Alex Sedrick ran most of the length of the field to give the U.S. women a first Olympic rugby sevens medal with a stunning stoppage-time comeback win over Australia in the bronze-medal match on Tuesday.
The 2016 champion Australians were leading 12-7 with seconds remaining and deep in U.S. territory. The ball went to Sedrick and she bumped off two tacklers before racing all the way to the other end to score and spark jubilation for the Americans.
The Americans rushed onto the field to celebrate the 14-12 victory. Fayetteville's Sammy Sullivan was in tears. Ilona Maher raised both arms up in triumph.
Bruce Springsteen鈥檚 鈥淏orn in the U.S.A.鈥� blared over the stadium speakers.
Earlier in the day, the U.S. women reached the Olympic semifinals of rugby sevens for the first time and lost to defending champion New Zealand. That made the playoff for a third a case of winning a medal or going home empty-handed.
The U.S. women had to wait until after the final between New Zealand and Canada to take their place on the podium. New Zealand won 19-12.
Sullivan isn't the only member of the team with ties to the Tar Heel State. Naya Tapper is a graduate of West Mecklenburg High School in Charlotte and discovered rugby while she was a student at UNC-Chapel Hill.
