U20 WNT Wants Player Recommendations

By RUGBYMag.com Staff

USA U20 Women's Head Coach Bryn Chivers is looking for new candidates for his team going into the 2011 season.

The U20 WNT will hold a camp March 3-6 in Cocoa, Fla., and he's looking for recommendations from smaller schools and programs.

In July 2011 USA Rugby will host the Women’s U20 Nations Cup, the premier international competition at the U20 level. England, Canada and South Africa are expected to participate, as well as others. This is the fourth time the event has been held, with the USA finishing fourth in 2007 and second in 2009.

In order to continue to build on the success of 2009 the U20 WNT is seeking assistance from coaches of women's college teams in identifying potential players for March camp.

"If coaches have an exceptional player on their squad, or know of a player on another team, then this is their opportunity to recommend her to the team," Chivers told RUGBYMag.com.

Players need to be born on or after September 1, 1990 to be eligible for the 2011 squad. Chivers said he would especially like to hear from coaches of smaller schools who may not have players on the territorial U19 sides.

“We get a lot of recommendations from the teams that consistently compete in the DI or DII National Championships, but we would like to hear about players on the smaller schools," Chivers explained. "There are a lot of exceptional players who are playing for teams that are not competing on the national stage.”

Coaches should contact Bryn Chivers by January 7th 2011 to recommend players for the camp.
Bryn Chivers
Head Coach U20 Women’s National Team
bryn.chivers@gmail.com
773 308 4540

MARFU U19 Program News

The MARFU U19 Program will hold an initial tryout match on Sunday, October 3rd, 2010 in Westminster, Maryland at 1pm. This match will be all Northern based teams (any teams based in the EPRU Union, including West Carroll and North Bay) against all Southern based teams (teams in Potomac and Virginia Unions). The North team will be coached by West Carroll coach Brad Rockwood. All North players must contact Brad if they are interested in playing. Brad’s email is rockhead01@verizon.net The South team will be coached by Maryland Exiles coach Matthew Dyer. All South players must contact Matthew if they are interested in playing. Matthew’s email is matthewd@crcc.org Please include Name, Date of Birth, age, team affiliated with, position/s played, and number of years playing rugby. The coaches will compile team lists and notify players of meeting time, meeting location, game field location, and any other items that they deem necessary. Please contact these coaches for any questions about the North/South match.

Selections will be made from the North/South match and players will then be invited to future MARFU events leading up to the INASC in November. Here are dates, times and location of the future MARFU events.

October 3, 2010: North/South selection match in Westminster, MD 1pm kickoff. 1-4pm
New Windsor Middle School
1000 Green Valley Road
New Windsor, MD

October 17, 2010: Selected team camp, location in Virginia Union, time TBA October 24, 2010: MARFU team match vs ???, location TBA Nov 13 or 14, 2010: MARFU vs. PRU or VRU, or EPRU, TBA Nov 18-21: INASC All Star Championships in Southern California

We ask that players have a good knowledge of the game of rugby, however the North/South match is an open tryout. The MARFU coaching staff is looking for players that are interested in playing at the higher levels of rugby, and have the potential and drive to do so. Again, please note the birthdate cutoff of being born on or after September 1st, 1990. All players who meet that criteria are eligible. Please make sure that all players are CIPP certified.

This will be the only MARFU open tryout for the season. If you are interested in playing for the MARFU team, and you cannot make the tryout, please contact Tony or Kevin directly.

MARFU U19 FACEBOOK PAGE AT http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/group.php?gid=152099817250&ref=ts PLEASE HAVE PLAYERS JOIN THE PAGE AND LOOK FOR INFORMATION ON THE PAGE CONCERNING TRYOUTS, MATCHES AND SELECTIONS.

Please notify the specific team coaches immediately concerning your interest to play in the North/South match. Please bring all necessary items to play in a match on game day. If you need taped, please bring taping supplies with you. We will have a trainer present, but they will not have tape available. Also, please bring a bag lunch and water for the tryout.

