USA competed in the World Championships for rugby sevens! Check out their journey below!
The United States made it pretty far into the championships this year, performing to their utmost standard to represent our country in all three championship events! The team included thirteen players and was coached by Emilie Bydwell.
The event included matches in Hong Kong, China; Valladolid, Mexico and Bourdeaux, France.
Hong Kong (April 17-19):
Team USA began their journey in Hong Kong on April 17, facing Spain. They defeated Spain, 24-7, and moved on to beat Argentina 27-5 the next day. They lost to France 14-19 but made it into the Cup Quarter Finals. They did lose to Canada with a score of 7-19.
Valladolid (May 29-31):
Starting off at this event, the U.S. faced Fiji and lost 19-26. In their next match, they faced South Africa where they successfully took a win, with a final score of 26-12. The U.S. went against Australia, where they took the win as well, 14-10. In the quarter cup finals, the United States beat Fiji 40-14 and the team was able to continue further than the last event. In the semi-finals the U.S. beat Canada 14-12, securing their finals position. Unfortunately, Australia stole the win from the USA with the final score being, USA 14 and Australia 27.
Bordeaux (June 5-7):
In the first match for the event, on Friday, June 6, the U.S. demolished Great Britain with a winning score 31-7. With a closer head-to-head score against Spain, the U.S. still took the win 19-15. The next day, Team USA had their match versus Canada, where they beat our neighboring country 33-22. In the Cup Quarterfinals, the USA swept France in a shutout win 12-0. Sadly, Australia defeated the United States 7-21 in the semifinals, ending the rugby reign for the finals of the U.S. this time around. That being said, they were given the opportunity to play for third place, but Canada took the spot with a score of 21-19.
STANDINGS:
The U.S. earned an overall spot of No. 4 in the rankings of all three events. In the Hong Kong event, they placed No. 5 with a total of 12 points earned. In Valladolid, the USA placed No. 2 overall with a total of 18 points scored. Lastly, in Bourdeaux, the USA placed No. 4 with 14 points scored.
The USA gave their all and showed tons of skill and dedication to their team and sport. We thank the players for their efforts and congratulate them on a job well done!