Utah teams achieved significant success at the 4th annual Girls' High School 7s National Tournament held Oct. 23-24 in Meridian, Idaho. According to a report published Oct. 27, Utah teams claimed first, second, and fourth places, demonstrating the high quality of age grade rugby within the state.
Skyridge High School secured the national championship by defeating Westlake 19-12 in the final. This result mirrored the Utah 7s final from the previous week. Westlake, which finished as the runner-up, had previously beaten Colorado's Summit High School, Idaho's Middleton, and Texas's Family Faith Academy during the pool rounds. Orem High School, also from Utah, finished in fourth place after losing to Eagle of Idaho in the third-place match.
The tournament featured 16 teams from eight states. While Utah dominated the top rankings, other notable performances included Cedar Falls of Iowa, which finished fifth after defeating Summit of Colorado in the Plate championship. Meridian of Idaho took seventh place, while Owyhee of Idaho secured ninth place in the Bowl division.
Skyridge head coach Colin Puriri noted that the presence of high-level clubs in Utah helps progress the level of rugby for all teams in the state. Puriri highlighted that five players from Utah were selected for the team going to the Junior Olympics. Additionally, the USA Pathways staff attended the event to scout talent, noting that Utah accounts for five selections for the Team USA squad heading to the 2026 Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, Senegal this November.
