacific Coast steamrolled past the Southern California U-23 team in the third place match, easily shutting out the Griffins with a final score of 56-0. Pac Coast fullback Kristen Demaria proved troublesome for SoCal, scoring - 21 points in her team's big win. Following the loss, SoCal now moves down to Tier B for next year's competition.

The Northeast Under-23s easily put down the West in the battle for fifth place to earn a promotion to Tier A for next year's competition. Although the West was first to get on the board with an early penalty kick from Erin Wood, the NRU took over from there, scoring seven tries for a final score of 41-3. Tess Kohanski led the way for the Northeast with five tries.

In the contest for seventh place, the South Under-23s dealt the TU developmental squad a convincing 63-7 victory. The developmental team scored its only points late in the first half off a try by Monique McQueen and conversion from Christie Taylor, while the South was propelled by fullback Suzanne Uchneat, who had 31 points in her team's victory.

Day 1 Results

Senior Women
MARFU 50, West 8
MARFU Devel 12, South 8
Midwest 20, So Cal 8
Northeast 19, Pacific Coast 10

Under-23 Women
Northeast 43, South 0
West 80, TU Developmental 0
MARFU 15, Pacific Coast 10
Midwest 25, So Cal 7

Day 2 Results

Senior Women
7/8th place - West 13, South 0
5/6th place - MARFU 31, MARFU Developmental 0
3/4th place - Pacific Coast 32, Southern California 0
Championship - Midwest 0, Northeast 34

Under-23 Women
7/8th place - South 63, TU Developmental 7
5/6th place - Northeast 41, West 3
3/4th place - Pacific Coast 56, Southern California 0
Championship - MARFU 29, Midwest 0

6.10.08 - The very best in women's rugby athletes in the US will be competing this weekend in Pittsburgh for their respective territories at the Women's National All-Star Championships. The tournament will have the all the territories and their U23 squads represented. Tournament hosts are the Pittsburgh Harlequins and all matches will be played at Founders Field. Competition starts Friday at 10am.

Match Schedule

Friday June 13:
10:00 - U23 - South v NRU
10:30 - Senior - West v MARFU
12:00 - U23- West v TBD
12:30 - Senior - South v MARFU Dev
2:00 - U23 - MARFU v Pacific
2:30 - Senior - MW v So Cal
4:00 - U23 - MW v So Cal
4:30 - Senior - Pacific v NRU

Sunday June 15:
8:30 - U23 - 7/8th place
9:00 - Senior - 7/8th place
10:00 - U23 - 5/6th place
10:30 - Senior - 5/6th place
11:30 - U23 - Championship
12:00 - U23 - 3/4th
1:00 - Senior - Championship
1:30 - Senior - 3/4th place

2008 Senior Women All Star 15s Seedings

1. Midwest
2. Pacific
3. Northeast
4. Southern Cal
5. South
6. Mid-Atlantic
7. West
8. Mid-Atlantic Dev

2008 U23 Women All Star 15s Seedings

1. U23 Mid-Atlantic (MARFU)
2. U23 Southern California
3. U23 Midwest
4. U23 Pacific
5. U23 West
6. U23 Northeast
7. U23 South
8. U19 Squad

2008 All-Star Rosters

SENIOR WOMEN

1. Midwest Thunderbirds
Ansel, Tonya
Berg, Elizabeth
Brown, Anna
Day, Shauna
Domenosky, Sabrina
Douglas, Farrah
Fidelman, Gabrielle
Gill, Laura
Hertel, Katy
Kuehl, Sarah
Lear, Kristy
Leary, Sara
Lui, Jenny
Markovich, Desiree
McGowen, Erin
Menke, Jenny
Potter, Jillion
Radtke, Rebecca
Ringgenberg, Christy
Rye, Maria
Stolba, Hannah
Stritch, Kendra
Sullivan, Jaimie
Triemstra, Jennifer
Walsh, Sarah
Weber, Katherine
Wulff, Tonnie
Zummak, Blaire
Martha Daines - Coach