Directions and all other info will be provided by the specific team coaches.

Thanks and we look forward to seeing you on Sunday, October 3, 2010.

Kevin Castner, Head Coach castner@live.com Tony DeRemer, Asst Coach aderemer@wcupa.edu

2010 South U19 All-Star Tryout and Camp

Who: Female rugby players born on after September 1, 1990. This includes members of high-school, college, and club teams that meet the age requirement. We HIGHLY encourage college and club teams to recommend this program to their high-performing players. All players must be CIPP and have health insurance to participate.

What: Tryout and camp. Open to all high-performing athletes. In addition, we are interested in development of those athletes who are within a year of being your high-performing athletes.

Where: Avondale Middle School, 3131 Old Rockbridge Rd, Avondale Estates GA 30002

When: October 9/10, 2010, Saturday 9-5, Sunday 9-4

How: Start communicating about this program with your parents, administrators, coaches, and players so they can begin making plans to attend.

Cost: $50 (Cash or Check. Can do PayPal on request.)

Lunches, snacks, and beverages are provided.

Hotel: To Be Announced Soon!

Bring to camp:

* Liability Waiver: http://docs.google.com/View?id=dcs5tt6q_22hd25qqcn
* Player Profile Form: USARS 2010 Player Profile Form
* Dark jersey
* Light jersey
* Personal water bottle
* Running shoes
* Mouthguard, scrumcamp, boots, and any other rugby specific gear
* Rugby shorts



2010 Women’s U19 Invitational National All-Star Championships
Location and Date: To Be Announced
Details to be posted at: http://womeneaglesu20s.blogspot.com/

Program Staff
Head Coach:
Eric Keys

Assistant Coaches:
Kris Graziano
Jay Hawkins

Team Manager:
Nancy Campbell
ndenni01@bellsouth.net

Team Trainer:
Lisa O’Donnell

Random Leftover Stuff From NACRA Tour

Kurt likes to sneak up on players just when they are at their silliest. Here Rachel Ryan is the victim of of another edition of "Kurt's Kandid Kamera".



It’s hot. Temps have been in the mid 90’s and it’s tolerable when there are clouds but it’s incredibly hot when the sun is out. Humidity is high so you are soaked in sweat on the short walk to practice.



Jeff is having to do way more laundry than normal as there is no wearing the practice jerseys, t shirts, polos, etc for a second day.

The buses here are a hoot. They are tiny but hold 30 people. We charter one to get back and forth to the Winton Rugby Center that is about fifteen miles away on the other side of the island. The bus looks like crap on the outside and the inside is almost third world with these strange fold down seats that fill the aisle.......but the sound system is amazing. It's like owning a $1,000 Yugo with a $2,000 sound system. The driver plugs in his ipod and will let the players choose songs. The sound is crisp and the bass is deep, deep, dadada, deep. Makes for fun trips as the players sing to everything.

Chelsea Garber Try V Cayman Women

Really nice moves from the U20 WNT backs resulting in a try for Chelsea Garber.

U20 WNT Drop NACRA Final 3-6

The U20 WNT lost a fiercely contested NACRA final to the Canada U20's by a score of 3-6. It was a great game and both sides had good chances to score throughout the game.

The first half saw play go back and forth with both sides having opportunity to take the lead. Both defenses came out aggressively and It was clear early on that the Canada centers were going to have to move the ball quickly to avoid the big hitting Bui Baravilala. Canada had a chance to open the scoring on the 9th minute when they were awarded a penalty on the USA 22 but the kick sailed wide. The U20‘s had two first half shots at the post but the first of Bui Baravilala’s kicks went slightly wide and the second came back into play off the inside of the post. The USA also had the best try scoring opportunities as the speed of Bex Seibach caused problems for the Canada backs and only a last ditch Canadian tackle saved a certain try.

The second half looked the same as the first with both teams playing aggressive defense and making the most of the offensive opportunities. The USA took the lead 3-0 on a penalty by Chelsea Garber after a long passage of possession.

