USA Women Turn Fortunes Around in Valladolid

05.31.2026Eagles

Sam Sullivan assesses her options. Photo Alex Ho for World Rugby.

Author: Alex Goff

The USA women's team leaves Valladolid, Spain having jumped from 5th to 3rd in the World Championships after a somewhat improbably run to the final.

Through the entire SVNS 1 Series, it was New Zealand and Australia in every final. Everyone else had to fight for 3rd, with Japan, France (twice), Canada, and the USA (twice) taking those positions.

Top two? Not for them. Until this weekend.

Coming into the SVNS World Championship event in Valladolid the Eagle women had been urging each other to start switched on and to not be too rushed or frantic, and yet that is exactly how they began the tournament.

A Rough Start

Fiji weren't that much better as the two teams kicked off the entire tournament, as the opening kickoff failed to go 10 meters. The Eagles, however, didn't capitalize, were pinged for a holding-on penalty ... twice. Fiji, in fact, took the lead and were just a bit more connected and dynamic.

Still the USA tied it up through Ariana Ramsey. Some better continuity and offloads set up a long pass out to Sam Sullivan, who did very well to finish in the corner.

But Fiji scores twice in quick succession and then added to it for a 26-12 lead. The USA answered with Kristi Kirshe cutting up the middle, but a mistake on a quick tap basically ended the chance for the Americans.

Now What?

In their follow-up, the USA started strong but still looked a little vulnerable. An excellent run from Kaylen Thomas and then a superb sidestep from Su Adegoke, with Sariah Ibarra converting both, had the USA in control.

But a rather soft try at the end of the first half gave the South Africans hope, and another after halftime made it 14-12 and you had to wonder about the USA team's poise and focus.

But they freed up Thomas to speed in and Ramsey sealed it with a brilliant move for a 26-12 victory that was a victory, but not a great performance. The key was when the USA won their kickoffs they scored tries.

Surprise Rebound

And then the surprise on Day Two. The Eagles were not favored to beat Australia but they started strong, held the Wallaroos in check, and finally got a try from Thomas for a 7-0 lead.

Maddison Levi's answering score wasn't converted, and Ibarra sped in just at the beginning of the second half, and adding the conversion, to put scoreboard pressure on Australia.

Now they needed two scores to win. They got one. The 14-10 USA win was a bit of a shock, and it changed the entire tenor of the tournament. The win, combined with the close-loss bonus point and the head-to-head tiebreaker over Australia suddenly had the USA winning the pool.

USA players celebrate beating Australia. Photo Alex Ho for World Rugby. — USA players celebrate their win over Australia. Photo Alex Ho for World Rugby.

What that served to do was put Australia in New Zealand's half of the playoff bracket.

For the USA, it gave them another shot at Fiji and perhaps a chance to change how they approached that game.

The USA dominated possession off the kickoffs and restarts and scored quickly off each of those. Kirshe started them going as she grabbed the rock and took off to the line, simply signaling that her team needed to take the fight to the Fijians. Rachel Strasdas finished that one off, and right off the next two restarts Ramsey and Adegoka scored. It was 21-0 before Fiji could even take a breath.

But they did take a break, scored twice, once off a kick, and then we encountered something we rarely encounter—Head Coach Emilie Bydwell swore.

The normally measured, analytical Bydwell dropped four-letter word in her halftime speech just to emphasize the message that the job wasn't done. They are coming, she said. be ready. Put them away.

Kirshe, again, was the one to lead the way, bursting up the middle, and when Sullivan scored it was all over. Sedrick added one more and it was 40-14 USA.

That was an important victory, because it guaranteed the USA a top four finish, but they had a unique shot at the final. Because of the Eagles' win over Australia, it was Wallaroos vs Silver Ferns 7s of New Zealand in one semi, and USA vs Canada in the other. There would be a new finalist.