2. Pacific Coast Grizzlies
Acosta, Adrienne (ORSU)
Bruce, Steph (Berkeley All-Blues)
Bryson, Ruth (Berkeley All-Blues)
Burke, Jamie (Berkeley All-Blues)
Butts, Lisa (Berkeley All-Blues)
Cho, Hannah (Berkeley All-Blues)
English, Ashley (Berkeley All-Blues)
Folayan, Victoria (Berkeley All-Blues)
Fujiwara, Toni (ORSU)
Green, Siu (Sacramento Amazons)
Groefsema, Blair (Berkeley All-Blues)
Gust, Krista (ORSU)
Hemstreet, Allyson (Berkeley All-Blues)
Jennings, Heather (Seattle Women)
Kmiecik, Ashley (Emerald City Mudhens)
Madell, Bridget (ORSU)
Marchino, Nathalie (Berkeley All-Blues)
Marshall, Ramey (ORSU)
Moreno, San Juanita (ORSU)
Rogers, Tamara (Emerald City Mudhens)
Royce, Becket (ORSU)
Terry, Liz (Berkeley All-Blues)
Verdeyen, Meagan (Berkeley All-Blues)
Wallace, Mari (Berkeley All-Blues)
Whitmore, Rose (Berkeley All-Blues)
Alex Williams - Head Coach
Jen Crawford - Asst. Coach
Chris Gray - Manager

3. Northeast Women
Aerts, Hedwig (New York)
Astphan, Renee (Providence)
Baja, Kristin (New York)
Bernstein, Ida (Keystone)
Blaney, Sharon (Beantown)
Bonomo, Kristin (Beantown)
Brafman, Rebecca (New York)
Collier, Annie (New York)
Daniels, Amy (Beantown)
Denham, Mel (Beantown)
Dowty, Katie (Beantown)
DuBray, Carrie (New York)
Flateman, Jenna (New York)
Hegener, Hillary (Beantown)
Hobson, Christina (Morris)
Hustwitt, Jen (Beantown)
Knight, Phaidra (New York)
Lloyd, Fontaine (New York)
Magrini, Kim (Keystone)
McMahon, Kelly (New York)
Rodriguez, Ines (Keystone)
Seary, Kelly (Beantown)
Vivolo, Laura (New York)
Wacht, Sharyn (Beantown)
Wagner, Kitt (Beantown)
Drew Fautley - Coach

4. Southern California Griffins
Blue, Marea
Cheung, Daralisa
Chmielak, Sarah
Corpus, Leanna
Dunn Andrea
Guthmann, Elise
Hartos, Kirstin
Haves, Tikvah
Henneberger, Kathryn
Henry, Elisabeth
McIntosh, Chelsea
McLaughlin, Kim
Merritt, Sara
Morris, Kathleen
Pisel, Calli
Saunders, Kanisha
Staid, Andrea
Triplett, Jenny
Tucker, Amber
Underhill, Allison
Vancellette, Erin
Volan, Alexis
Wang, Ann
White, Kelly
Wilson, Amanda
Glenn Rose - Coach

5. South Panthers
Aertz, Kirsten (Atlanta Harlequins)
Belkin, Nicole (Orlando Women)
Bowers, Teagrin (Tampa)
Causey, Taryn (Memphis)
Cerbin, Andrea (Dre) (Memphis)
Cokos, Brie (Miami Naples)
Coulson, Cheryl (Memphis)
Cox, Kat (Atlanta Harlequins)
Cunin, Tiffany (Orlando)
Diehl, Erin (Atlanta Harlequins)
Fields, Casey (Orlando Women)
Glynn, Carmel (UF)
Harrington, Carly (Atlanta Harlequins)
Iacobucci, Stephanie (Atlanta Harlequins)
Keppart, Amy (Atlanta Harlequins)
Lanigan, Sally (Orlando)
Lau, Sharon (Atlanta Harlequins)
Mannino-Dickson, Tasha (Atlanta Harlequins)
Nocero, Cara (Atlanta Harlequins)
Phillips, Crystal (Miami Naples)
Starr, Meghan (Nashville)
Thomen, Katie (Savannah)
Patty Jervey - Coach
Heather Hale - Coach
Raelyn Barlow - Manager

6. MARFU I
Aliberto, Kristin
Baker, Stacy
Bennett, Stacy
Black, Elizabeth
Campbell, Kristen
Costello, Brenna
Creager, Dana
Daley, Rosemary
Dean, Jen
Dilley, Elizabeth
Heath, Jennifer
Hegg, Meredith
Kanuk, Melissa
Marfisi, Angela
McGee, Vanesha
Meyer, Lesha
Myer, Elise
Pope, Kate
Posner, Saburah
Sinkler, Jennifer
Warden, Rachel
Williamson, Sheara
Scott Delaney/Maria Vastola - Coaches