Canada countered with an attack that looked to have finally broken the USA defense as they created the only overload of the afternoon. Faced with a two on one situation Holly Zoeller put in a fine tackle that forced the final pass to be forward in the contact and the USA escaped with a scrum at the twenty two.

Canada tied the game with a penalty but the momentum seemed to be with the USA U20’s. Sloppy play resulted in a turnover in the Canada half and a series of penalties pushed the U20’s back towards their own twenty - two. Another misdemeanor gave the Canadians a shot at the posts, the kick was good and the score stood at 3-6 with nine minutes to play.

The USA finished the stronger and in the dying minutes drove into the Canadian 22 forcing Canada into giving up a penalty. Unfortunately Chelsea Garber's kick slid wide of the far post and the ref blew the whistle for the end of the game.

Head Coach Bryn Chivers was disappointed with the result “We lost another close one that we deserved to win and it seems we have a problem closing these games out. We’ve played Canada twice this year and lost by a total of four points.”. Asked about positives from the trip Chivers pointed to the overall development of the U20 program “The upside is that gone are the days when we would enter these games as the clear underdog. The development of the SBRO’s is producing players with the same amount of experience as their Canadian counterparts and if you look at the players that stood out at this event several of them came through the youth rugby programs”. Asked to name individual players that stood out Chivers pointed to players like Hawaii’s Bui Baravilala, Summit’s Haley Anderson, BYU’s Bex Siebach and the long time starting back row of Jozy Gessner, Katie Johnson and Candace Barley.

Jozy Gessner was awarded the USA MVP trophy.

USA U20 WNT 3 Canada U20’s 6
Pen: Garber

U20 WNT v Canada U20's
1 Wendy Sherman Colorado State
2 Rachel Ryan U of Wyoming
3 Brittany Rose Unattached (Replaced by Hathaway)
4 Katie Humphreys Kent, WA
5 Alycia Washington U Conn
6 Katie Johnson Hopkins, MN
7 Jozy Gessner Colorado State
8 Candace Barley Lee University (Replaced by Lewis)
9 Hailey Anderson Summit, CO
10 Hannah Lockwood Oregon State
11 Rebecca Siebach Women’s Cougar Rugby
12 Bui Baravilala Aliamanu Blues
13 Star Bollinger Women’s Cougar Rugby
14 Holly Zoeller U of North Carolina (Replaced by McKnight)
15 Chelsea Garber Brown

Reserves From:
16 Mileka Grager Western Washington
17 Andee Samborski Livingstone, MI
18 Katie Hathaway Norwich
19 Kiki McKnight U of Centaral Florida
20 McKenzie Lewis Mesa State
21 Amee Svatos Canby, OR
22 Kelly Sager Penn State
23 Anne Marie Bowlus U of California - Santa Cruz
24 Brittany O’Brien U of Rhode Island

USA U20's drop NACRA Final 3-6

The U20 WNT lost a fiercely contested NACRA final to the Canada U20's by a score of 3-6. It was a great game and both sides had good chances to score throughout the game. The USA took the lead 3-0 on a penalty by Chelsea Garber but Canada came back with two penalties of their own. The USA finished the stronger and in the dying minutes drove into the Canadian 22 forcing Canada into giving up a penalty. Chelsea Garber's kick slid by the far post and the ref blew the whistle for the end of the game.

Jozy Gessner was awarded the USA MVP trophy.

Really was a great game and everyone back at home should be proud of the team. We're off to dinner. I will write a full report later tonight.

USA U20 WNT Selects For NACRA Final

The U20 Women’s National Team announced the selections for the final of the 2010 NACRA Women’s Championships. The team takes on the Canada U20‘s at 5:00 PM on Friday at the Winton Rugby Complex in Nassau, Bahamas.

