July 13, 2019
By Jordan Russo-Hicks
Intern for the Tribune
Kaiden Fothergill, a 2019 Lee’s Summit North High School graduate, had the honor of making the roster for the U18 USA Rugby team and is currently in Canada playing.
Committed to The University of Kentucky, Kaiden will be a great addition to a collegiate squad that will be looking to make a run for a 3-peat in the SEC. He started playing rugby for the KC Blues in seventh grade and excelled early on. He garnered interest for the sport through playing it time after time. He decided to focus on purely rugby his junior year of high school, playing year round on 15 man, 7 man, and regional travelling teams. The Blues are a club oriented team.
Kaiden has run the KC Blues offense effectively. Positioned at flyhalf, his play exploits mismatches and openings all around the field. In the past three years, the Blues have won state 2 times. Kaiden also has played regional EIRA rugby for Kansas as well.
Kaiden was scouted for the US nationals and was selected on a roster of 28 players.
The North American Summer Series is taking place at Brentwood College in Vancouver.
Athletes for the North American Summer Series were primarily selected from last year’s Winter Camp and Regional Cup Tournaments (2018).
This is a special opportunity as representing the US is always a special honor. Director and Head Coach Keane exclaimed, “In the short term we will all enjoy the experience of spending two weeks on beautiful Vancouver Island, but ultimately this is about the challenge of building the team, improving as individuals and delivering three positive match performances.”
To have this experience at his utilization will serve quite beneficial for Kaiden. These matches will serve as development and preparation for years to come throughout his rugby career.
High School All-Americans (HSAA) are rugby players in 7s or 15s who fit within the ages of 17-18 years old and currently participate in a high school rugby program. Selections for USA Rugby’s High School All-American assemblies and competitions are primarily made from Regional Cup Tournaments across the nation. All camps and competitions are focused on long-term player development.
The Boys High School All-American 7s will also assemble next month for a U18 Can-Am Summer Series July 11-13 in Ontario.
