Road to Rio: Laguna Beach High School Water Polo Sisters Score Spots on USA Olympic Team

Laguna Beach, CA--The 13-player U.S. Olympic women's water polo team announced today includes sisters Aria and Makenzie Fischer and four other players from Orange County.

“It's been a long time that I've been dreaming of being an Olympian and it's finally come true,'' said Makenzie Fischer, a 19-year-old attacker who graduated from Laguna Beach High School in 2015 who has deferred entering Stanford to attempt to make the Olympic team.

Her 17-year-old sister Aria, also an attacker, will complete her junior year at Laguna Beach High School next Thursday.

Their father Erich was a member of the 1992 U.S. Olympic men's water polo team that finished fourth.

A second Orange County high school student also made the team, attacker Maddie Musselman, who will graduate from Corona del Mar High School next Thursday.

“It's a very special moment, but also it's my birthday so it's even more exciting,'' said Musselman, who turned 18 today.

The other Orange County players on the team are 29-year-old Courtney Mathewson of Anaheim Hills, one of the four members of the gold medal-winning 2012 team returning to the 2016 team and the team's oldest player, 22-year-old Rachel Fattal of Seal Beach, and 24-year-old Kaleigh Gilchrist of Newport Beach. All three players are attackers.

The U.S. is first in rankings compiled by FINA, the international governing body for aquatics. It has won every major tournament since 2014 including the FINA World Championship, FINA World Cup, Pan American Games title and three FINA World League Super Final titles.

“When you've had the success that we've had, you worry about complacency, you worry about being too confident,'' U.S. coach Adam Krikorian said in making the announcement of the team at the Jefferson Park headquarters of the LA84 Foundation, which is endowed with surplus funds from 1984 Olympics and supports a wide array of youth sports programming.

“One thing that comes to mind is just that we continue to be humble enough to prepare but confident enough to perform, and I think that's really our focus moving forward to strive and get better."

The U.S. will begin play in the Olympics Aug. 9 against Spain on the fourth anniversary of its 8-5 victory over Spain to win the gold medal.

“We have a really incredible, special group,'' said 2016 team captain Maggie Steffens and a member of the 2012 team. “I can easily talk about each one in the athleticism, talent and skill that they have individually and what we have as a team, but it's more than that.

“It takes more than that to get to be on this stage today and the Olympic stage and it's the toughness that this group has and the determination, dedication, the sacrifices we've all made. And we work pretty darn well together.

“The teamwork that this group has is probably the best that I've ever been a part of. And I hope that with the teamwork we have in the water and the fun we have when we play can inspire anyone that watches us play."

Image Wikicommons