2025 FIH Hockey Women’s Junior World Cup Preview

SANTIAGO, Chile – Less than one week to go until the biggest event in international junior hockey! The 2025 FIH Hockey Women’s Junior World Cup (JWC) is set to begin on December 1, 2025, at the National Stadium Sports Park in Santiago, Chile. The U.S. U-21 Women’s National Team will be competing for the title of Junior World Champion at this monumental, global event for the ninth time. Below is everything you need to know before the first match day!

The U-21 USWNT qualified for the 2025 JWC with a second-place finish at the 2024 Junior Pan American Championship (JPAC), which took place in Surrey, Canada in July 2024. The team kicked off pool play with a gritty 2-1 win over Uruguay, where Dani Mendez found the winning goal in the fourth quarter. The next contest was against Chile, and after sitting 1-1 at halftime, the Junior Eagles pulled ahead to a 4-2 victory. USA secured three consecutive victories after a dominant 11-1 win over Mexico. In their fourth match, the USA squad was bested, 3-0, by a strong Argentina side, but finished out pool play with a 4-1 victory over Canada to move on to the semifinals.

Facing Chile for the second time, the Junior Eagles trailed for nearly the entire match. In dramatic fashion, USA tied to game in the final minute to send it to shootouts. The drama extended all the way to sudden victory, where goalkeeper Alyssa Klebasko denied Chile’s attempt, giving U-21 USWNT the chance to take the go-ahead goal and claim the shootout victory. The red, white, and blue fell to Argentina in the final, but secured their spot in the 2025 JWC with a silver finish.

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U-21 USWNT Head Coach Ange Bradley and staff named the 18-athlete roster back on October 16. Click here to view the roster announcement.

“This group brings a strong blend of experience and youth,” said Bradley. “Each athlete’s strengths complementing another’s gaps. Our challenge now is how quickly we can become united after the NCAA season, making our connection and collective play our greatest strength. Together, we will bravely represent the USA with pride, resilience, and a relentless pursuit of a top eight finish.”

15 of the 18 athletes participated in a college season this past fall, representing Brown, Duke, Louisville, Maryland, North Carolina, Northwestern, Virginia, and Wake Forest. The remaining three are high school aged athletes. There are a range of states represented, with the most from Pennsylvania (4), followed by Illinois (3). The other states represented are Texas (2), Delaware (2), Maryland (2), New Jersey (2), California (1) and Kentucky (1).

There are nine athletes returning from the 2024 JPAC squad: Mia Abello, Olivia Bent-Cole, Maci Bradford, Josie Hollamon, Alyssa Klebasko, Dani Mendez, Ava Moore, Mia Karine Myklebust, and Mia Schoenbeck. There are also four athletes who competed at the 2023 JWC: Abello, Bent-Cole, Hollamon, and Mendez.

Additionally, Reese D’Ariano, Hollamon, and Schoenbeck competed with the senior USWNT at the 2025 Pan American Cup this past July.

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See the full 2025 JWC Schedule here.

The teams in Pool F are No. 6 United States, No. 10 Korea, No. 13 New Zealand, and No. 22 Uruguay. In their most recent match against New Zealand, which was at the 2023 JWC, the Junior Eagles won 6-2. USA has won their past three contests with Uruguay, including a narrow 2-1 win in the 2025 Junior Pan American Games this past August. The U-21 USWNT has not faced Korea in recent years.