Strong North American Showing at Heidelberg 7s
Strong North American Showing at Heidelberg 7s
Three North American teams are in the historical city of Heidelberg, Germany for the 2023 Heidelberg 7s in preparation for next week's United World Games in Austria.
The North American Lions will field two squads, a U16 boys team and a U18 girls team, coached by Greg Stelluti and Chris Ryan, with Mike Cressler managing. Late Flanagan coaches the U18 girls. The teams are made up of players from all over the country. Here's a look at the rosters:
North American Lions U18 Girls:
Paola Arredondo, Summit HS Colorado
Caroline Cook, Charlotte Cardinals NC
Charlotte Dauser, Sparta Rock Michigan
Chloe De Leon, Carmel Indiana
Nolah Flynn, Doylestown Pennsylvania
Annie Huettel, North Bay Maryland
Reaghan King, Doylestown Pennsylvania
Alexa Kirschner, Charlotte Cardinals NC
Lindsey Mulligan, San Diego Mustangs California
Nila Lolesio-Pua, Belmont Shore California
Joselin Roque, Summit HS Colorado
Zoe Zumbro, Carlsbad Thunder California
See Cook and Kirschner talk to GRR earlier in the seasonhere:
North American Lions U16 Boys:
Amari Barron, Wester Suburbs Virginia
Dylan Belivacqua, Fort Hunt Virginia
Kaiden Boyer, Berks County Pennsylvania
Francis Burke, Elizabethtown Pennsylvania
Lincoln Dansie, Mountain View Utah
Natane Fakahafua, Orem Zombies Utah
Lenny Ibarra, Belmont Shore California
Aiden McLaughlin, Charlotte Cardinals NC
Aiden O'Connor, Charlotte Cardinals NC
Jasiah Lelesio-Pua, Belmont Shore California
Becket Robinson, Fort Hunt Virginia
Riley Scrogham, Regis Jesuit HS Colorado
See Lenny Ibarra speak with GRR here:
The Dog River Howlers, a touring side from Saskatchewan also has a Boys U16 and a Girls U18 team in the competition. And Texas is sending a Texas Rangers outfit under Kip Rouse and Joe Olivas.
Texas Rangers Boys U16s:
Orin Hart
Carter Long
Adrian Marroquin
Brennan Thompson
Brody Hopkins
Claudio Vilchis
Kaden Nixon
Elliot Rouse
Gavin Miranda
Matthew Clem
USA Outlaws U18s (Texas Rangers):
Payton Olivas
Lucia Hoffman
Delilah Staberg
Elizabeth McIsaac
Naomi Diaz Allen
Heidi Sheppard
Morgan Suniga
Coached by Jaclyn Olivas.
These teams have been socializing as they prepare, and they have also been touring Heidelberg, which is home to the storied Heidelberg University. The University has been active for 637 years and the city itself has had at least a village on that site for close to 1,600 years. Above there's a photo of the Texas nd NA Lions players and coaches eating dinner at a tavern that is 600 years old.
Here are the pools for these teams:
| U18 Girls Pools Heidelberg 7s | ||
| Pool A | Pool B | |
| NA Lions | RBW (Germany) | |
| Rugby Academy Zuid (Netherlands) | Rugby Alsace (France) | |
| Dubai | Texas Rangers | |
| Stade Francais (France) | Dog River Howlers (Canada) | |
| U16 BoysPools Heidelberg 7s | ||
| Pool A | Pool B | |
| Czech Republic | Rugby Academy Zuid (Netherlands) | |
| RBW (Germany) | Nationalekipp Letzebeurg (Luxembourg) | |
| Hessen (Germany) | Bayern (Germany) | |
| NA Lions | Brandenburg (Germany) | |
| Dog River Howlers (Canada) | Texas Rangers | |