Rhinos Rugby Academy won the U18 Cup Invitational at the North American Invitational (NAI) 7s, which drew more than 100 teams to Salt Lake City, Utah. Eagle Rogers-Dellermann served as head coach and guided the high schoolers across the 6-0 weekend. Of the multiple sides that the National Development Program (NDP) brought to Utah, the girls’ U14 also won their bracket.
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Rogers-Dellermann is the Regional Academy Coach for the Sacramento facility and assembled a team with local and San Clemente members, remote training participants, and three newcomers with the hope that they might be involved in Rhinos programming in the future.
“The roster that I put together, I called it my dream team,” Rogers said. “The biggest goal was to bring these athletes who have never really worked together full-time together as a team. We had two sessions before we played, so it was really amazing to see who stepped into leadership roles and became that gel to bring the team together.”
Rogers-Dellermann listened to the players when it was time to name a captain, and the team elected Downingtown’s Nina Mason for the position. The junior Eagle is heading to Life University in the fall and has traditionally played for Atlantis during the travel season.
“We had leaders who really stepped up but who weren’t really named in that position,” Rogers-Dellermann said. “Faith Chen is from Sacramento and she was someone who really brought the team together. She’s a lively, spirited person who is easy to talk to and get along with. Jadyn Collins, too. She and Faith have been part of our program for a long time.”
Graphic courtesy @rhinosrugbyacademy Instagram
Rhinos cruised on day one of the NAI 7s, shutting out Badger Selects 2, Scottsdale and Pioneer while scoring 151 points.
“They were nervous, and loving it,” Rogers-Dellermann said of the high-visibility tournament. “I’m trying to gauge it and manage it – when to put more pressure on them because they need it, and when to lessen it because they’re putting pressure on themselves. When they were relaxed, it was really awesome to see the ball movement and moving into space. … The group we had and the caliber of player we had, the team just really enjoyed playing at that level with players also at that level. It allowed them to execute their role because they trusted their teammates to also execute their roles.”
As expected, the competition stiffened in the knockouts, and Rhinos started day two with a 24-5 win against the Badger Selects’ top team. The squad relied on the aforementioned for guidance, and also leaned on Neti Tuavao’s stellar decision-making and play-making abilities to thrive.
“Makenna [Bailey] stepped up,” Rogers-Dellermann called out players who flourished under the pressure. “She’s a new member of the academy and started training in San Clemente. She, along with Faith, grew the most from the first practice to the last game. She took my feedback and implemented it and really shined. She has a ton of potential.
“Sadie [Schier], too,” the coach said of the Dartmouth College commit. “She was someone who got moved around a little bit due to injuries. She started in the forwards, then moved to the back line when there was an injury, then moved back to the forwards when there was another injury. She was just an all-around phenomenal player who really worked hard and brought the team up with her actions and how she played.”
Rhinos met the Charlotte Tigress in the semifinals, and Rogers-Dellermann hailed that match as the team’s toughest.
“For me as a coach, being on the sideline, that was the most stressful game of the weekend,” she said. “Each team tested us in a different way, but this was a different type of pressure that we hadn’t seen before.”
The teams were knotted at a try apiece after the first half.
“We talked about the importance of ball security, because we were just coughing it up,” Rogers-Dellermann recapped the halftime talk. “We also talked about heart, that we had to win that game in order to move onto the next game. It was so hot. We had about three injuries on the team so everyone was playing a lot of minutes. These games really test you mentally, and it comes down to who wants it more. How willing are you to go to a dark place to give everything you have for your teammates? It was cool to see how they responded.”
Rhinos answered with three tries to win 24-5 and advance to the final.
“We also talked about playing selflessly, and how you need to shine your own light but how you can do that in support of your teammates and playing toward the space,” Rogers-Dellermann said. “Your light shines brighter when you make your teammates shine.
“As a coach, it’s fun having expectations and really amazing when they’re surpassed,” the coach continued. “It was working on the fine details of positioning, and where we want to kick, and how to put pressure on other teams. They were all really open to that and it was a difference-maker in how we were able to perform.”
Rhinos met American Rugby Pro Training Center (ARPTC) in the final. The fellow NDP had won two single-digit contests on day two, defeating Utah Lions 15-12 in the quarterfinals and Maui 10-7 in the semifinals. Rhinos was feeling energized heading into the title match.
Cpt. Nina Mason and coach Hope Rogers-Dellermann
“We had a challenge in the semifinal, and the way the girls had to dig a little deeper, it showed them they had more to give,” Rogers-Dellermann said. “For the final, they felt good and confident, and also nervous.
“One of our main focuses was really pressuring kickoffs,” the coach said of the game plan. “Even if you’re not contesting it in the air, how do you keep launching forward to force a mistake and then capitalize on it? We really brought that into the start of the game. We adjusted the kickoff based on ARPTC’s alignment, and they executed that well.”
As Rhinos built a healthy lead, Rogers-Dellermann tried to get the team to play smarter, not harder.
“On day two it’s not about point differential anymore; it’s just about winning games, so you speak about game management,” she said. “It was funny. I told them, ‘O.K., you can calm it down, slow it down,’ but they were so excited and wanted to play. So it was, ‘O.K., just go.’ It was nice to see them play freely.”
Rhinos won 41-7 and the U18 Cup Invitational title.
“I just love to see the girls play and develop and see them reach their own dreams. And I think all the academies are like that,” Rogers-Dellermann credited ARPTC. “At the end of the day, it’s, ‘How can I – someone who’s been through it all – share my experiences in what I’ve learned to help them grow?’ That’s why I’m in. Winning is fun. I’m hyper-competitive and wins are great. But being able to watch these girls grow in a little way – whether on the field or thinking about the game or game management or taking their game to a new level – that’s the most important thing.”
As for the Rhinos, training is continuous, whether on site or remote. At present, a 15s tour to Portugal in October is the next opportunity for the girls. And there’s a push for a senior women’s team – the academy’s first – to feature in the Dubai invitational end of year. Rogers-Dellermann is heavily invested in that programming coming together, and will balance those pursuits with the USA Women’s National Team fall tour that is also forming in advance of the Rugby World Cup.