USA South Names Roster vs. Capital Selects

USA Rugby South is hosting four senior all-star 15s matches on Saturday, Jan. 21 in Raleigh, N.C. Included in the lineup are two women’s games: South vs. Capital Selects at 2 p.m. ET, followed by Capital Developmental vs. DI Raleigh Venom at 3:30 p.m.

The USA South has named 20 players from six states (Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee), and 11 clubs to its game-day roster. The Knoxville Minx, the DII national championship runner-up, is the best represented team with five players on the roster.

The majority of players (15/20) have represented the senior Panthers before, and eight of those veterans (#) helped USA South to a Tier 2 title at the Mary Graham All-Stars in December. The five newcomers have either come up through the South age grades (^) or are making their debuts (*). Lee University’s Ava Zopf and Alyssa Woody are the only players who currently play in the college sphere.

Ava Zopf (tackler) during the ’22 NCR Small College National Championship / Photo: Jackie Finlan

The South will also play a Feb. 18 match against the Midwest Thunderbirds in St. Petersburg, Fla. That game is part of a larger all-star event involving high school age grade teams. In the spring, there will be a couple of tryouts and then an invite-only camp in the summer in advance of the RAN 12s international tournament.

USA SOUTH ROSTER v CAPITAL
Rachael Bradley – Tampa Bay#
Cyndi Campbell – Alpharetta
Bailey Chase – Chattanooga#
Kristen Coulston – Knoxville#
Gina Durkan – Knoxville#
Haley Forman – Knoxville
Akilah Guzman – Atlanta
Veronica Hill – Charleston
Leanne Hudson – Charleston*
Keki Jordan – Tampa Bay#
Emily Krupp – Lagniappe
Corinne Priest – Chattanooga#
Chelsea Robl – Knoxville#
Amy Satkowiak – Knoxville
Malia Suhren – Charlotte*
Christina Swift – Lagniappe
Laice Varnum – Orlando^
Callie Woods – Columbia#
Alyssa Woody – Lee Univ.*
Ava Zopf – Lee Univ.^

SOUTH STAFF
Joel Bonnaud – Women’s Director
Chris Martin – Head Coach
Renee McLane – Backs Coach
Simone Smith – Forwards Coach

 

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