OTTAWA, ON – The USA Women's U20s and U23s are set to play Queen's University of Kingston, Ont., and the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees in a two-day series starting Sunday.
The players assembled for a short 3-day camp ahead of competition, and then the U20s will play the Queen's Gaels on Sunday while the U23s will face Ottawa. The American teams will trade opponents for Tuesday's games. All will be held at Matt Anthony Field on the campus of the University of Ottawa.
2022 Garnet and Gold Classic Schedule
Sunday, July 17
Queen’s Gaels vs. USA U20 – 1:30PM ET - See Live
Ottawa Gee-Gees vs. USA U23 – 3:30PM ET - See Live
Tuesday, July 19
Queen’s Gaels vs. USA U23 – 4:30PM ET - See Live
Ottawa Gee-Gees vs. USA U20 – 6:30PM ET - See Live
Queen’s and Ottawa will provide a solid test for the USA development squads, as they boast two of the strongest women’s rugby programs in Canada. Consistently seeded at or near the top of the U SPORTS Top 10 rankings, the two schools met in the final of the 2021 U SPORTS National Championship. This is also a return to cross-border play for the Women’s Junior National teams, who have been out of international competition since the COVID shutdowns.
“With the current Rugby World Cup cycle nearing its finale, this tour couldn’t come at a better time," said USA U23 Head Coach Katie Dowty. "I would expect to see several members of this U23 squad feature in the upcoming 2025 World Cup. We have selected a powerful, dynamic group — a combination of experienced age grade players and exciting new faces who showed their potential in the regional U23 championship. Competing against two top Canadian outfits will be an invaluable opportunity to test themselves and make their case for senior selection in the very near future.”
USA U20 Head Coach Joel Bonnaud echoed the sentiments.
“This summer event is a great opportunity for us to integrate some new players in the Pathway, keep working and expanding on the Key Habits we addressed during the most recent Winter camp, and put them to the test against top-notch competition," said Bonnaud. "Those Habits focus on what players do while “off” the ball and away from the action, namely “Get BIG” (Back In Game), “Clockwork” (Field Vision and Scanning plus Connecting and Planning with teammates) along with 2v1s – with and without space – Identification and Execution. The two components we will add this summer are Field Position Awareness and 3D Clockwork, adding depth to our scanning, with and without the ball.”
