BRIDGEPORT, Pa. — A trio of names and faces familiar to fans of the Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) were named to the Australia Women’s National Team for the next 12 months.
The Aussie Stingers unveiled their squad of 20 for the next 12 months, as the count down to the Tokyo Olympic Games reaches the one year to go mark. Leading the team is former Hartwick College standout Bronwen Knox who is joined by current University of Michigan athletes Maddy Steere (Sr., Pascoe Vale, Australia/St. Catherine’s School) and Abby Andrews (So., Indooroopilly, Australia Brisbane Girls Grammar School).
The captain of the 2008, 2012 and 2016 Australia Olympic Women’s Water Polo teams and a two-time Olympic Bronze Medalist (2008, 2012), Knox is the only player in the history of the Hartwick women’s water polo program to earn second team All-America honors from the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches (ACWPC). She helped guide the Hawks to a record of 56-20, two CWPA Northern Division titles, a CWPA Eastern crown and a sixth-place finish at the 2006 NCAA Division I Championship during her two seasons in Oneonta, N.Y.
Following her freshman campaign in 2005, she was the CWPA Northern and Eastern Championship Rookie of the Year, a first team CWPA Northern and Eastern selection, and was an ACWPC Honorable Mention All-America selection. In 2006, Knox led the country in scoring with 127 tallies and was later named Most Valuable Player of both the Northern Division and Eastern Championships. She also earned ACWPC All-Academic team honors and received second team All-America accolades.
A 2012 inductee to the Hartwick Hall of Fame, she totaled 229 goals, 57 assists, 286 points, 209 steals at Hartwick, including program single-season record 127 goals and 117 steals in 2006.
Andrews helped Michigan to a CWPA league title and an appearance in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Championship quarterfinals in her inaugural campaign in Ann Arbor after joining the team in January 2019.
A 2019 ACWPC All-America Honorable Mention selection, she garnered All-Conference Second Team honors to accompany CWPA Rookie of the Year notice. A CWPA Championship All-Tournament First Team honoree, she earned seven CWPA Rookie of the Week awards in 2019 to go along with team Rookie of the Year status.
As a freshman, she established a school single-season record for assists per game (2.22) and points per game (4.0), while also establishing freshman records for assists (71) assists and points (128).
Her 71 assists tied for the second most in a single season in Michigan history and she ranks second for most points in a single season with 128.
The team leader in assists (71), points (128), steals (47) and sprints won (41), she posted 10 games with three or more goals and 12 games with three or more assists and recorded five or more points in 11 games.
Prior to joining the Wolverines, Andrews attended the University of Queensland and was a member of the Australian Uniroos at the 2019 World University Games in Naples, Italy. A member of the Australia Youth National Team from 2016-18, she was captain of the Born 2000 team at the 2018 Youth World Championships in Belgrade and appeared on the Queensland U14, U16, U18 and U20 junior teams from 2014-18.
A three time ACWPC All-America selection (2019: Second Team, 2018: Third team, 2017: Honorable Mention) and the 2019 CWPA Most Valuable Player, Steere is a three-time CWPA All-Conference and All-CWPA Championship First Team honoree (2017, 2018, 2019).
Steere has helped lead Michigan to back-to-back-to-back league championships and NCAA Championship appearances and currently ranks among Michigan’s career leaders in goals (Ninth – 180), goals per game (Second – 1.64), assists (Sixth – 125), assists per game (Third – 1.14), points (Eighth – 305) and points per game (Third – 2.77) with 180 goals, 125 assists 305 points, 92 drawn exclusions, 117 steals and 38 field blocks in 110 games as a Wolverine.
One of eight players in program history with 300 career points, becoming the second fastest to reach the mark (108 games), she is the third player in school history to have 100 or more points in two seasons. Further, she stands as one of only two freshmen in school history to record 100 points in a season.
Due to the international COVID-19 outbreak, the international competition calendar remains uncertain as Stingers currently preparing for the 2021 Olympics slated to start in one year.
Water Polo Australia is currently reviewing national squad camps and potential competitions per Aussie Stingers coach Predrag Mihailovic. Currently, Water Polo Australia is working through a number of options around the squad’s schedule for the next 12 months.
“These are unprecedented times, which are continuously changing, so we are looking at different scenarios to ensure the squad can train and be as prepared as we can. While we don’t know what the international calendar will look like leading into Tokyo, that won’t stop us working hard. The Aussie Stingers are in good spirits and very focused on the task at hand as we focus on the next 12months preparation for Tokyo. Our squad of 20 are right now training with their respective State Institutes as well as regularly meeting as a national squad. We are still connected as a squad even while each player prepares from their own home towns,” said Mihailovic.
2020-21 Australian Women’s Water Polo Squad
- Abby Andrews, Qld
- Zoe Arancini, WA
- Elle Armit, NSW
- Hannah Buckling, NSW
- Pascalle Casey, NSW
- Tenealle Fasala, Qld
- Keesja Gofers, NSW
- Bronte Halligan, NSW
- Lilian Hedges, WA
- Matilda Kearns, NSW
- Bronwen Knox, Qld
- Lena Mihailovic, NSW
- Danielle Morrissey, NSW
- Gabriella Palm, Qld
- Amy Ridge, NSW
- Madeleine Steere, Vic
- Rowie Webster, Vic
- Alice Williams, Qld
- Lea Yanitsas, NSW
- Jessica Zimmerman, WA