7. West Mustangs
Anderson, Jenna (Glendale)
Asgharzadeh, Parisa (Atomic Sisters)
Blackwell, Gillian (Atomic Sisters)
Gregorich, Claire (Glendale)
Hernandez, Joy (Atomic Sisters)
Howell, Allegra (Atomic Sisters)
Keller, Devin (Houston)
Klahn, Kimberly (Glendale)
Knight, Megan (CU)
Kolarsky, Alena (Houston)
Kuchar, Jennifer (Sabres)
Kugler, Lynelle (Glendale)
Lake, Janay (Glendale)
McGillivray, Deanna (UNM)
McKibben, Melissa (Jazz)
Monroe, Cody (Glendale)
Norden, Kelli (Glendale)
Pavao, Kathryn
Puff, Sarah (Glendale)
Root, Amy (Glendale)
Schmidtke, Traci (Austin)
Swenton, Jen (Houston)
Thomas, Sadie (Boulder)
Thoreson, Katie (Glendale)
Wieczorek, Lindsay (Sabres)
Wurst, Katherine (Glendale)
Young, Wendy (Austin)
Zick, Bethany (Glendale)
Mark Bullock - Head Coach
Wendy Cook - Assistant Coach
Susan Stabler - Manager

8. MARFU Developmental
Benlian, Amber
Berger, Leanna
Campbell, Cortney
Dombroski, Lisa
Duckworth, Caroline
Gaff, Holly
Higgins, Shelly
Hildreth, Cade
Hoeck, Lauren
Hwang, Jackelyn
Johnson, April
MacAlpine, Caitlin
Mansisidor, Alexsis
Noto, Elizabeth
O'Connor, Sunny
Otwell, Elizabeth
Pauler, Emily
Primo, Rachel
Record, Emily
Richards, Jocelyn
Szczepaniak-Gillece, Jillian
Tunney, Emily
Welch, Hannah
Dre Khoury/Maria Vastola - Coaches

6.3.08 - The US has selected an elite squad to compete at the newly formed Nations Cup in August. Hoping to stimulate World Cup-like competition in the years preceeding the actual WRWC, England established the first Nations Cup to take place August 15-31, 2008. The national teams, all top finishers in the last Women's World Cup, competing are: USA, England, Canada and Wales.

US Head Coach Kathy Flores is enthusiastic about the tournament, "As we get very few competitions, it's extremely important for the USA to attend this tournament. Each international match we can schedule is vital to the progress of the team as we look to the next World Cup. We hope to be able to fundraise enough to make the tour accessible to the invited players."

Flores said, "we chose most of the invited players from the last Elite Camp as we did a lot of specific training there and were able to evaluate the strongest players in competition."

"The main qualities we are looking for at this level are: decision-making under pressure, attention to their particular positional requirements, a strong mental determination and compliance to our training program. With our limited exposure to international play, we need our fitness to be no less than superb."

"As for goals for this specific tour, we always play to win, and especially because of our last tour record, we would like to post some wins and gain international experience at a high level. It would be fair to say that every game of this tour will be a challenge for us."

Although the squad has been chosen for the Nations Cup, the WNT staff will be at these elite events reviewing player performances for possible additions to the pool.

National Guard Women's and U-23 All-Star Championships - June 13-15, 2008
Women's Club Playoffs and Championships

Coach Flores said, "we are constantly identifying players that could compete at an international level, particularly at the NASCs. It's important that the top level players identified from each territory not only play together but compete against each other to help them make better decisions under pressure. The combination of the Women and U23 sides, though not ideal, puts both USA "A" staff and WNT staff together to be able to discuss players and their possible inclusion, if they are not already part, into the pool."

Prior to the tour, the Women Eagles will have a camp in Baltimore, Maryland in July 18-20. The Nation's Cup squad and reserves will participate. The camp will be used to prepare the players for competition and strategies under the Experimental Law Variations (ELVs) that are to be rolled out on August 1, 2008.

