Six months after the original competition was set to take place, Team USA is geared up and ready to take on the world, competing at the Under-18 Women’s World Championship on home soil for the first time since 2015.

This year’s tournament is the first in two years, following the U.S.’ gold medal-winning performance in Slovakia in 2020. The two-year hiatus puts this team in a unique position, as for 21 of the 23 players, this will be their first opportunity to represent the U.S. on the international stage. Only Kirsten Simms (Plymouth, Mich.) and Danielle Burgen (Lindstrom, Minn.) return from the 2020 team.

The team has used this unique opportunity to help build a foundation that will hopefully lead them to reach their goals.

“We’re continuing to build the tight-knit group that we have right now and hopefully that will take us all the way to our ultimate goal, a gold medal,” Svejkovsky said.

The team, which includes players from 11 different states, has been preparing in Blaine, Minnesota for the week leading up to the tournament. They are channeling the excitement and anticipation of the last few months to help prepare.

“Lots of preparation has gone into these last few weeks and months,” Svejkovsky said when asked about the team’s preparation over the last few months. “It’s just been making sure we are all in shape getting here and learning and perfecting the system. It’s been really good though. We’ve had some high-tempo practices and it was a great experience playing the exhibition against Canada. I think that prepared us for what we’re going to be going in to and how high-level and fast the game is going to be. I think we’re all just excited to get there.”