UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.- Penn State women's ice hockey sophomore forward Tessa Janecke was named to the United States National team roster for the December Rivalry Series games on Thursday. This is her third appearance on a rivalry series roster for the United States.
The rivalry series was introduced by USA Hockey and Hockey Canada in the 2018-19 season and comprised three games between the women's national teams of the two countries. The sophomore will play in two games for the national team starting on December 14 when they face Canada at Kitchener Memorial Auditorium in Kitchener, Ontario. The second game will be played on December 16 when they travel to the Progressive Auto Sales Arena in Sarnia, Ontario. Both games will be broadcast on the NHL Network.
The Orangeville, Ill. native has competed for team USA on multiple teams. Janecke appeared at the 2022 IIHF Under-18 Women's World Championship, played for team USA in 2023 in the rivalry series, and at the IIHF Women's Hockey Championships where she captured gold.
Janecke finished her play at the world championships with three goals and three assists. She scored two of her three goals against the Czech Republic which propelled Team USA to advance to the championship game against Canada.
The Orangeville, Ill. native recorded one assist in the November series to contribute to the United States' sweep of Canada. Team USA won both games of the series 3-1 and 5-2.
She was named the USCHO.com Rookie of the Year in 2023 and was named the All-USCHO Rookie team for the first time in her career. She was the third Nittany Lion in program history to be named to the All-Rookie team.
Janecke was named the 2023 CHA Rookie of the Year, HCA National Rookie of the Year and was a Patty Kazmaier Award nominee. Additional accolades from the 2022-23 season include one CHA Forward of the Month honor, one HCA National Rookie of the Month award, three CHA Rookie of the Month awards, and six CHA Rookie of the Week nods.
This season, Janecke has tallied five goals and 17 assists. She broke the single game record for most points in a single game with seven at Dartmouth on Nov. 25 and scored her second career hat-trick in the same game. She has been named CHA Forward of the Week and Month once this year. The Nittany Lions return to action on Friday, Dec. 1 at 2 p.m. when they host CHA opponent Robert Morris.
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