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BLACKSBURG -- Former Virginia Tech softball player Carmen Farmer has been named to the United States rugby team that will compete in the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio, the organization announced yesterday.

Farmer, a four-year letterwinner from 2000-03, ranks eighth in Hokie softball history with 42 doubles and is tied for second with eight triples. The Richmond, Virginia native joins USA Rugby for the sport’s first appearance in the Summer Olympics since 1924.

“I'm really excited to be able to represent my country at the Olympics,” Farmer said. “I’m also honored to be able to represent my home state of Virginia and especially Virginia Tech, where I have so many good memories as a Hokie.”

A few years into her career practicing law on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Farmer picked up rugby in 2012 as a way to fill a competitive void that had gone missing after her days of playing softball had ended. She was discovered by Pete Steinberg, an assistant coach with the American national team, while playing for her club team in the 2012 Women’s Division II Club National Championship.

Despite earning a spot on the national team for the 2014 World Cup in Paris, Farmer told Inside Hokie Sports last year that she felt that it would be a stretch to compete in the Olympics. She wanted to stay committed to her day job working for a small non-profit land trust organization in Maryland. Now, she is headed to Rio as one of 12 athletes to represent the United States.

The Rugby Sevens competition kicks off Saturday, Aug. 6, at 10 a.m. EST, with the U.S.'s first game scheduled for noon EST. Televised matches on NBC will be announced by the network at a later date.

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