Sports
Capitola water polo talent Quinn Healy helps Team USA’s Junior Women’s Team win gold at U20 World Championships in Brazil – Santa Cruz Sentinel
Capitola’s Quinn Healy, a 6-foot-1, junior two-meter defender for defending NCAA champion Stanford University, can add another gold medal win to her rapidly growing résumé.
The former Soquel High star helped Team USA’s Junior Women’s Team win gold at the U20 World Championships in Salvador, Brazil, on Saturday.
Lucy Haaland-Ford scored four goals to help the Americans outlasted Spain 16-15 in the final and finish with a 6-0 record.
“It was so amazing to win with this group of women,” said Healy, who is still in Brazil, on Tuesday. “Such a great group of girls with extensive water polo backgrounds and a cohesive grit that is rare to find.”
It’s the fifth World Championship title for the Junior Women and first since 2015.
The U.S. beat Hungary 11-10, Greece 15-14 in a shootout, and Italy 14-6 in group play. It stomped Croatia 24-6 in the quarterfinals, and slipped past Italy 13-11 in a shootout in the semifinals.
“It was a super fun tournament,” Healy said. “Coming into it, we knew it was going to be a really hard tournament because we had three of the top five teams in our bracket. … Once we made it into the gold medal match, it was just about enjoying it and soaking it all in. Spain was a tough team to see in the final match, they have some fantastic players, but I think it came down to us wanting it more and playing more connected.”
Healy scored against Croatia.
It was an all-around great trip, Healy said.
“Salvador, Brazil, was also a beautiful place with very welcoming locals, who came to our games and continuously supported us,” she said.
Five Stanford players are on Team USA’s Junior team. Healy, was joined by college teammates Kamryn Barone, Christine Carpenter, Lucy Haaland-Ford, and Amber Nowaczek.
Healy helped the Cardinal win the 2025 NCAA D-I title on May 11. Healy played in 26 games last season and posted 15 goals and four assists.
She also helped the U.S. Women’s Senior National Water Polo team win gold at the Pan American Aquatics Championships in Medellin, Colombia, in May. She has also won gold four times at youth level.
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