The USA booked their ticket to the Women's Sevens Championship Cup in Dubai after defeating China 14-7 and South Africa 22-10. It was a great start for the new team, and the squad performed up to coach Ric Suggitt's expectations.

"It is really an unknown competition for all the teams as we all have new squads," Suggitt said. "We will all be keeping a keen eye on all the matches and attempt to target some weaknesses in the opposition. As with everything, the team that makes the less defensive errors and capitalizes on the mistakes is going to have the edge."

The Eagles got that edge right off the bat against South Africa, a team the USA had played twice during the 15s Nations Cup over the summer. The squad was well acquainted with the Springboks' brand of physical rugby and answered in turn.

San Diego's Emilie Bydwell led the charge with a brace of tries, while captain Beth Black and Pam Kosanke contributed five pointers as well.

South Africa went on to play England to a close 22-19 loss later in the day, and demonstrated what a great competitor the Springboks have become.

The Eagles stumbled slightly in their match against China, and by halftime were trailing 7-0. But a stout second-half effort saw Bydwell run in her third try of the day, and Katie Dowty crossed the try line for her first points of the day. The USA defense held strong and secured the 14-7 win.

Unfortunately, the Eagles didn't have the same luck with England and dropped their final pool play match of the day 31-0. The Roses took some valuable lessons from their earlier matches (26-15 win over China, 22-19 over RSA) and ramped up their play to break the Eagles' winning streak.

While it wasn't the note on which the USA wanted to end, they achieved the primary goal of advancing to the Cup semifinals, where the Eagles will play Canada.

Canada went 3-0 on the day, defeating Brazil 31-0, Spain 19-14 and Australia 14-7. Canada's 7s team has been the class of the competition this year, having won both the USA Sevens Women's International Invitational and the Hong Kong 7s earlier this year. It will be an incredible test for the USA to rebound and oust the Canadian favorites, but Suggitt is confident his team's potential.

"We have had an excellent preparation," Suggitt said. "We need to thank USA Rugby and the OTC for providing us with the resources and facilities to  prepare properly for an international competition of this magnitude. As always right now we have a good mix of leadership players and some fresh legs full of energy and enthusiasm."

That energy and wisdom will need to be in top form tomorrow as the Eagles aim for the final, which will occur against the winner of England v Australia in the other Cup semifinal.