There are a few changes to the team that beat the Caribbean Select Side on Tuesday. Haley Anderson and Holly Zoeller return to the starting XV, Jozy Gessner moves back to her normal position of open side flanker with Katie Johnson moving over to the #6 jersey.

U20 Women's National Team v Canada U20's

1 Wendy Sherman Colorado State
2 Rachel Ryan U of Wyoming
3 Brittany Rose Unnatached
4 Katie Humphreys Kent, WA
5 Alycia Washington U Conn
6 Katie Johnson Hopkins, MN
7 Jozy Gesssner Colorado State
8 Candace Barley Lee Univeristy
9 Hailey Anderson Summit, CO
10 Hannah Lockwood Oregon State
11 Rebecca Seibach Women’s Cougar Rugby
12 Bui Baravilala Aliamanu Blues
13 Star Bolinger Women’s Cougar Rugby
14 Holly Zoeller U of North Carolina
15 Chelsea Garber Brown

Reserves From:
16 Mileka Grager Western Washington
17 Andee Samborski Livingstone, MI
18 Katie Hathaway Norwich
19 Kiki McKnight U of Centaral Florida
20 McKenzie Lewis Mesa State
21 Amee Svatos Canby, OR
22 Kelly Sager Penn State
23 Anne Marie Bowlus U of California - Santa Cruz
24 Brittany O’Brien U of Rhode Island

NACRA Championships Day 5

Today was a free day for the players. A large group opted to spend the day on a trip out to a reef for some snorkeling and came back with reports of seeing stingray and barracuda. A smaller group went shopping in downtown Nassau and bought some small items while avoiding the Gucci/Coach/Louis Vuitton knockoffs. Market was incredibly tight with just a few feet between the rows of stalls. Lot’s of venders with great patter to get you to stop and shop and one tried to lure Kurt in by asking if he would like to “take something home to the wifey”.

Several players went to the beach across from the hotel. K.J.‘s second sport is diving so she took the opportunity to teach the local boys how to do inward dives off a cement pier (coach’s note: Aarrrggghhhh!) .......and I’m glad to report that there were no injuries.

Dinner tonight was at the Hard Rock Cafe and fajitas were the most popular choice on the menu. Rachel Ryan did a little dance for everyone and the video should be posted tomorrow. We had a video session tonight followed by cake and ice cream to celebrate Brit O’Brien’s 20th birthday. Overall it was a really fun day that I made sound boring as I’m incredibly tired and unable to string two sentences together.

Before I go to bed here is a message to our Women Eagles who kick off their World Cup on Friday against Kazakhstan.

Alycia Washington Try v Caribbean Select Side

UConn's Alycia Washington scores for the U20 Women's National Team against the Caribbean Select Side.

USA U20 Women Win Second NACRA Game

Jozy Gessner scores for the U20 WNT

Nssau, Bahamas. The U20 Women’s National Team beat the Caribbean Select Side 30-7 on six tries from Jozy Gessner (2), Bex Seibach (2), Katie Humphreys and Alycia Washington.

With temperatures in the mid 90’s at game time the weather was always going to be a factor. In the same fashion as the first game, the USA came out of the gate fast and were prepared to play a creative, expansive game. Unfortunately a lack of composure and fatigue from the heat turned from creative to error strewn as the U20’s squandered several opportunities to get on the scoreboard early. Territorially the U20‘s dominated the first half but failed to convert pressure into points and were especially careless in the opposition twenty-two. With passes not going to hand, silly penalties and two players dropping the ball in the act of scoring they went into half time with a slim 10-7 lead on two well taken tries from Bex Seibach and Jozy Gessner,

The second half saw the U20’s come together as some personal changes created a different chemistry on the field. A shoulder high tackle from Rachel Ryan that was possibly more spectacular than dangerous brought out yellow card but the team was settled at that point and continues to dominate large passages of the game. Tries from Katie Humphreys and Alycia Washington were well deserved rewards for a pair of locks who had run hard all day. Bex Seibach and Jozy Gessner both notched up second scores as the U20’s calmed the nerves to run out 30-7 winners.

