Atlanta Takes Home Gold at 2024 U-16 Girls Nexus Championship

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – The 2024 Junior Nexus Championship (NXC), presented by Osaka Hockey, continued this week with the U-16 Girls division at the Virginia Beach Regional Training Center in Virginia Beach, Va. Sixteen teams comprised of elite athletes across the country gathered to practice, learn, and compete over three days.

The young athletes showed off their skills in front of selectors, coaches and fans as they competed for evaluation to further opportunities. Congratulations to all the athletes for their hard work and dedication the last few days.

The Junior NXC continues this week with the U-18 and U-21 Girls divisions, concluding on July 14. The Senior NXC will take place from July 14-16.

Atlanta defeated Montreal 4-2 in semifinals to make it to the gold medal match, while Athens won their semifinal 1-0 over Paris. The final would be extremely evenly matched, as the athletes persevered through weather delays to fight for the title. After almost an entire match with no tally, Atlanta finally broke through on a penalty corner in the final minutes of play. The shot at the top by Elle Pufpaf (Saline, Mich.) was tipped by Chase Strohm (Hummelstown, Pa.) and finished in cage by Adelyn Martin (Lititz, Pa.) for the 1-0 win.

The bronze medal match between Montreal and Paris was equally as tight. The single goal in this match-up came early, when Camilla Lutte (Lower Gwynedd, Pa.) weaved through the defense and sent a reverse sweep just 10 minutes in to the first quarter. With no other tallies throughout the game, Paris would claim bronze with a 1-0 victory.

USA Field Hockey would like to thank all the athletes, coaches, umpires, technical staff, umpire managers, staff and volunteers who continue to make the U-16 Girls NXC a success, and to extend its congratulations to the following teams on their tournament victories:

Coach: Madison Maguire

In alphabetical order: Lakshmi Almli, Lindsay Catchpole, Kendal Gilbert, Cheyenne Greene, Ainsleigh Jones, Layla King, Elsie Lakin-Schultz, Eva Layton, Hadley Loftis, Adelyn Martin, Caitlin Nallin, Kitt Neel, Antonia Parrad, Elle Pufpaf, Noora Qureshi, Emilie Russell, Chase Strohm

Coach: Megan Frazer 

In alphabetical order: Shannon Bock, Aubrey Bouchard, Jenna Butler, Klara Jones, Scarlett Lane, Georgia Lee, Ellana Lewis, Evelyn Lisnoff, Elizabeth McCalla, Kendall Pattishall, Kamryn Plotts, Hannah Ponciroli, Julia Riesser, Tessa Rusconi, Sarah Smith, Zoey Strasser, Junia Whang

Coach: Maggie Reddecliff

Alexandra Beety, Ava Boland, Katharine Bruder, Olivia Bryant, Isabella Builione , Ella Campenni, Baobao Cui, Mackenzie Cush, Claire Demmer, Sloan Fenton, Olivia Francis, Brooke Gibbons, Gabrielle Haudan, Shannon Lane, Camilla Lutte, Riley Povilaitis, Sloane Sestito

Coach: Alyssa Parker

Coach: Maura Schimp