Coming out of Southern California action undefeated and with an almost perfect defensive scoresheet, Fallbrook Girls were favorites to contend in the U18 Girls Elite bracket of the Tropical 7s.

Of course they didn't just contend, they won it all. Fallbrook won their pool over Tsunami Canadian Misfits, Atlantis, and USA South Panthers, and the only thing you might say was that they were challenged. The Misfits, especially, pushed the SoCal team with a 19-12 result. 

That put Fallbrook into the playoffs and they dismissed Canada's Upright Rugby 20-7 before dealing with The Rugby Advantage. The Rugby Advantage is a newish select side out of the Northeast run by Ryszard Chadwick, who worked previously with the Northeast Academy. They were very impressive, winning their pool while outscoring their opposition 60-10. Fallbrook emerged victorious 19-12.

So that set up the final against Atlantis Now, Atlantis had finished pool play 1-2, having lost 24-0 in their opener against Fallbrook. But the top eight, including the two best third-place teams, made the quarterfinals, and there Atlantis seemed to right the ship on Day Two cruised past a very good Maui Wahine side 29-7, and hammered the Misfits 33-7, a team they had lost to in Pool Play.

So this was a different Atlantis team on Day Two, but Fallbrook held firm and edged Atlantis 20-17 to take the title. The Misfits ended up 3rd, meaning three of the teams from Fallbrook's Pool B filled out the top three. The fourth team from that pool went 3-0 in the consolation pool to secure 9th. 

So Pool B overall was 15-9, with every loss being at the hands of teams from their own pool.

Head Coach Richelle Stephens, who played for the USA in the 2016 Olympic Games and won multiple national championships with Lindenwood University understood what the standard had to be.

"I think that I have a unique perspective on what the girls accomplished this weekend," said Stephens. "I know the feeling of coming out on top in a hard-fought tournament. As a player, it feels really good; the blood, sweat and tears paid off. As a coach, I witnessed how they really dug deep and played with heart and I find that so admirable. It is hard on anyone to play six 7s games in two days, let alone in the humidity and heat. I think I feel more pride and proud as a coach for the girls ... like a proud mom."

"My most memorable moment of the tournament was being on the pitch with my teammates giving it our all from start to finish," added Madison Jersey, who was outstanding for Fallbrook all weekend. "We had to push ourselves hard and that brought us even closer as a squad. My personal favorite was during the semifinal game against The Rugby Advantage Academy, when we had a lineout and it was our ball. I was being lifted and Sahryse Fong called a play we’ve been working on and it was our first time running it in a game, and it worked out super. The feeling was so surreal as it worked perfectly and turned into an immediate try."

Tiahana Padilla led Fallbrook in points scored with nine tries. The team captain she was also responsible for keeping everyone focused.

"I am always nervous before a game whether it’s a tournament, club or high school seasons," said Padilla. "My strategy is not to focus on the stress but embrace the love of the game. There is never a flawless game; every player makes mistakes, but using those mistakes as teaching moments helps me cope with expectations. If I can lift each of my rugby sister up then we as a team can rise to any completion level."

Liberty Benitez was the team's second-leading scorer with 23 points and she talked about the Southern California unity. Belmont Shore, the only SoCal team to score on Fallbrook this season, sent their U16 and U14 teams to Tropical 7s. They won the U16 bracket, going 6-0 and outscoring teams 241-21.The closest anyone got to them was Rhinos and that scoreline was 31-14. In the U14s they won as well, going 6-0 and outscoring opponents 157-41.

"I was so happy to see a great representation of SoCal girls rugby in Tropical 7s," said Benitez. "Our team watched and cheer on Belmont Shores U16 Girls as they won their championship game. What was awesome was at the end of the tournament, the SoCal girls celebrated together with Belmont’s U14 and U16 girl’s teams celebrating the sweep of all three divisions. We have demonstrated the high level of competition in California."

Sophomore Lucy Powell, who scored three tries on the weekend, was the youngest on the team and said "I have been able to learn so much from my more experienced and knowledgeable teammates. I’m excited because I will soon be able to pass this knowledge down and help grow a new generation of Fallbrook Girls Rugby players."

"No doubt, the current group of seniors are going to be tough to replace," added junior AJ Haughey. "They are great athletes and leaders. But we have a solid group of juniors and sophomores who have been putting in the work and are ready to take on more responsibilities. They will make up the majority of our talent pool, also we have our U15 girls coming up as well. While nothing is guaranteed, it feels like were go to sustain our playing and ranking next year as well."

With Stephens, the 2021 MA Sorensen Award-winner as the top collegiate player in the nation, coaching them, and with the senior talent they have, Fallbrook just understood how play with confidence. It was that confidence that spread to the younger players.

"I have to say the biggest takeaway that both myself and the team learned was that keeping cool, calm and collected both on and off the field is very important," said Emily Webber. "Being able to communicate with your teammates in a calm manor when you are in a stressful setting is crucial to playing great Fallbrook Rugby.