Four lady ruggers to try out for U.S. squad

Most aspiring athletes dream for years of competing against the nation's best. After endless hours of grueling practice and workout schedules, athletes begin to see their dreams come into focus. Patience and perseverance are understood virtues, ones athletes must come to trust.

In the most rare cases, though, athletes may find themselves in a national arena earlier than they ever could have dreamed. Such is the case for four Penn State women rugby players.

Next weekend, Stacy Boyle, Megan Brown, Jen Sikora and Meredeth Heisey travel to San Diego to try out for the U.S. women's national rugby team. They will compete against 30 club and collegiate rugby players for 25 spots, Penn State women's rugby coach Peter Steinberg said.

The squad chosen at the trials will comprise the U.S. World Cup team that travels to Australia this summer. If rugby becomes an Olympic sport, several members of the squad likely will make the U.S. team for the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia.

While Boyle appeared to be a lock, Brown, Sikora and Heisey were surprised to be invited to the trials because they've only played rugby for a short time. All four Lady Ruggers were active in high school sports, but none began playing rugby until they arrived at Penn State.

But Steinberg said his players' rocketing success is not surprising.

Athletes in the United States generally aren't introduced to rugby until they reach college, said Steinberg, a native of England. Therefore, those who are all-around good athletes and join collegiate rugby teams have the opportunity to advance very quickly.

Let there be no mistake, though. All four women began their rugby days with an armful of experience in other sports. All were high school standouts in basketball, swimming, track and soccer.

Heisey, a graduate and soon-to-be medical student at Northeastern University, said her participation in team sports helped improve her hand-and-eye coordination. Her biggest challenge in rugby was learning the game.

"It was just a matter of learning the game and learning how to play it . . . learning new techniques," said Heisey, who started playing her junior year.

The four Lady Ruggers, however, face a style of play not seen at the collegiate level. Steinberg said it is faster and requires greater endurance and better decision making.

Most of the women who will be at the trials are in their mid-20s and 30s and bring years of experience to San Diego. That experience of making quick and complex decisions is a real advantage, Steinberg said.

"The game is quicker," he said, "and decisions must be made quicker."

Steinberg said his two sophomores, Sikora and Brown, face the biggest challenge of making the team.

"It is very rare to have players so young be invited," he said. "For them, they will have to cope with the added intensity and speed of the game at the highest level. If they can do that they will do well and have a chance to be chosen."

Boyle and Heisey, on the other hand, travel to San Diego with a summer's worth of play alongside the nation's elite. The two participated last summer in the Eagle Camp, a U.S. collegiate development squad in San Diego. Boyle was also a member of the U.S. national team that participated in the Canada Cup last year.

Steinberg sees Boyle's experience as helpful not only for her chances of making the team but also for her teammates.

"Stacy is in a very good position to be supportive of the other three," Steinberg said.

Boyle said while she did not see action during the Canada Cup, training with the national squad was helpful in other ways, such as becoming acquainted with a higher level of play. And unlike last summer, Boyle will be with some of her closest friends this time.

"It is going to be great having Penn State players there to talk to and bounce ideas off them," she said.

Although Steinberg cannot instill the decision making into his players that comes with experience, he has put together a workout emphasizing skill rather than conditioning. The women follow a weight-lifting, running and sprinting program that is supposed to peak just in time for the trials.

As for expectations, the four have mixed feelings.

Brown, who is recovering from a severe concussion that required stitches, missed three weeks of training. She said maximum effort is all she expects from herself.

"I just want to say, 'I went, I tried and did my best,' " Brown said.

Heisey has not placed her hopes too high, either. Her number one priority is medical school. Just being asked to try out was an honor.

Nineteen-year-old Sikora said she will be surprised if she makes it, mainly because of her inexperience. She has only played a year and a half and likely will be one of the youngest players trying out.

"There's no pressure," she said. "I'm not expecting to make it. There is no pressure, so it should be easier."

And that could give her and her teammates just enough an advantage to make the team.