June 21, 2017
Women’s Rugby League All-Stars Squad to Face USA Women’s Eagles
USA Rugby Release: June 21, 2017
The Women’s Premier League All-Stars, coached by New York Rugby Club’s James English and Oregon Rugby Sports Union’s Beckett Royce, will assemble in Southern California June 28 in preparation for the July 1 match against the USA Women’s Eagles.
Kicking off at University of San Diego’s Torero Stadium immediately following the Rugby World Cup 2019 Qualifier between the USA Men’s Eagles and Canada, the Women’s Rugby Worlc Cup 2017 preparatory match will be broadcast live on The Rugby Channel. Tickets for the event can be purchased online or at the venue on match day.
WPL players, including some candidates that have been training with the Eagles, numerous All-Americans, and National Team pool players were considered for selection.
“James and I are really looking forward to coaching this talented group of athletes,” Royce said. “There’s a great mix of youth and experience represented here, and we tried hard to have players from every team in the League represented.”
Unfortunately, due to availability, not every team that competed in the 2016 season will be represented.
“To me, it’s really regrettable that we don’t have players from all WPL teams present on this squad, especially a club with such a strong and celebrated history as the [Berkeley] All-Blues,” Royce said.
“The depth of the WPL’s talent is quite remarkable, though, and we are very pleased with the strength of this inaugural All-Star team,” she continued. “It will be a wonderful experience for the athletes – exposing them to an even higher level of play and teaming up with other top players that are usually adversaries rather than allies.”
Along with the honor of being selected for this squad, each athlete also incurs a large financial burden including airfare and other travel costs. The Local Eatery & Drinking Hole, US Women’s Rugby Foundation and the Betterwithteammates Foundation have contributed as main sponsors, with the Betterwithteammates Foundation matching every $100 donated. All money donated goes directly to the athletes and coaching staff costs. To join in and support, donate here. Cutoff for donations is Friday, June 23.
Women’s Premier League All-Stars
Adrienne Acosta – Oregon Rugby Sports Union
Evi Ashenbrucker – New York Rugby Club
Ayden Bain – New York Rugby Club
Tia Blythe – San Diego Surfers
Sarah Chobot – Glendale Raptors
Maggie Craig – Atlanta Harlequins
San Juanita Fetuuaho – Oregon Rugby Sports Union
Ali Gillberg – Twin Cities Amazons
Paris Hart – Oregon Rugby Sports Union
Rachel Johnson – Oregon Rugby Sports Union
Phaidra Knight – New York Rugby Club
Molly Luft – Oregon Rugby Sports Union
Claire Lundy – Oregon Rugby Sports Union
Emily Magee – New York Rugby Club
Candace Mahoney-Watson – Oregon Rugby Sports Union
Dana Meschisi – San Diego Surfers
Maggie Olney – DC Furies
Melissa Polheber – Glendale Raptors
Kyle Roth – San Diego Surfers
Beckett Royce* – Oregon Rugby Sports Union
Brooke Saunders – New York Rugby Club
Kristen Shalosky – Glendale Raptors
Christen Suda – Glendale Raptors
*Reserve
About the Women’s Premier League
The Women’s Premier League (WPL) features the nation’s top women’s rugby talent and is the highest level of senior club 15s competition in the U.S. The WPL consists of 10 teams from coast to coast that are split into two five-team conferences. An eight-game regular season is followed by tournament play for the USA Rugby WPL National Championship title each fall. WPL players make up a bulk of the U.S. national women’s team: the USA Women’s Eagles.
Founded in 2009, the League is completely player-run and operates in partnership with USA Rugby.
