July 29, 2013
SAN DIEGO - San Diego State water polo rising sophomore Rachel Mitchell helped the United States win gold at the 2013 Maccabiah Games in Israel last week. The lone goalkeeper on the team guided the Americans to an unblemished mark in the four-team tournament.
In its opening game vs. Brazil, Mitchell was instrumental in holding the Brazilians to a single goal in the United States' 31-1 victory. Following an off day, the U.S. faced Hungary, which lost to Israel two days prior, and experienced no issues in posting a 19-3 win.
On the final two days of the tournament, the United States found itself paired with the host and unbeaten country (2-0), Israel, and cruised. Mitchell and the U.S. first logged a 12-7 victory before wrapping up with a 14-6 decision to earn the gold medal.
A product of Danville, Calif., Mitchell recently completed the finest true freshman season for a goalkeeper in program history. Mitchell played in 33 of 34 games and recorded 368 saves, the third-most in Aztec single-season history and most by a first-year SDSU player ever. She also posted a goals-against average of 7.60 and logged 14 assists and 11 steals.