Nations Cup Squad

1. Kristin Baja - NRU, New York
2. Stacy Baker - MARFU, Philadelphia
3. Jamie Burke - PAC, Berkeley All-Blues
4. Lisa Butts - PAC, Berkeley All-Blues
5. Emilie Bydwell - NRU, Brown University
6. Mel Denham - NRU, Beantown
7. Liz Dilley - MARFU, Washington Furies
8. Farrah Douglas - MW, Chicago North Shore
9. Ashley English - PAC, Berkeley
10. Blair Groefsema - PAC, Berkeley
11. Allyson Hemstreet - PAC, Berkeley
12. Katy Hertel - MW, Minnesota Valkyries
13. Christina Hobson - NRU, Morris Pride
14. Mel Kanuk - MARFU, Maryland Stingers
15. Ashley Kmiecik - PAC, Seattle Mudhens
16. Lynelle Kugler - W, Glendale
17. Kim Magrini - NRU, Keystone
18. Nathalie Marchino - PAC, Berkeley All-Blues
19. Desiree Markovich - MW, Minnesota Valkyries
20. Vanesha McGee - MARFU, Philadelphia
21. San Juanita Moreno - PAC, ORSU
22. Elise Myer - MARFU, Maryland Stingers
23. Jillian Potter - MW, Minnesota Stingers
24. Lara Vivolo - NRU, New York
25. Mari Wallace - PAC, Berkeley All-Blues
26. Sarah Walsh - MW, Chicago Northshore
27. Rose Whitmore - PAC, Berkeley All-Blues

Reserves:

1. Kristen Aliberto - MARFU, Philadelphia
2. Kassie Drey - MW, University of No. Iowa
3. Heather Jennings - PAC, Seattle Mudhens
4. Tess Kohanski - NRU, At-Large
5. Kristy Lear - MW, Minnesota Valkyries
6. Kati McCormick - MW, Univ. Wisconsin-Milwaukee
7. Saburah Posner - MARFU, Philadelphia
8. Beckett Royce - PAC, ORSU
9. Jessica Travers - MW, UIC
10. Sheara Williamson - MARFU, Philadelphia

Nations Cup Staff

• Kathy Flores - Head Coach
• Candi Orsini - Assistant Coach
• Alex Williams - Assistant Coach
• Dr. Lisa Bartoli - Team Doctor
• Sara Percy - Trainer
• Ginger Stringer- Manager

Jen Starkey advances the ball
in one of Saturday's wins.
Photo credit: www.paolopolla.com

5.21.08 - With the close of the Amsterdam Seven's the Women Eagles Seven's Team is looking ahead to a busy international schedule culminating with the World Cup next year.

Head Coach Julie McCoy said, "I was extremely pleased with the US' Amsterdam performance. Our draw was pretty easy on Saturday, so it was difficult for all of us to maintain discipline in regards to our offensive and defensive game plans. Sunday's games were a better challenge for all of us, as the teams we played boasted more athletes."

"Our semi-final game against the Samurai (England) was very exciting, and really could have gone either way. In spite of 3 mental errors in the first half (missed conversion from a centered try, kick-off not 10 meters, direct lineout throw to the opposite team), we were still in contention at half, 5-7. The second half was very defensive, with the US having more long breaks on offense. Both teams demonstrated sensational individual tackles, which is a testament to little either team wanted to lose."

"In the end, we were able to compete in the tournament and also break in four new players to International 7s. The core players know what training and practiced skills will be necessary for them to realize their dream of winning the World Cup. I believe this group can do anything."

The US Women's Development 7s team has several venues scheduled this summer, including an "Emerging USA" Tour to South Africa in early August. The senior players will use the early summer to gain strength, then play out the domestic Territorial Union 7s season.

McCoy adds, "It is an exciting time for US Women's 7s as each player begins to compete for their spot on the World Class Pool list to be named at the end of August."

McCoy is currently in London working with Gordon Tietjens (the NZ mens' 7s team coach) this week in a USA RUGBY funded "shadowing" capacity as the team builds toward London 7s this weekend, and Scotland 7s, the next. McCoy said "I am working hard also to be the coach these players deserve! I thank the NZRFU for this opportunity."

12.7.07 - For Women Eagles tour news from the 2007 First Sports International England Tour check out our News Archive. For a inside look at what happened in England take a look at USA Rugby's Player's Daily Journal.

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