Photo: John English
The Midwest High School Thunderbirds are once again heading to St. Petersburg, Fla., for winter tour and will play two 15s matches between Jan. 23-26, 2020. Head coach Garrett Fisher has selected 28 high schoolers from eight states to represent the green and gold, and proudly noted that the team averages a 3.5 GPA.
RELATED: Baby Birds Take 1st International Tour to Ireland
Ohio (8), Indiana (6), Wisconsin (5), Illinois (3), Michigan (2), New York (2), Pennsylvania (1) and Minnesota (1) are all represented on the touring group. While New York and Pennsylvania aren’t generally considered part of the Midwest, the senior clubs located in the western portion of those states (New York’s Buffalo region and Pennsylvania’s Pittsburgh region) do compete in the Midwest CR. Thus high schools that compete in the Western New York and Allegheny areas have been included in the Thunderbirds’ player pool.
The Thunderbirds will play the USA Rugby South U19 Panthers and the Florida All-Stars. Additionally, the regional all-star team will travel to Toronto, Canada, for a series against the Ontario Blues.
“We’ll be taking a U18 and U16 team,” Fisher clarified. “The U16 side is something we are excited about as it is brand new to our program. We are currently on the hunt for U16s and encourage coaches and players to e-mail me to advocate for themselves.”
MIDWEST HS THUNDERBIRDS
WINTER 2020 TOUR
Molly Cancian – Brunswick, Ohio
Haley Crow – Catholic Memorial, Wisc.
Aly Cunningham – Catholic Memorial, Wisc.Taylor Driver – North Central, Ind.Lexi Erdolino – City Honors, N.Y.Roisin Gilbert – Lane Tech, Ill.Anna Hensel – North Central, Ind.Kayla Hoch – Orchard Park, N.Y.Maura Hough – Culver Academy, Ill.Lou Justice – Brunswick, OhioHannah Koorndyk – Grandville, Mich.Alivia Leatherman – Parma, OhioDani McQuillan – Pulaski, Wisc.Delaney Moyer – Brownsburg, Ind.Cassie Norris – Penn, Ind.Mariah Norris-Johnson – Sycamore, Ill.Emme Ohnmacht – Catholic Memorial, Wisc.AJ Pant – Penn, Ind. Angelina Pieters – Catholic Memorial, Wisc.Kate Pofok – St. Joseph’s, OhioGina Pollice – Grandville, Mich.Emily Rahija – Mentor, OhioShay Ross – Walnut Hills, OhioAbbey Terpstra – Hopkins, Minn.McKenna Tuman – West Pitt Foxes, North Pitt United, Pa.Anna Walters – Hudson, OhioMarley Wiley – Highland, OhioKate Woenker – Carroll, Ind.
For more information, contact head coach Garrett Fisher via e-mail here.