The Tropical 7s is happening this weekend in Orlando, Fla., and all sorts of girls’ high school teams are making the trip south. The Badger Selects is a decades-old program rooted in the Wisconsin age grades, but the girls’ high school 7s arm, which is only a few years old, is interested in the wider region and beyond.
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“The Badgers have been around for 20-some years, if not more – the boys’ side,” Badger Selects Girls High School 7s Coach Joey Garcia said. “The girls’ touring side got going about 3-4 years ago and was headed up by Neil Grintjes and Betsey Windelberger. They do the 15s side of things, and I started the 7s about two-and-a-half years ago.”
Garcia accepts player recommendations from coaches but prefers to see everyone in action. The Midwest High School 15s Championship is always a great talent-identification venue, and there’s still hope that this year’s event – remodeled into a one-day tournament with only two 15s games per team – will occur on April 24 in Elkhart, Ind.
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“Wisconsin is traditionally where the Badgers are based, but with this team I’m doing, it’s more Midwest based,” Garcia said of the Tropical 7s squad. “We’re looking to expand to the elite level, so we’ll pull players from the Midwest area and then go from there. We’re open to everyone. Last year we were coast-to-coast and had players from New York, to California, to Idaho.”
The team heading to Florida includes six players from Wisconsin, three apiece from Ohio and Pennsylvania, and one from Illinois. Ohio’s Anna Walters and Wisconsin’s Lea Preuss will captain the team.
“It’s a great group of girls, it really is, honestly,” Garcia enthused. “We have girls who started doing this with me three years ago – Anna Walker, Lea Preuss, Alexis Dallas, Marley Wylie. They’re all seniors now. It’s a really fast, hard-working and physical group, too. They’re an overall thrill to be around.”
Garcia is bringing younger players in Mya Alexander, Olivia Allen, Kai Bennett, Emelia Lafferty and Reagan Vander Heide, and he’s confident that they’ll perform fantastically. All of the players have been training with their home clubs, while a handful – notably the Ohioans – are in-season and playing regular-season games this spring.
“But the ring rust will be for everyone, just because they haven’t been at their full capacity as far as playing goes,” Garcia said.
“My goal for them is to always have fun and play at a high level,” he continued. “Wins and losses can come at any point in time in 7s. One goofy mistake can be the difference, so I don’t focus on that. Every team obviously wants to win, but in the same sense, I don’t necessarily measure success off of that. There are teams playing in a whole new wavelength, so as long as we come out and execute our game plan and do well, I’ll be pleased.”
BADGER SELECTS
Mya Alexander (Bruisers, WI)
Olivia Allen (Perrysburg, OH)
Alayshja Bable (Moon Area, PA)
Kai Bennett (West Shore United, PA)
Siena Commare (Bruisers, WI)
Alexis Dallas (Bruisers, WI)
Maggie Dineen (DSHA, WI)
Emelia Lafferty (West Shore United, PA)
Mariah Norris-Johnson (Sycamore, IL)
Lea Preuss (Bruisers, WI) – capt.
Reagan Vander Heide (Bruisers, WI)
Anna Walters (Hudson, OH) – capt.
Marley Wylie (Highland, OH)
There are 13 teams competing in the girls’ U18 division, and Badger Selects is grouped into Pool B with five other teams. Two opponents are National Development Programs in ARPTC and Panther Academy Blue. The former pulls from the nation at large, and the latter is based in the Southeast. The Celtic Barbarians is North America based but Covid-19 has prevented Canada’s participation this year. The Utah Cannibals is the state’s successful all-star program, which includes players who are not only in season but played fall and summer 2020 7s, too. Finally, Riverdale is the stand-alone team in Pool B and the Tennessee squad is also in season and benefitted from a fall 7s season.
Visit www.tropical7s.com/schedule-results for the tournament schedule, results and standings.