PARIS, France — The U.S. Women's Sevens team, co-captained by Naya Tapper, fell to France on Monday in a 31-14 loss.
Tapper, who graduated from West Mecklenburg High School in Charlotte, and her team defeated Japan and Brazil on Sunday.
They dominated Japan in a 36-7 win. The team played again at 2 p.m., Sunday, winning 24-5 over Brazil.
Team USA was not able to beat France on its home turf, Monday, losing the match 31-14.
Tapper was an All-American track and field star at West Mecklenburg High School in Charlotte, but found rugby at the University of North Carolina, where she joined a club team on campus.
Tapper joined the U.S. Women’s Sevens squad in 2016. Her rare combination of speed and power made her one of the best players in team history and landed her an Olympics debut in Tokyo.
Despite the team's loss against France, this was a record-breaking Olympics for women's rugby. According to the Rugby Sevens organization, a new attendance record for a woman's rugby event was set during this year's Olympics.
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