US bounces back with rout of Italy in women’s water polo

San Jose’s Jenna Flynn scored a goal, her sixth of the 2024 Summer Olympics, and Team USA beat Italy 10-3 in preliminary round action in Paris on Wednesday.

Flynn, whose father, Joe, was a standout baseball player at Harbor High in Santa Cruz, scored on a power play with 7:30 remaining to put the Americans ahead 9-2.

Team USA (19-2), which rebounded from a 13-11 loss to Spain on Monday, closes Group B play against France on Friday at 9:30 a.m.

Maddie Musselman, a 5-foot-11 attacker out of Newport Beach, scored three goals for the Americans in their latest win. Goalie Ashleigh Johnson made nine saves.

Eight players scored goals for Team USA, which went 7 for 14 on the power play.

Team USA struck first in the opening two minutes with a goal from Rachel Fattal for a 1-0 lead. They added a few minutes later on a Jordan Raney connect. The hot start continued as Ryann Neushul delivered her first goal at the Olympics on a power play connect for a 3-0 lead with 2:19 to play in the period. Italy got one back late in the period but Team USA held the two goal edge going to the second.

Musselman scored the first goal in the second period on a power-play strike, but Italy responded less than a minute later to make it a 4-2 match wth 4:50 left in the first half. That’s as close as Italy would get the rest of the way. Jewel Roemer and Kaleigh Gilchrist closed out the scoring in the first half, both drilling power play strikes, to build a 6-2 edge at halftime.

In the third quarter it was more of the same as the U.S. blanked Italy 2-0 to go in front 8-2. Musselman and Maggie Steffens both delivered power play goals to help add to the cushion.

Flynn opened the fourth quarter with a power play goal in the opening minute, Musselman added another a few minutes later. Italy scored the final goal in the waning seconds.

Italy went 1 for 8 on the power play.

USAwaterpolo.org contributed to this report.