Joey Gullickson from Sonoma and U.C. Berkeley senior Corey Nasoff are on the roster of the USA men’s water polo team set to compete at the 12th Pan Am Maccabi Games in São Paulo, Brazil, from Dec. 26 through Jan. 2.
Gullickson was an Academic All-American at University of the Pacific, where he was a senior during the 2010 season. At Sonoma High School, he scored a school record of 247 goals in four seasons. Nasoff, who is from San Diego, just finished his senior season for the Bears; as a junior, he was one of the top scorers on a team that finished second in the NCAA tournament. Jesse Barush of Napa and Michael Rosenthal of Orinda are also part of the talent-laden U.S. squad.
Maccabi USA says it will be sending a 330-member delegation to Brazil for the games. There will be 25 U.S. teams scattered among nine sports in four divisions (juniors, youth, open and masters). Team USA will be competing in basketball, golf, gymnastics, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, volleyball and water polo.
Another Bay Area athlete gearing up for the games is David Aufhauser, who lives in Burlingame and works in San Francisco; he’ll be part of the U.S. masters (35-and-over) men’s basketball team.
Maccabi USA, based in Philadelphia, is the official sponsor of the U.S. team to the World Maccabiah Games in Israel, the Pan American Maccabi Games, and Maccabi competitions in Europe and Australia, as well as a co-founder of the JCC Maccabi Games for teens in North America.