MILAN (AP) \u2014 Hayley Scamurra scored twice, and the United States opened the Milan Cortina Games women\u2019s hockey tournament with a 5-1 win over Czechia on Thursday.<\/b>
\nHayley Scamurra scored twice, and the United States opened the Milan Cortina Games women\u2019s hockey tournament with a 5-1 win over Czechia on Thursday.
Alex Carpenter had a goal and assist, while captain Hilary Knight and Joy Dunne also scored for the Americans, who improved to 8-0 over the Czechs in international play. Aerin Frankel, making her Olympic debut in net, stopped 13 shots.
Other WRAL Top Stories
Laila Edwards had an assist while becoming the first Black female to represent America in hockey at the Olympics.
Barbora Jurickova scored Czechia\u2019s lone goal. She was set up on a breakaway as she exited the penalty box to cut the Americans lead to 3-1 midway through the second period. Klara Peslarova finished with 37 saves in an outing Czechia was out-shot 31-9 through two periods.
The Czechs are making just their second Olympic appearance, and lost to the Americans in quarterfinal round of the 2022 Beijing Games. They are 0-6 against the U.S. in world championship play, including a 2-1 loss in the semifinals in April.
The day\u2019s only other scheduled Group A game between defending Olympic champion Canada and Finland was postponed to Feb. 12. The Finns\u2019 roster was down to eight skaters and two goalies, with the remaining 13 players dealing with a stomach virus that hit the team on Tuesday.
The Americans were greeted a loud cheer and a \u201cU-S-A!\u201d chant began at puck drop.
Among those on hand in a nearly packed 5,000-plus seat Rho Ice Hockey Arena, were U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who arrived about 12 minutes in, and departed with just over six minutes remaining. The large delegation that included USA Hockey officials and a security detail, filled a section of seats directly behind the penalty box and immediately opposite the U.S. bench.
Scamurra’s two goals are indicative of how deep the Americans are. She’s regarded as the team’s 13th forward in playing a jack-of-all-trades role. From Buffalo, New York, the 31-year-old doubled her Olympic goal output after scoring once at the 2022 Beijing Winter Games.
Carpenter opened the scoring by tipping in Megan Keller\u2019s shot from the blue line for a power-play goal with 4:05 left in the first period.
The tournament-favored Americans then blew the game open with three goals in the second period in building a 4-1 lead. Dunne and Scamurra scored 86 seconds apart in the first five minutes of the period.
The 36-year-old Knight continued showing she\u2019s not lost a step in making her fifth and what she says is her final Winter Games. Accepting Carpenter\u2019s pass, Knight broke up the right wing and got two steps past defender Klara Seroiszkova. Knight drove to the net and lifted a shot to beat Peslarova high on the short side.
In an earlier Group B game, Lina Ljungblom scored twice in Sweden\u2019s 4-1 comeback win over Germany in the tournament-opening game. Katarina Jobst-Smith\u2019s goal early in the first period gave Germany the lead before Ljungblom\u2019s two goals turned the game around and Mira Jungaker and Thea Johansson extended the Swedes\u2019 lead.
Beating Germany is a big step in Sweden\u2019s push to win Group B, where the lower-ranked teams play, and secure a better seeding for the quarterfinals. All five teams in Group A and the top three in Group B make the playoffs.
Meantime, host team Italy defeated France 4-1 to post its first victory in making its second Olympic appearance. France is making its Olympic debut. The game was the played at the main rink, the Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena, which faced scrutiny over construction delays.
___
AP Sports Writer James Ellingworth contributed to this story.
___
AP Winter Olympics: https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics<\/p>\n