Tess Feury and Jenny Johnson captain the AIG Women’s Collegiate All-Americans (WCAAs) this afternoon in the first of two games against the Canadian Maple Leafs. The 26-player roster emerged from last week’s Stars & Stripes camp, which brought the WCAAs and Women’s Junior All Americans (WJAAs) together in Salt Lake City.
With the two All-American programs training alongside each other during Stars & Stripes, WCAA head coach Sue Whitwell not only doubled her player pool but also received insight into up-and-coming talent.
“The level of rugby continues to get higher,” Whitwell stated after a week with the country’s age-grade stars. “The pace of the game is getting faster, the physicality and efficiency at the point of contact is better. We are seeing players coming from the Junior All-American program with solid skills and game understanding. We are also seeing the benefits of more teams that have solid, consistent coaching.”
The team is composed of under-23 athletes, ranging from college graduates who have played a year-plus of senior club rugby to Dartmouth’s Kat Ramage, an incoming sophomore and lone player selected from the WJAAs. Eighteen of 26 players hail from DI Elite and/or DI varsity programs, while Lanoira Duhart (Winona State) and Danielle Ordway (Davenport University) represent DII. Several players – including Sarah Buonopane, Yeja Dunn, Frieda Fetu’u, Taylah Pipkin, Frankie Sands and Haley Schafer – competed at the National All-Star Competition that named the Eagles for the Super Series.
The Maple Leafs is a developmental side, and today’s roster (read more, scroll to bottom of article) features players with international test experience. Whitwell anticipates that the contact point and pace of game will figure heavily into the outcome.
“The thing we hope athletes take away from an event like this is an understanding of what it takes to be an Eagle. Being an elite athlete requires good choices regarding lifestyle – specifically recovery, nutrition, fitness and tools to deal with the pressure inherent in the world of elite sport. The goal is to provide an all-encompassing approach so the athletes can continue to improve in between assemblies.”
The WJAA vs. Maple Leafs match will be live-streamed via USA Rugby’s YouTube, not via The Rugby Channel as previously advertised. Afterward, the Women’s Super Series will contest round two, pitting England vs. France at 3 p.m. MT, and USA vs. Canada at 5 p.m. MT.
AIG Women’s Collegiate All-Americans Nicole Benedetti – Brandywine Kaitlyn Broughton – Life Sarah Buonopane – Beantown Gabriella Cantorna – Penn State Allyson Day – Norwich Lanoira Duhart – Winona State Yejadai Dunn – Dartmouth Frieda Fetu’u – Berkeley All Blues Tess Feury – Penn State (c)McKenzie Hawkins – Lindenwood Rebekah Hebdon – BYU Bailey Johnson – Minn. Valkyries Jennifer Johnson – Central Washington (c)Bridget Kahele – AIC Jessica Lewis – Cal Katherine Loughran – Notre Dame Ilona Maher – Quinnipiac Azniv Nalbandian – Penn State Uzoamaka Okoro – Brown Danielle Ordway – Davenport Taylah Pipkin – Penn State Katherine Ramage – Dartmouth Megan Rom – Life Elizabeth Rose – Penn State Francesca Sands – Dartmouth Haley Schafer – Central Washington
Coaching Staff Sue Whitwell – Head Coach Melanie Denham – Assistant Coach James English – Assistant Coach Lance Pruett – Manager
AIG Women’s Collegiate All-Americans | vs. Maple Leafs July 5 @ 1 p.m. MT – Regional Athletic Complex July 9 @ 11 a.m. MT – Regional Athletic Complex
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