Team USA Women’s Rugby Sevens Blows Out Japan At Paris Olympics
Jul 28, 2024, 9:00 AM | Updated: Jul 29, 2024, 11:10 am
PARIS, France – Team USA Women’s Rugby Sevens dominated Japan to claim a win in their first match of the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Two Utah locals, Alex Sedrick and Steph Rovetti, started on the bench for Team USA and saw action in the second half.
Incredible win from the USA 💪🇺🇸
The tries kept on coming! 🔥#Paris2024 | #RugbySevens pic.twitter.com/v2eSVgamcN— Rugby Sevens (@SVNSSeries) July 28, 2024
Team USA Cruises To Big Win Over Japan
The U.S. has never lost to Japan in women’s rugby. Team USA made sure to keep that streak alive in Paris.
However, it didn’t look like a sure thing in the opening minutes.
Just over a minute after kickoff, Japan’s Sakura Mizutani scored the first points of the match. A conversion kick from Hanako Utsumi made it 7-0.
The early deficit kicked Team USA into overdrive.
Sarah Levy got past the try-line a minute later to make it 7-5. The U.S. took the lead after four minutes as Kristi Kirshe and Kayla Canett combined for seven points with a try and conversion.
Ilona Maher, you cannot do that! 💪🇺🇸#Paris2024 | #RugbySevens
— Rugby Sevens (@SVNSSeries) July 28, 2024
Kirshe scored another and Sammy Sullivan made it a four-try half as time expired. Team USA led 22-7 at the half.
After a couple of minutes and a fifth U.S. try, Sedrick checked in.
It didnt take long for her to make an impact. Sedrick scored a try two minutes after checking in to give Team USA a 36-7 lead.
Just after Sedrick’s score, Rovetti also got some time on the pitch.
Japan held off the U.S. over the closing minutes of the match and the Eagles walked away with a 36-7 win.
Follow The 2024 Summer Olympics With KSL Sports
The 2024 Paris Olympics takes place Friday, July 26, through Sunday, August 11. The Paris Games are comprised of 329 events across 19 days, with 754 competitions and ceremonies for more than 10,000 athletes.
Find KSL Sports coverage of the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics here.
RELATED STORIES
Chandler Holt is a co-host of the Jazz Notes podcast, a Locals In The NFL Insider, and Digital Sports Producer for sports.ksl.com. Follow Chandler on Twitter @CHoltSports or on Threads @chandlerho1t.
