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Five debutantes have been named by Richie Walker to compete in the opening round of the HSBC Sevens Series in Dubai this coming weekend. Only four players return from the team that competed at the Olympic Games in August with a new group setting their sights on Tokyo 2020.
Olympic representatives Lauren Doyle, Ryan Carlyle, Alev Kelter, and Joanne Fa’avesi will lend their experience to the team. Cheta Emba and Nicole Heavirland were traveling reserves to Rio but did not make any appearances. For Emba this will mark her first official HSBC Sevens Series appearance having previously been capped twice in the XVs game.
Kelter, Fa’avesi, Kate Zackary, and Naya Tapper join the team directly from a week in France with the Women’s Eagles XVs side. New players include Collegiate All-Americans Bulou Mataitoga and Nicole Strasko, Seattle Saracens loose forward Kristine Sommer, and 18-year-old Penn State recruit Kayla Canett.
The team are bracketed in Pool A along with Australia, Russia, and South Africa. All matches will be streamed live by World Rugby.
Dubai is the first of five officially announced tournaments on this year’s circuit. A proposed sixth stop in Las Vegas has yet to be confirmed by World Rugby.
USA WOMEN’s EAGLES 7s
Kayla Canett, Ryan Carlyle, Lauren Doyle, Cheta Emba, Joanne Fa’avesi, Nicole Heavierland, Alev Kelter, Bulou Mataitoga, Kristine Sommer, Nicole Strasko, Naya Tapper, Kate Zackary
DAY 1 FIXTURES (December 1)
13:28 local, 04:28 ET – vs Russia
16:24 local, 07:24 ET – vs South Africa
19:43 local, 10:43 ET – vs Australia
