Midwest Camogs Claim Second Place at Inaugural Divisional Select Tournament
The threat of inclement weather did not dampen the spirits of the Midwest Divisional Select Camogie team on October 10th-11th, 2026, as a combination of players from Akron, Buffalo, Cleveland, Michigan, and Pittsburgh joined forces for the first time in USGAA history to represent the Midwest at the inaugural Divisional Select Tournament in Nashville, Tennessee.
Joined by the men’s football and hurling squads, the Midwest arrived at the weekend’s premier tournament in full force. Despite dark skies and steady rain, courtesy of the remnants of Category 3 Hurricane Isaias, the camogie team, including several key players from Cleveland’s 2026 Junior A National Championship roster, came hungry for more hardware.
Coach Joey Murphy (Cleveland) set the tone long before the players stepped on the pitch in Nashville, preaching a team first mentality from the start. After running many of the team members through a weekend training session in similarly sloppy weather last month, he expertly transformed an amalgamation of squads into a cohesive unit. Led by Captain Rachel Laughlin (Cleveland) and Vice-Captain Emily “Barno” Earnest (Pittsburgh), the Midwest camogs proudly donned their new black and neon green Pro Knitwear kits as a unified front.
The Heartland presented themselves as the first challenge of the weekend. A slew of goals by full forward Yi Wang (Cleveland) and points by Megan Sarles (Cleveland) kept the team’s momentum rolling from the first whistle. Strong performances by goalie Hadassah Curry (Pittsburgh) and defenders Lauren Casey (Akron) and Sarah O’Sullivan (Cleveland) kept the control of the game in the Midwest’s hands.
The all-stars easily managed a physical Heartland team. The Midwest cruised to victory, defeating Heartland 6:07 to 1:03.
After a few hours break, the Midwest Camogie squad returned to the field to compete against an entirely senior level Western team. The Midwest battled with goals from Earnest and Wang, but fell to the Western team, 7:09 to 2:01. Despite the loss, both the Midwest and the Western teams advanced to the final match scheduled for Sunday.
With drier fields and calmer winds, the Midwest prepared for their final showdown against the Western Division on Sunday morning. After the successful implementation of new defensive strategies concocted by Coach Murphy, Anna Ibos (Cleveland) minimized the Western’s greatest offensive threat. Goals from Clodagh Murphy (Cleveland), Wang, and Earnest kept the Midwest in the fight, but ultimately, the Western team claimed victory 4-15 to 3-04.
Captain Rachel Laughlin reflected on the journey of camogie development in the Midwest division, attributing the exponential growth to “perseverance and enthusiasm” from all teams involved. Laughlin describes the weekend’s competition as “fierce” and states that “we walked away proud of our efforts,” after competing against the nation’s best. She summarized the outcome of the tournament as an opportunity to “motivate all divisional players to continue to push and develop the sport.”
Coach Joey Murphy: “it is great to see how far camogie has come in the last five years in the Midwest. I am extremely proud of how the team hustled and fought for each other, pushing San Francisco in the final to the very end. The scoreboard does not reflect how tough and exciting the game really was.”
Some distill a game down to the final score line, but those who did not watch the Midwest camogs will never truly appreciate the grit demonstrated by each and every player on the panel, the majority of whom only learned about the sport of camogie within the past five years. Those sorts of efforts cannot be quantified.
While not able to secure the title and the cup, the Midwest proved something even more meaningful—the Midwest is committed to grassroots efforts to grow and develop the sport of camogie. The cup may be en route to San Francisco after the weekend, but the Western Division, and the rest of the country, would be wise to keep the Midwest Division on their radars because the Midwest camogs only have room to grow from here. As a group of women raised with a blue collar ethos, they’ll do the work to get there.
COACH: Joey Murphy (Cleveland)
CAPTAIN: Rachel Laughlin (Cleveland)
VICE CAPTAIN: Emily “Barno” Earnest (Pittsburgh)
Olivia Baran (Akron)
Kayla Caruso (Cleveland)
Lauren Casey (Akron)
Hadassah Curry (Pittsburgh)
Rose Dickson (Cleveland)
Angie Dietz (Cleveland)
Jamie DiPastino (Pittsburgh)
Emily Earnest (Pittsburgh)
Tara Gilligan (Cleveland/Michigan)
Anna Ibos (Cleveland)
Nikki Kovick (Cleveland)
Rachel Laughlin (Cleveland)
Maureen Mohney (Cleveland)
Katie Monbaron (Pittsburgh/Buffalo)
Clodagh Murphy (Cleveland)
Megan Sarles (Cleveland)
Kate O’Meara (Pittsburgh)
Sarah O’Sullivan (Cleveland)
Kim Pierce (Akron)
Yi Wang (Cleveland)