Head Coach Bryn Chivers was clearly disappointed with the quality of the game but not the outcome, “It was an ugly win but a win is a win. The team chemistry of Sunday was missing today and it turned into a game where you just grind out the win and move on.”
Chivers was happy with the play of some of the individuals and pointed out second rows Katie Humphreys of Kent, Washington and also to UConn’s Alycia Washington as players worth mentioning. “I thought both the locks did well today and they were still running hard at the end of the game. It’s rare for a big lock to put in an MVP like performance in ninety degree heat and yet both of them got out there and played eighty minutes of team rugby and both deserved a try apiece”.

The win puts the U20 WNT at the top of the NACRA standings at the end of pool play and they face the Canada U20’s in the final on Friday. The game kicks off at 5.00 PM at the Winton Rugby Center in Nassau, Bahamas

USA U20 WNT 30 Caribbean Select Side 7
Tries. Jozy Gessner (2), Bex Seibach (2), Katie Humphreys, Alycia Washington.

1 Wendy Sherman Colorado State (Replaced by Ryan) (Replaced by Sager)
2 Katie Hathaway Norwich
3 Brittany Rose Unnatached
4 Katie Humphreys Kent, WA
5 Alycia Washington U Conn
6 Amee Svatos Canby, OR
7 Katie Johnson Hopkins, MN (Replaced by Anderson)
8 Candace Barley Lee Univeristy (Replaced by Lewis)
9 Jozy Gesssner Colorado State.
10 Hannah Lockwood Oregon State
11 Rebecca Seibach Women’s Cougar Rugby
12 Bui Baravilala Aliamanu, Hawaii
13 Star Bolinger Women’s Cougar Rugby
14 Brittany O’Brien U of Rhode Island (Replaced by McKnight)
15 Chelsea Garber Brown

16 Rachel Ryan U of Wyoming
17 McKenzie Lewis Mesa State
18 Kelly Sager Penn State
19 Kiki McKnight U of Centaral Florida
20 Anne Marie Bowlus U of California - Santa Cruz
21 Holly Zoeller U of North Carolina
22 Hailey Anderson Summit, CO

U20 WNT Wins Again

We beat the Caribbean Select Side 30-7 on six tries from Jozy Gessner (2), Bex Seibach (2), Katie Humphreys and Alycia Washington. It wasn't a pretty win but an ugly win is a win. The team was it's own worst enemy as we squandered chances against a very scrappy Caribbean Select Side.

I'm late for the dinner and hopefully I will have time to get a full report up later tonight.

Candace Barley try v Cayman

NACRA Championships Day 5

Had a good walk through this morning and everyone seems to be clicking. Barth ran the players through some defense, Kurt worked on some timing issues in the backs and Miller changed some foot positions with the lineout lifters. It's all minor stuff and everyone seems ready for this afternoons game against the Caribbean Select Side.

USA U20 WNT Selects For Second NACRA Game

The U20 Women;s National Team announced the selections for their second game of the NACRA Championships.

There are eight changes to the team that won the tournament opener. Wendy Sherman, Katie Hathaway, Katie Humphreys, Amee Svatos, Jozy Gessner, Rebecca Seibach, Star Bollinger and Brittany O’Brien all earn their first start of the tour.

The team takes on the Caribbean Select Side at 3PM on Tuesday at the Winton Rugby Complex in Nassau, Bahamas.

