Twin Cities Amazons Rugby Club Announce Rebecca “Reebok” Radtke as Head Coach
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MINNEAPOLIS, MN-- The Twin Cities Amazons Rugby Club announce the hiring of Rebecca “Reebok” Radtke as their new head coach. The decision was made at the club’s 2019 Annual General Meeting Sunday, January 27, 2019.
Radtke, who has spent the last 5 seasons as the head coach of the University of Minnesota Women’s Rugby Club, becomes the second head coach in Amazon history. She will work closely alongside outgoing coach, Roger Bruggemeyer, to smoothly transition into the role following the spring 2019 season.
“We are extremely excited to announce Rebecca Radtke as Head Coach of the Twin Cities Amazons Women’s Rugby Club. Rebecca comes to the Amazons with a wealth of experience, knowledge and Amazon legacy. She brings technical intelligence, innovation, character, and a long history of organizational leadership. We are confident that she will lead the Amazons into the next chapter of success. We feel extremely fortunate that she will be coming on board and could not be more excited for the future of our organization,” said club President, Katie Sjeklocha.
An outstanding flyhalf during her playing career, Radtke has carried her passion of rugby not only through her time with the Amazons, but also instilled this mentality in every team she has touched as a coach.
“Rebecca comes to the Amazons with a wealth of experience, knowledge and Amazon legacy. She brings technical intelligence, innovation, character, and a long history of organizational leadership.”
This past fall, Radtke’s University of Minnesota Women went undefeated in their regular season ending with a 5-0 record. Representing the Midwest region for the fourth consecutive year at USA Rugby Division 1 Regionals, the Gophers dominated Notre Dame in their first round.
Unfortunately, they lost in the second round to the United States Air Force Academy, 20-37. Since Radtke took the collegiate team over, the Gophers saw a drastic turnaround. With strong regular season performance and consistent attendance to DI regionals, the team will be sad to see Radtke depart.
Radtke is motivated to bring her passion and experience back to the Amazons, now as a coach.
"The Twin Cities Amazons is a team comprised of tradition and talent,” Radtke said. “I am honored to take the Head Coaching position, and I look forward to continuing the development of both the Division 2 and the Women’s Premier League programs. These are teams built of highly competitive, physically tough, mentally strong, and high character women. This is going to be fun!"
A 2002 graduate of UW- River Falls, Radtke is no stranger to Midwest rugby. She not only captained her team, but also acted as player/coach. She represented UW-River Falls and the state of Minnesota as a player on the MN U23, Midwest U23, and US U23 teams. Later, she became the backs coach for the U23 Minnesota and U23 Midwest teams.
In 2000, while Radtke was still in college, she started practicing with the Twin Cities Amazons, coached by Roger Bruggemeyer. After an unfortunate detour from back to back ACL tears, she officially joined the Amazons in 2005. Radtke was a part of the very first Women’s Premier League (WPL) season in 2009, and then helped lead the Amazons in 2013 to win a National Championship with a 25-12 victory over the Berkeley All Blues.
“I am honored to take the Head Coaching position, and I look forward to continuing the development of both the Division 2 and the Women’s Premier League Amazon programs. These are teams built of highly competitive, physically tough, mentally strong, and high character women.”
Also joining the Amazons’ coaching staff is former USA Women’s National Team player, Lynelle Kugler. Kugler, also a Twin Cities Amazon alumnus, has had significant success as both a player and coach in the Midwest. The Colorado native joined the Amazons for the first ever WPL season in 2009 and was a part of the 2013 National Championship squad. She represented her country as a player in the 2010 and 2014 Rugby World Cups. She retired after eleven years with the USA Eagles with 31 international caps in both 7’s and 15’s. Since retirement, Kugler has been an instrumental part of Radtke’s coaching staff at the University of Minnesota, and she is motivated to bring her experience as a player and as a coach to the Amazons.
Radtke, Braaten, Kugler pictured with the USA Rugby Women's Premier League National Championship trophy in 2013.
Kugler makes a break.
The new coaching staff shares deep roots with the Amazons and their knowledge of the game is clear. The new leadership, coupled with the momentum from the Zons’ top four finish in the 2018 Women's Premier League competition, will position the team as a strong contender in the WPL 2019 season.
About the Twin Cities Amazons Rugby Club
The Amazons are a senior women’s rugby club based in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. The Amazons field teams to play in USA Rugby’s Women’s Premier League and USA Rugby’s Division 2 League. The club plays matches locally and nationally and welcomes players of all levels of experience. At the Twin Cities Amazons Rugby Club, we believe we’re made stronger by our differences and united by our commitment, passion, intensity and desire to be the best.
Contact:
Lindsey Haller
Communications Manager
Twin Cities Amazons Rugby
info@amazonsrugby.org
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