SMCHS Grad Makes U.S. Women's Hockey Roster

She only recently graduated from Santa Margarita Catholic High, but Anne Pankowski is already distinguishing herself at a very high level of accomplishment. 

Better known as Annie, Pankowski has been named to the roster of the United States Women's National Hockey Team.

A resident of Laguna Hills, the 18-year-old is the only Californian named to the squad, and the second-youngest overall on the 25-woman roster. One of 13 forwards, the team will be trimmed to 21 players in December in advance of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, from Feb. 7-23.

Like many south Orange County hockey players, she was a member of the Anaheim Ducks Junior Hockey program. She made the national team after a seven-day camp in Lake Placid, NY, with 41 hopefuls angling to fill the 25 roster spots.

Of the 25 selected, 12 have previously been Olympians, including the oldest player, three-time Olympian Julie Chu of Fairfield, Conn. Ages range from 31-year-old Chu to 16-year-old Jincy Dunne of O'Fallon, Mo. 

Pankowski and her teammates will enter a residency program in early September and will primarily train at The Edge Sports Center in Bedford, Mass. The final 2014 U.S. Olympic Women’s Ice Hockey Team, which will include 18 forwards/defensemen and three goaltenders, will be announced in late December of 2013.

Since women’s ice hockey was instituted in the Olympic Games in 1998, the U.S. team has made the medal stand each trip, earning gold in the inaugural games of 1998, silver in 2002, bronze in 2006, and silver in 2010. Its overall Olympic record of 18-3.

While in high school, Pankowski wa a two-time member of the U.S. women's under-18 select squad and represented Team USA at the 2012 world championships, winning a silver medal. Heading to the University of Wisconsin next year, Pankowski will have the opportunity to play with four fellow Badgers on the U.S. National team.

Pankowski’s recent accomplishment on the ice magnifies SMCHS’ already nationally recognized ice hockey program. On March 24, the boys’ ice hockey team claimed the USA Hockey National High School Championship after defeating the defending national champions, Regis Jesuit Raiders, 4-3 in overtime in Coral Spring, Fla. In the hockey program's short existence, the Eagles have already sent on 12 athletes to play at the next level, including Pankowski’s recent national promotion.