USA Rugby‘s Head Coach JD Stephenson will lead a team of 12 athletes to the 2019 U.S. Pan American Games Men’s Sevens team. The Games will take place in Lima, Peru from July 26 to August 11.
The PanAm Games come after the USA men qualified for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, reached a No. 2 World Ranking and won seven tournament medals.
The competition in Lima will help develop players for the demands of senior international competition as the Olympic year approaches.
The roster features six players who have not made their national team debut but have regularly appeared in development tournaments. That group includes Life University’s Harley Wheeler, Kutztown University’s D’Montae Noble and Vail Rugby’s Travion Clark to name a few.
Senior USA Men’s Sevens players Cody Melphy and Joe Schroeder will serve as captain and vice captain, respectively, with four additional senior players earning spots as well.
At the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto, the United States men won bronze, defeating Uruguay 40-12 after their unbeaten campaign was ended in the semifinals with a loss to Canada. The USA men also won bronze in 2011 when Rugby Sevens debuted in the quadrennial event.
Founded in 1951, the Pan American Games are a multi-sport event hosted every four years in the year preceding the Olympic Games, featuring countries from the North, South and Central America as well as the Caribbean.
The 2019 PanAm will kick off on July 26 with the Opening Ceremony. Both women’s and men’s rugby sevens competition will be played from July 26-28. A final schedule and broadcast details will be confirmed closer to date.
2019 U.S. Pan American Games Men’s Sevens Roster**
| PLAYER | POSITION | CLUB/PROGRAM |
|---|---|---|
| Joe Schroeder | Prop | USA Sevens Residency Program |
| Jake Lachina* | Prop | Army West Point |
| Christian Dyer* | Prop/Hooker | University of California-Berkeley |
| Lorenzo Thomas* | Prop | Lindenwood University |
| Ben Broselle | Hooker/Center | USA Sevens Residency Program |
| Harley Wheeler* | Hooker | Life University |
| Cody Melphy | Fly Half | USA Sevens Residency Program |
| Naima Fuala’au | Scrum Half | USA Sevens Residency Program |
| D’Montae Noble* | Scrum Half | Kutztown University |
| Marcus Tupuola | Center/Wing | USA Sevens Residency Program |
| Maceo Brown | Center | USA Sevens Residency Program |
| Travion Clark* | Wing | Vail Rugby |
Non-Traveling Reserves: Anthony Welmers, Will Holder, Kevon Williams
*Uncapped in HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series
**All Pan American Games roster nominations are pending final approval of the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee.
2019 U.S. Pan American Games Men’s Sevens Staff
Head Coach | JD Stephenson
Team Leader | David Fee
Assistant Coach | Anthony Roques
Head of Performance | Jon Hood
Performance Analyst | Brendan Keane
Athletic Trainer | Danielle Allen
