BRIDGEPORT, Pa. — Princeton University alumna/two-time Olympic Gold Medalist Ashleigh Johnson and current Tiger Jovana Sekulic (So., Belgrade, Serbia/The Episcopal Academy (Pa.)) are among a pool of 19 athletes from the United States Women’s National Team which will compete against Italy and Spain on December 18-21 for a series of friendlies in Long Beach, Calif.
The matches will take place at Long Beach City College at the Monte Nitzkowski Aquatic Center (3990 Faculty Ave #3940, Long Beach, CA 90808). The contests mark the first home matches for Team USA since last summer prior to their gold medal victory at the Olympic Games in Tokyo. All matches will stream live at YouTube.com/USAWP with live stats provided by 68 Sports at 68scores.com. Tickets for the games can be purchased by CLICKING HERE.
Game Schedule:
December 18 vs. Italy (7:00 p.m. Eastern/4:00 p.m. Pacific)
December 19 vs. Spain (9:00 p.m. Eastern/6:00 p.m. Pacific)
December 20 vs. Italy (9:00 p.m. Eastern/6:00 p.m. Pacific)
December 21 vs. Spain (4:00 p.m. Eastern/1:00 p.m. Pacific)
Team USA will bring athletes from both the Gold medal-winning FINA World Championship squad and the Bronze medal-winning team at the 2022 FINA World League Super Final in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain. Two-time Olympic champions Johnson and Rachel Fattal alongside fellow gold medalist Amanda Longan will lead Team USA in action against Italy and Spain.
Head coach Adam Krikorian will select 14 athletes from among the following 19 women to compete in each match:
- Ashleigh Johnson – GK
- Amanda Longan – GK
- Emalia Eichelberger – GK
- Tara Prentice – C
- Ava Johnson – C
- Jovana Sekulic – C
- Jordan Raney – D
- Denise Mammolito – D
- Bayley Weber – U
- Ella Woodhead – U
- Christina Hicks – U
- Rachel Gazzaniga – U
- Rachel Fattal – A
- Ryann Neushul – A
- Jewel Roemer – A
- Emily Ausmus – A
- Jenna Flynn – A
- Emma Lineback – A
- Julia Bonaguidi – A
The United States defeated Spain, 13-8, in the quarterfinals and Italy, 14-6, in the semifinals of the 2022 FINA World Championships where Spain finished fifth as Italy claimed fourth. Team USA then beat Italy, 11-10, in Group Play at the 2022 FINA World League Super Final before losing in the semifinals. The Spanish won Gold at the World League Super Final, while the Italians finished in Fifth Place.