U20 WNT v Caribbean Select Side
1 Wendy Sherman Colorado State
2 Katie Hathaway Norwich
3 Brittany Rose Unnatached
4 Katie Humphreys Kent, WA
5 Alycia Washington U Conn
6 Amee Svatos Canby, OR
7 Katie Johnson Hopkins, MN
8 Candace Barley Lee Univeristy
9 Jozy Gesssner Colorado State.
10 Hannah Lockwood Oregon State
11 Rebecca Seibach Women’s Cougar Rugby
12 Bui Baravilala Aliamanu, Hawaii
13 Star Bolinger Women’s Cougar Rugby
14 Brittany O’Brien U of Rhode Island
15 Chelsea Garber Brown

16 Rachel Ryan U of Wyoming
17 McKenzie Lewis Mesa State
18 Kelly Sager Penn State
19 Kiki McKnight U of Central Florida
20 Anne Marie Bowlus U of California - Santa Cruz
21 Holly Zoeller U of North Carolina
22 Hailey Anderson Summit, CO

U20’s Win NACRA Opener (Full report)

NASSAU, Bahamas.
The U20 WNT won their opening game in the 2010 NACRA Championships as they defeated a spirited Cayman Islands Senior Women’s side by a score of 85-0. The start time of the game was pushed back by thirty minutes due to heavy rain and lightening but the U20’s were clearly unfazed by the delay. From the opening kick off they strung together a flowing multi-faze attack that saw ten different players touch the ball before a knock on in the Cayman twenty-two brought the play to a halt. Two plays later Bui Baravilala went on the first of many hard charging runs of the day and went in under the posts for the first try. Chelsea Garber kicked the conversion. The U20’s struck again right off the kick off as several the U20 forwards ran off each other before lock Alycia Washington offloaded to Kiki McKnight who beat a couple of defenders to touch down for the second try.

The Cayman team plays predominately sevens rugby and they had a difficult time adjusting to the hard running American forwards. This gave the U20 WNT backs plenty of space to launch their attacks and the U20’s scored six more tries in the half.

The U20 coaches used all the reserves in the second half as they took the opportunity to try some different combinations. The Junior Eagles scored another five tries in the second half and the five conversions apiece from Chelsea Garber and Bui Baravilala took the final score to 85-0.

Head Coach Bryn Chivers was pleased with the result but was cautiously optimistic about the teams upcoming games. “The team played well tonight but we saw the Canadians look equally impressive against the Caribbean Select Side. It’s easy for a young team to let down after a big win and the Caribbean women have the size and speed to cause us some problems if the players don’t stay focused”. Asked if anyone stood out in the game Chiver’s mentioned several players including Chelsea Garber from Brown and Bui Barivilala from Hawaii. “All the vets played well and several of the rookies stood out. Bui (Barivilala) was a force all game and scored a couple of nice tries but it was Chelsea Garber who was the revelation. She plays flyhalf on her own team so the move to fullback was a big experiment for us and she turned in a great all around performance”.

While Garber’s total of twenty-five points (3 tries, 5 conversions) in the game made her the top points scorer for a single U20 game and in total points for the U20 WNT program it was another milestone that made Chiver’s highlight of the game. “We were all excited for Peach (Haley Anderson) as her try tonight made her the youngest USA woman to score a try in an international game”.

The U20 WNT play their next game against the Caribbean Select Side who lost their opening game to the Canada U20’s.

Tries: Chelsea Garber (3), Bui Baravilala (2), Katie Johnson (2), Kiki McNight (2), Ann Marie Bowlus, Candace Barley, Haley Anderson, Wendy Sherman, Katie Hathaway.

1 Kelly Sager Penn State (Replaced by Sherman)
2 Rachel Ryan U of Wyoming (Replaced by Hathaway)
3 Andee Samborski Livingstone, MI
4 Alycia Washington U Conn
5 Brittany Rose Unattached (Replaced by Humphreys)
6 McKenzie Lewis Mesa State
7 Katie Johnson Hopkins, MN (Replaced by Gessner)
8 Candace Barley Lee Univeristy (Replaced by Svatos)
9 Haley Anderson Summit, CO
10 Hannah Lockwood Oregon State
11 Holly Zoeller U of North Carolina (Replaced by O’Brien)
12 Bui Baravilala Aliamanu, Hawaii
13 Kiki McKnight U of Central Florida
14 Anne Marie Bowlus U of California - Santa Cruz
15 Chelsea Garber Brown


16 Mileka Grager (injured) Washington State
17 Wendy Sherman Colorado State
18 Katie Hathaway Norwich
19 Katie Humphreys Kent, WA
20 Amee Svatos Canby, OR
21 Brittany O’Brien U of Rhode Island
22 Jozy Gessner Colorado State.

