Seal Beach Water Polo Star, OC Women Go for Gold in Rio

SEAL BEACH, CA--The U.S. Olympic women's water polo team, which includes six players from Orange County, will play for the gold medal today, facing Italy at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium in Rio de Janeiro.

"Besides us, they have obviously been the hottest team in the tournament," U.S. coach Adam Krikorian said. "I watched a little bit of their semifinal and I saw how well they were shooting the ball from the outside.

The Orange County players on the team are Rachel Fattal of Seal Beach, Kaleigh Gilchrist and Maddie Musselman, both of Newport Beach, sisters Aria and Makenzie Fischer of Laguna Beach, and Courtney Mathewson of Anaheim Hills.

"We have a really incredible, special group," said team captain Maggie Steffens, one of the four members of the gold medal-winning 2012 team returning to the 2016 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 ... 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," Steffens said. "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."

The game will be shown live on NBCOlympics.com beginning at 11:30 a.m. and on a delayed basis on the West Coast by NBC at 2:30 p.m.

The U.S. is 5-0 in the 2016 Olympics, outscoring its opponents 61-26. The U.S. assured itself of a berth in the final and fifth medal in the five Olympic women's water polo tournaments with an 14-10 victory over Hungary on Wednesday.

Italy is also 5-0, outscoring its opponents 51-31, including a 12-9 semifinal victory over Russia.

The U.S. defeated Italy, 11-6, on March 28 in the final of the Olympic qualification tournament in Gouda, Netherlands.

The U.S. is 39-2 in 2016 and has won 21 consecutive games since a 5-4 loss to Australia on May 31 in the Kunshan Cup in Kunshan, China.

The U.S. is the defending Olympic champion and first in rankings compiled by FINA, the international governing body for aquatics.

The U.S. 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.