MACCABI USA ANNOUNCES THE JUNIORS GIRLS’ FIELD HOCKEY TEAM FOR THE 14TH PAN AMERICAN MACCABI GAMES
Philadelphia, PA, May 15, 2019 – Maccabi USA Field Hockey Chair Tonja Magerman along with Head Coach Samantha Berk and Assistant Coach Hilary Berk-Wescount are pleased to announce the Juniors Girls’ Field Hockey Team for the 14th Pan American Maccabi Games which will take place July 5-15, 2019 in Mexico City, Mexico. Maccabi USA will bring a team of 400+ athletes who will join the other 2,500 Jewish athletes from 19 countries, participating in 24 different sports.
Head Coach Berk is the Head Varsity Girls Field Hockey and Lacrosse Coach at Cranford High School in Cranford, NJ. Prior to coaching, she played as a Midfielder/Defender at The College of New Jersey from 2010-2012. She was part of the National Championship Team for the NCAA Division 3 Competition in 2012, was a 4-year Varsity High School starter, and team member of Total Dutch Select based out of Somerset, NJ from 2007-2010. Assistant Coach Berk-Wescount started playing field hockey in high school as a sophomore, she was named captain of the team during her senior year. She continued to pursue her field hockey career for the Club program at Rutgers University. She is extremely excited to join the Pan American Maccabi Games and looks forward to spreading her pride throughout the Jewish community. The athletes are Ria Chhina of Leesburg, VA; Sadie Cohen of Virginia Beach, VA; Emma Gladstein of Ellicott City, MD; Mia Gladstein of Sykesville, MD; Thea Rosenzweig of Bryn Mawr, PA; Helene Schulwolf of Virginia Beach, VA: Charlotte Weinstein of Pine Brook, NJ; Sarah Weitzman of Fulton, MD; and Miriam Wolk of Millburn, NJ.
The Games are hosted by the Confederacion Latinoamericana Maccabi (CLAM). They are conducted in cooperation with Maccabi World Union and are held every four years, two years after the Maccabiah is held. The Pan American Maccabi Games are a high-level athletic competition for Jewish athletes all over the world aimed at connecting Jews from the Diaspora.
Maccabi USA builds Jewish pride through sports, generating the emotional intensity, high ideals, and powerful camaraderie of competition. We connect athletes, volunteers, and supporters with the global Jewish community. Our athletic, educational, and cultural experiences build Jewish identity, perpetuate Jewish continuity worldwide, and strengthen support for the State of Israel.
For more information, please contact Maccabi USA Program Director Shane Carr at 215-561-6900 or by email at scarr@maccabiusa.com.
About the organization:
Maccabi USA (MUSA) is a federally-recognized not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization with an extensive history of enriching Jewish lives through athletic, cultural and educational programs. The organization is the official sponsor of the United States Team to the World Maccabiah Games, and the Pan American and European Maccabi Games, as well as a sponsor of the JCC Maccabi Games for teens in North America. As the official Maccabi representative in the U.S., Maccabi USA supports Jewish athletic endeavors, enhanced by cultural and educational activities in the United States, Israel and throughout the Diaspora.
MUSA develops, promotes and supports international, national and regional athletic-based activities and facilities It strives to provide Jewish athletes all over the world the opportunity to share their heritage and customs in competitive athletic settings. MUSA supports programs that embody the Maccabi ideals of Jewish Continuity, Zionism and Excellence in Sport. Maccabi USA Builds Jewish Pride Through Sports.
Maccabi USA has been selected by the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) as a Multi-Sport Organization (MSO). The nonprofit organization becomes one of 35 MSOs nationwide to be recognized by the USOC for its ability to cultivate a national interest in sport and increase opportunities for participation internationally, nationally and at the grassroots level.
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