Haley Anderson's Try Against Cayman Women

U20 WNT Win NACRA Opener

Just a quick posting of the the score from today's game against the Cayman Islands.

USA U20’s 85 Cayman Senior Women 0

Team looked very crisp and the crowd were entertained by the quality of the play from the U20’s. Too many highlights..........but a nice try from sixteen year old scrumhalf Haley “Peach” Anderson got the most celebration from her teammates.

Tries: Chelsea Garber (3), Bui Baravilala (2), Katie Johnson (2), Kiki McNight (2), Ann Marie Bowlus, Candace Barley, Haley Anderson, Wendy Sherman, Katie Hathaway.

Conversions: Chelsea Garber (5), Bui Barivilala (5)

An update and some video to follow.

NACRA Championships Day 2

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times........

Our practice field is a five minute walk from the hotel and is this big open space in front of Fort Charlotte and just across the road from the beach.

Morning practice was a challenge as the players struggled with some basic skills. Poor body position in contact, poor passing and so much spilled ball that the coaches were frustrated beyond words. The session ended on a good note as the players took to the new offensive pattern and started to put together some nice passages of play.

Second session was later than usual to avoid the heat in the middle of the day. Bui Baravilala’s arrival seemed to bring a new confidence to the backs and the dropped balls of the morning went away. The forwards looked good in their line out practice and the whole squad looked to be hitting stride when injury struck. In a routine contact situation Mileka Grager heard a snap in her hand, Nicole took a look at it and decided that a trip to the hospital was needed. X-rays confirmed Nicole’s fears of a broken bone (actually a spiral fracture) and Leka came back with the hand in a cast that will sadly reduce her role to water girl.

Dinner tonight was at the Twin Brothers Restaurant and the players were adventurous in their food selections. There was plenty of sharing of cracked conch, lobster, grouper, shrimp with sides of beans and rice, plantains, conch salad and baked macaroni. All the food was delicious and there was plenty of it. An enormous cockroach paid a visit through an open window and sidled up to Assistant Coach Danielle Miller. The sight of the ex World Cup front row player desperately trying to climb over anyone in her way provided the entertainment for the evening.

We ended the evening with the Jersey Ceremony

USA U20 Team for the game against Cayman

1 Kelly Sager Penn State
2 Rachel Ryan U of Wyoming
3 Andee Samborski Livingstone, MI
4 Alycia Washington U Conn
5 Brittany Rose Unattached
6 McKenzie Lewis Mesa State
7 Katie Johnson Hopkins, MN
8 Candace Barley Lee University
9 Hailey Anderson Summit, CO
10 Hannah Lockwood Oregon State
11 Holly Zoeller U of North Carolina
12 Bui Baravilala Aliamanu, Hawaii
13 Kiki McNight U of Central Florida
14 Anne Marie Bowlus U of California - Santa Cruz
15 Chelsea Garber Brown

16 Mileka Grager (injured) Washington State
17 Wendy Sherman Colorado State
18 Katie Hathaway Norwich
19 Katie Humphreys Kent, WA
20 Amee Svatos Canby, OR
21 Brittany O’Brien U of Rhode Island
22 Jozy Gesssner Colorado State.

NACRA Championships Day 1

NACRA Championships Day 1

Not the easiest first day with flight delays, tropical storms and stores that close at 6pm but we let it roll off us like the rain. Nicole (our physio) got stuck in Miami for the night and will be here bright and early in the morning. Most of the players made it in but Bui Baravilala couldn’t get on her flight in Hawaii and will be with us tomorrow and fingers crossed will make it for the afternoon practice. A huge rain storm resulted in a delay at the Nassau airport as none of the luggage could be unloaded off the planes for almost an hour. Coach Barth arrived with the Denver based players and 400 lbs of luggage containing the shirts, socks, shorts, bags, polos, training jerseys, gatorade, etc, etc, and they were allowed to walk through customs without a single question despite looking like pack mules. Try that at O’Hare or JFK.

