International News: U.S. Women’s National Team Arrives in Fukushima, Japan Ahead of 2022 Japan All-Star Series

The following preview is courtesy of USA Softball…

Members of the 2022 USA Softball Women’s National Team (WNT) have arrived in Fukushima, Japan ahead of the Japan All-Star Series scheduled to take place August 6-8.

Rounding out the summer slate of events for the Red, White and Blue, the world-ranked No. 1 Team USA will go head-to-head with No. 2 Japan in a three-game series held at Azuma Stadium (Fukushima, Japan) and Yokohama Stadium (Yokohama, Japan) following the most recent matchup between the two countries at the 2022 World Games in Birmingham, Ala. where Team USA earned gold.

Thanks to the hospitality and efforts made by the Japan All-Star Series organizing staff, the U.S. will have the opportunity to participate in a series of training sessions ahead of the highly anticipated event while experiencing the culture and traditions of Fukushima off the field.

Signifying as a one-year celebration of the Tokyo Olympic Games, the U.S. and Japan will face off at Azuma Stadium twice with the series opener taking place on Saturday, August 6 at 7 p.m. JST (5 a.m. CT) followed by a second matchup on Sunday, August 7 at 2 p.m. JST (12 a.m. CT).

The two international rivals will cap the three-game series on Monday, August 8 at 7 p.m. JST (5 a.m. CT) at Yokohama Stadium – host of the Tokyo Olympic gold medal game. Returning to the Olympic softball venues of the 2020 Olympic Games – Azuma Stadium and Yokohama Stadium – the Japan All-Star Series has provided an exciting experience for fans since its inception in 2016 where over 31,000 fans packed the Tokyo Dome while 2017 saw 15,000 fans in the stands at Yokohama Stadium.

*** Note: Fans will have the opportunity to follow along with the action through live stats and daily recaps available on USASoftball.com.

The USA Softball WNT Japan All-Star Series roster includes a total of 14 athletes from across the U.S. including one Team USA veteran, five members from the Canada Cup roster and three members from the World Games roster while a total of six athletes will wear the Red, White and Blue for the first time in their careers.

Loaded with 13 student athletes from the 2022 season and one former student athlete, members of the Japan All-Star Series roster highlight five athletic conferences: Pac-12 (five athletes), Big 12 (four athletes), AAC (two athletes), SEC (two athletes) and ACC (one athlete) who represent ten NCAA Division I universities with Oklahoma and UCLA each tallying three athletes followed by Arizona, Florida State, Oklahoma State, Tennessee, Texas, UCF, Washington and Wichita State with one athlete apiece.

Recent additions to the Japan All-Star Series roster include Oklahoma’s Grace Lyons, Oklahoma State’s Kelly Maxwell, AAC standouts Jada Cody and Sydney McKinney, and Canada Cup gold medalists Kayla Kowalik and Kiki Milloy.

Head Coach Heather Tarr (Head Coach at Washington) will lead the Red, White and Blue alongside assistant coaches Chris Malveaux (Assistant Coach at Tennessee) and Mike Steuerwald (Head Coach at Gaston College).

To learn more about the USA Softball National Teams Program, visit USASoftball.com.