Last summer, at just 13 years old, Powhatan field hockey player Chloe Johnson traveled to Winston-Salem, North Carolina to compete in the AAU Junior Olympic Games, returning to Powhatan with a gold medal.
Just a month before she starts her freshman year at Powhatan High School this fall, Johnson was again selected to compete with the field hockey Junior Olympics team, this time traveling to Houston, Texas.
She, again, returned home with a gold medal, securing the top prize by scoring the winning goal as the fifth and final shooter of a championship game shootout. Prior to the shootout, the game was tied 2-2.
Powhatan’s Chloe Johnson celebrates with Team Pride after scoring the final shootout goal of the AAU Junior Olympics championship game.
Johnson was part of Team Pride, which finished with a 3-1-1 record in pool play on the way to the title game. Last year, Johnson won with Team United at Wake Forest University’s Kentner Stadium. That group was coached by Kellie Joyce, an All-American player with the New Hampshire Wildcats who most recently accepted the head coaching position at Bryant University.
People are also reading…
This year, Johnson was able to work with another college coach on Team Pride in Hannah Fisher, a Fredericksburg native that played at Davidson College from 2014-17 and coached at her alma mater as an assistant from 2022-24. She most recently accepted a position as head coach at Episcopal High School in Houston. Coincidentally, the field hockey tournament was hosted on the field of Episcopal.
It’s a competitive selection process to play at the Junior Olympics. Last year, players were identified and selected based on their performances in the Nexus Championship. Nexus is USA Field Hockey’s Olympic Development Pathway program.
This year, USA Field Hockey made the decision to change the advancement pathway, with spots in the Junior Olympics now earned through advancement from Regional Selection Camps as a Nexus participant. USA Field Hockey then announces selected players that will participate in either the Junior Olympics or the Nexus Championships.
“This shift in the advancement process to the AAU Junior Olympic Games provides more elite-level playing opportunities for athletes, reduces instances of de-selection, and is expected to foster greater confidence in young women,” said Liz Sanders, USA Field Hockey’s Director of Nexus.
Johnson, who also plays at the travel level with Panthers United Field Hockey Club, enters her freshman season at Powhatan with an opportunity for an immediate role with the reigning champion Indians, who won a region title and made it to the VHSL Class 4 state semifinals last fall. The Indians will look to replace 12 seniors from last year’s roster, opening the door for a wealth of young talent to emerge and carve out their own legacies with one of Virginia’s strongest high school field hockey programs.
Robby Fletcher can be reached at rfletcher@powhatantoday.com.
