May 12, 2011

The Navy Men's and Women's Rugby teams have been invited to participate in the 2011 USA Sevens Collegiate Rugby Championship to be played June 3rd-5th in Philadelphia. This second annual event has quickly become one of the premier rugby events in the country.

The Navy men's team will be one of the 16 elite collegiate programs playing a round-round tournament on Saturday. Navy has been paired with North Carolina, Central Washington, and Army, and will play 3 games over the course of the day. The women's tournament features 8 teams playing their round-round on Friday. The Navy women have been paired with North Carolina, Princeton, and Army. Both the men and women will play the Championship round matches on Sunday.

The Friday women's matches will be played at Drexel University's Vidas Athletic Complex in Philadelphia, and no ticket is required. Saturday and Sunday's matches will be played at PPL Park in Chester, and will be a ticketed event. Two-day tickets are available for $38 from the Navy Ticket Office at 1-800-US4-NAVY or online at NavySports.com.

Rugby Sevens features seven players per team playing on the same full-sized field as a traditional 15-person-per-side rugby match. The wide field offers non-stop action where speed, high scoring, and athleticism dominate the competition. The format allows for constant entertainment with each match split into two seven-minute halves. Rugby Sevens will be an Olympic sport starting in 2016 and this tournament offers a preview of the talent pool available for the U.S. Olympic team. For more information on the tournament, visit USASevensCRC.com.