World Rugby has announced the three pools for HSBC Atlanta 7s, the third leg of the 2015-16 HSBC World Rugby Women's Sevens Series to be held in Kennesaw, Ga., April 8-9.

Pool play at Fifth Third Bank Stadium at Kennesaw State University will kick off at 12:30 p.m. ET Friday, featuring top-six-ranked sides Canada and Russia out of Pool B. Brazil Women's Sevens champion and current Series leader Australia opens Pool A's day against England at 1:14 p.m. ET, and the Women's Eagles Sevens will close out the first round of pool play against Spain at 2:20 p.m. ET.

Tickets for the third round of the 2015-16 Series are available for as low as $10 per day, with two-day packages and executive suites also for sale. Ticket options are available through usarugby.org/Atlanta7s.

The U.S. took fourth in Brazil last weekend to move up to eighth in the Series standings, and is again grouped with reigning Series champion New Zealand.

“This team has been hard at work tackling adversity, growing together, and creating a dynamic environment where every member of the team plays a pivotal role in our success,” said USA Rugby Eagle Alev Kelter. “We are one unit starting to see the results of our hard work. I'm excited to continue to build depth, and fine tune our systems and strategies going forward. The Atlanta 7s is a key step in our ultimate goal of building the most complete team before the Summer Olympic games.” 

Last year, the Eagles lost to the Kiwis twice at Atlanta 7s, the second matchup coming in the tournament's Cup Final. The two will meet in the penultimate contest of the day at 7:26 p.m. ET.

Saturday's knockout rounds begin at 12:30 p.m. ET, as well, with the Cup Final kickoff scheduled for 8:11 p.m. ET.

USA Rugby has hosted a round of the Women's Sevens Series in each year of the competition since it debuted in 2012. From year one in Houston to its home in Georgia, Atlanta 7s has been the showpiece event for women's rugby in the United States in welcoming 12 Olympic-hopeful national teams to the home of the 1996 Olympic Summer Games.

"USA Rugby's dedication to organize a World Series tournament in Atlanta will bring some of the world's best teams and players to the USA," Eagle Jillion Potter said. "Playing these great teams on home soil is extremely valuable for our team and growing the game of rugby. This tournament will allow the team to be tested and further evaluate our progression from previous tournaments.

"We look forward to the challenging pool, and will strive to improve our performance and achieve more as a team and from ourselves. We can't wait to play in front of our family, friends, and fans."

There will be more than international rugby on the April 8-9 weekend docket with the Atlanta 7s Rugby Festival hosting more than 50 club, college, and high school teams in competition outside the stadium.

For more information and the full two-day schedule, visit the HSBC Atlanta 7s event page onUSARugby.org/Atlanta7s.

 

Pools: 

Pool A: Australia, Fiji, England, Colombia

Pool B: Canada, France, Russia, Ireland

Pool C: New Zealand, USA, Japan, Spain

 

 

 

12:30 Match 1 CANADA v RUSSIA 

12:52 Match 2 FRANCE v IRELAND

13:14 Match 3 AUSTRALIA v ENGLAND

13:36 Match 4 FIJI v COLOMBIA

13:58 Match 5 NEW ZEALAND v JAPAN

14:20 Match 6 USA v SPAIN

15:14 Match 7 CANADA v IRELAND

15:36 Match 8 FRANCE v RUSSIA

15:58 Match 9 AUSTRALIA v COLOMBIA

16:20 Match 10 FIJI v ENGLAND

16:42 Match 11 NEW ZEALAND v SPAIN

17:04 Match 12 USA v JAPAN

17:58 Match 13 CANADA v FRANCE

18:20 Match 14 RUSSIA v IRELAND

18:42 Match 15 AUSTRALIA v FIJI

19:04 Match 16 ENGLAND v COLOMBIA

19:26 Match 17 NEW ZEALAND v USA

19:48 Match 18 JAPAN v SPAIN