We are staying at the El Greco Hotel. It’s not on the luxury resort end of the scale but it’s got character and the staff are friendly and very helpful. We have two practices tomorrow that will allow us to work though some combinations. First team for the first game will be announced tomorrow evening.

U20 WNT Announces 2010 Squad


BOULDER, Colo. – Following the U20 Women’s National Team Camp held at the University of California - Santa Barbara the U20 WNT Head Coach Bryn Chivers has officially announced the 2010 squad. The squad is comprised of 24 players from 22 high school, college, and club programs from across the country including the program’s first ever player from Hawaii. With only ten returning players, the squad is very different from the one that lost 12-13 to the Canada U20s in January.

Chivers wasn’t happy with the team’s performance against the Canada U20s, feeling that squad had underperformed in the one point loss. “It was just a little lackluster. We had very good players but the chemistry of the squad was off and they didn’t play well together.” This prompted a shake up that saw a whole new group of players invited to the U20 Elite Camp and resulted in the U20’s going 2-0 against their opposition at the U23 National All-Star Championships.

The rebuilt squad has five new forwards including Western Washington’s Mileka Grager and UConn’s Alycia Washington. The nine new backs include All-American center Star Bolinger from BYU, Akalaini Baravilala from the Aliamanu Rugby Club in Hawaii, and wings Holly Zoeller and Bex Siebach from North Carolina and BYU respectively.

This new squad is very exciting to watch” said Chivers. “We have the experience of players like Jozy Gessner, Katie Johnson, and Candace Barley who are in their fourth and fifth years in the program, but we also have a large group of new players who bring a fierce energy to the squad”.

The U20s will represent the USA in the North American and Caribbean Rugby Association (NACRA) Championships, August 15-21 in Nassau, Bahamas. The tournament will feature the senior women’s national teams from Cayman and Bahamas, a Caribbean Select Side and the U20 sides from the USA and Canada.

This will be the first time the U20 WNT has played any of the Caribbean sides and Chivers recognizes that the team is stepping into the unknown. “We have no idea what to expect from this tournament. A Caribbean Select Side of senior players presents a different challenge for this young squad and we could get beat by their size and experience or come away with a win. The thing we doknow is that the Caribbean senior sides will provide us with strong opposition in preparation for the game against the Canada U20s”. The Junior Eagles will open against Cayman on Sunday, August 15th.

USA U20 Schedule

Sun Aug 15th: USA U20 WNT v Cayman (5.00 p.m)

Tue Aug 17th: USA U20 WNT v Caribbean Select Side (3.00 p.m.)

Fri Aug 20th: USA U20 WNT v Canada U20’s (5.00 p.m.)

2010 USA U20 Women’s National Team

Hailey Anderson Summit, Colorado

Akalaini Baravilala Aliamanu, Hawaii

Candace Barley Lee University

Star Bollinger Women Cougar Rugby

Ann Marie Bowlus UC Santa Cruz

Chelsea Garber Brown

Jozy Gessner Colorado State

Mileka Grager Washington State

Katie Hathaway Norwich

Katie Humphreys Kent, Washington

Katie Johnson Hopkins, Minnesota

Mackenzie Lewis Mesa State

Hannah Lockwood Oregon State

Kyandrea McKnight U of Central Florida

Brittany O’Brien U of Rhode Island

Brittany Rose Unattached

Rachael Ryan U of Wyoming

Kelly Sager Penn State

Andee Samborski Livingston, Michigan

Wendy Sherman Colorado State

Rebekah Siebach Women Cougar Rugby

Amee Svatos Canby, Oregon

Alycia Washington U of Connecticut

Holly Zoeller U of North Carolina