Dramatic Semis

In dramatic fashion, Australia won their semi, witha comeback culminating with Kaitlin Shave's final-minute try and the crucial conversion from Tia Hinds winning it 28-26.

The USA-Canada semi was even more dramatic. They opened with a not-10-meters on the initial kickoff but the USA defense was tenacious and aggressive.

But they were under pressure for a long time and a free kick off a scrum led to Canada's Florence Symonds going into the corner. The Eagles finally had a chance late in the first half, but a drop inside the Canadian 22 ended that, and it was Asia Hogan-Rochester who would finish off a length-of-the-field try and a 12-0 lead at the break.
And when Carmen Izyck broke through it looked like Canada would take control. However, she was hauled down by Kaylen Thomas and that tackle forced a knock-on, saving a sure try.

Sam Sullivan helps Ariana Ramsey in the ruck against Canada. Photo Zach Freeman for World Rugby.

The USA needed something, and midway through the second half they got it. Canada dropped the ball in the middle of the backline and Sereana Vuluano, on her SVNS debut, swooped in, picked it up, and was gone under the posts.

Now it was 7-0, and the door was open. With about a minute to go the Eagles had the ball and Thomas on the outside. They didn't use her, and Thomas slid back to the left where she did, eventually, get the ball, sidestepped two defenders to create a gap, and sped in under the sticks.

The position of the try was hugely important, of course, because with Kayla Canett's conversion, the USA had the lead 14-12, and that's how it ended.

The Final

So, amazingly, after such an iffy performance to open the tournament, the Eagles were in the final. In that game, Australia decided to hint at kicking off to the left, and instead sent a long, low kick to the right. The Eagles were slow to react, and wen Sam Sullivan was held up, they attacked off the scrum and scored in the corner.

Same kickoff next time, and this time they isolated Ibarra for a penalty, tapped, and scored. Another long kickoff this time rolled into touch. And the Eagles biffed the lineout, lifting too early (or throwing too late). Free kick Australia, try, and the conversion, and a 17-0 lead.

A brilliant breakaway for Ramsey brought one back, but the Wallaroos answered immediately.

With the score 22-7, the Americans then got hit with a disappointing call by referee Chloe Sampson. Some nice offloads set up Spiff Sedrick for a long breakaway. She was caught just a few meters short of paydirt, release the ball, got up, regathered, and was tackled again, this time by Heidi Dennis. Here is the crucial call. Dennis did not perform any tackler release. Sedrick was on her feet and tackled by Dennis, and the Australian then just held onto Sedrick and hunted for the ball.

That should have been a penalty for the USA, and if it had been, there were players there to tap and score easily under the posts. That would have made it 22-14.

Instead, Australia kicked to touch, and would eventually score their fifth try. the USA scored through a pick-and-run from Erica Coulibaly. Would she have scored if that earlier try had happened? No one can know, but what is clear is that the decision changed a game from one the Eagles could have pulled out to one where they had no chance.

Regardless, this was a successful finish for a USA team that found its grit and determination and was forced to put aside its franticness.

They need to be lower in contact and smarter about avoiding rucks in isolation, but they also have the ability to see what's going wrong and fix it.

Now What?

Kirshe was a giant in this tournament. She led by example with her decision-making and work rate. Ramsey is that quiet rock who doesn't get rattled. For the most part, it's probably the veterans who need to relax and allow the game to flow more—they were the ones making some key plays, but also the ones who forced it a bit.

Coming out of Spain now, the Eagles are 3rd in the SVNS World Championships with 28 points, behind New Zealand (36), and Australia (38). With the 28 points the USA is guaranteed a return to SVNS 1 in 2026-27. However, they have to be targeting a top-three finish overall. To do that they need to stay ahead of France and Canada, which is, of course, tough to do ... especially when France is the home side next week in Bordeaux.

The Eagles get to face Canada directly in pool play, but it will be, most likely, the quarterfinals where those medal positions are decided.