Maccabi Games an unforgettable experience for Wissahickon’s Sage Stelzer

Sage Stelzer came home with much more than she had left with.

There were plenty of tangible spoils, none more prominent than the silver medal she’d helped the United States U18 girls’ soccer team win in the 21st Maccabi Games but also a month’s worth of experiences that meant just as much. The Wissahickon senior couldn’t have asked for much more from her time spent competing and exploring in Israel last month.

“It was definitely a life-changing experience,” Stelzer said. “I didn’t fully know what to expect going into it, the try-out was a summer before and trying to figure out college, I wasn’t sure but once all of those things settled into place, I was there and I could just play, it was really fun.

“I was able to connect with so many people from different countries and to have that because of soccer and our religion was very cool.”

The Maccabi Games, held every four years in Israel, are the third-largest sporting event in the world behind only the Olympic Games and World Cup in total number of competitors. Competition is open to Jewish athletes from around the world and to all Israeli citizens, regardless of their religion, divided into four categories – Open, Junior, Masters, and Paralympics.

Coming off her sophomore year at Wissahickon and a little apprehensive about potentially losing a whole month the next summer, a pivotal one in the college recruiting process, Stelzer initially wasn’t sure if she wanted to try out.

Her dad, Josh, wouldn’t have it once he found out where the Eastern open try-outs would be held.

“It was at (Upper Dublin’s) Spark Field, so it was not far for me to go,” Stelzer said. “Once my dad saw that, he said ‘it’s 10 minutes away, there’s no reason you shouldn’t try out.’ So I decided to go for it.”

Stelzer was the only player from the area to make the team and she had teammates from Florida, Texas and California among other states. In the interim between making the team and leaving for Israel this summer, the team met virtually a few times but they wouldn’t really know what they had until they were together in person.

“Going in, I didn’t know anybody or if I’d be the best or not one of the best,” Stelzer said. “I had to come in, play my game and just know it was going to be special forever. Whether my team was good or my team was terrible, it was going to be a memorable experience.”

Stelzer left for Israel on July 3 – it was her first time traveling alone – and arrived on July 4 with the U18 team spending its first week in a pseudo boot-camp. She and her teammates barely had time to check into their first hotel room before heading off to a practice and the week that followed saw two-a-day training sessions, 5 a.m. wake-up calls and a lot of travel.

The reason for all that travel, and the early alarms, was that it also wasn’t just about soccer. On top of competing in the games, the athletes had the opportunity to take part in the Maccabi Games’ Israel Connect program that explored the host country.

“We went all through Israel, they took us all the way down to the Dead Sea and we stayed all the way up in Haifa so we really saw top to bottom,” Stelzer said. “I really liked Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, which both had different vibes. Tel Aviv is an upbeat city that’s playing music and it has what they call the Shuk, which is a huge outdoor market where you can just go and go and bargain for prices, we have nothing like that here. You can be there for hours or even days, I probably could have gone back a few more times.

“When you go to Jerusalem, it’s the holiest city in the Jewish faith, you walk around to see the holy sites and find cool spots to look out and get a good view of the city. We visited the Western Wall, which is very holy and you can leave messages or wishes you hope to come true and so many people stop to pray there.”

Similar to the Olympics, the Maccabi Games have elaborate opening and closing ceremonies where each nation’s athletes are introduced and the games formally begin and end. United President Joe Biden attended the opening ceremonies, becoming the first sitting President to do so.

The ceremonies offered a first and last chance for athletes and competitors to interact with their compatriots from other nations and the celebrations also became a marketplace of sorts. Stelzer said she was able to trade some of her clothing and gear with athletes from Australia, Panama, the Netherlands and a few others but also kept a handful of her United States gear including her game jersey from the final match.

Prior to each match, a captain for the US team exchanged a ceremonial banner with the opposing nation’s captain, a custom in international soccer. Once the games began, many of the events were held at a venue dubbed “the Hub,” where the soccer pitches, tennis courts and some other competition sites were located, which also became a popular hangout for athletes between events.

“Before every game, we did a walkout with our starting 11, we faced the parents and fans and everyone would cheer for each country, which was great,” Stelzer said. “After the games, we would shake hands and talk, a lot of them asked for our SnapChat or to add us on Instagram. It was cool being able to meet with all these different people from all over the world.”

On the pitch, it wasn’t a smooth fit at first. The team’s first scrimmage against a local Israeli team didn’t go well as the players started to figure out just because they may have been one of the top players on their respective teams, it wasn’t going to translate to immediate success.

Plus, the US coaches had their own preference on style of play so that first week of training was important to building continuity and each player making their own individual adjustments.

“Those first scrimmages were interesting, we needed the time to figure out how each other played,” Stelzer said. “Once we understood that and we came into our first game against Australia, we knew we could win by doing this, this and this based on getting used to each other.”

Stelzer, who has committed to play at the University of Pittsburgh, played mostly as an outside back but filled in some as a flanking midfielder and as one of the team’s fastest players, had a prominent role.

“My team and I, they knew with my speed, it would be helpful because I could beat other players,” Stelzer said. “We would try to shift the ball to one side then play the long ball switch which opened up a gap for me to attack. Then we could get our runners from that far side to come in so I could play balls through.”

Each game brought its own challenges, whether it was an overly physical opponent or another team that spent a lot of time bantering with the officials, Stelzer said the US team tried to keep its focus on itself. That approach worked as the United States team went undefeated in round-robin play including a win over host Israel, which fielded its U17 national team into the games.

Unfortunately, a medical issue kept one of the team’s top players out in the final, a rematch with Israel that ended in a 1-0 defeat for the US to finish with the silver medal.

“It was a hard-fought game,” Stelzer said. “The first half was a little tough but we turned it around in the second half, were more attacking and brought the heat back to them.

“Getting the medals, we lined up next to Israel and even though we had just lost to them, they were so friendly and all the other countries in the stands were cheering for us as the Maccabi theme was playing while they put the medals around our necks. Taking the picture together holding our flag is something I won’t forget.”

Wissahickon opens its season on Monday, looking to repeat as SOL Liberty division champion and push deeper into the District 1 playoffs. Having stepped out of her comfort zone this summer, Stelzer is hoping to bring some of her experience in Israel to her high school team knowing she’ll be looked to in big spots this fall.

Stelzer brought back more than she left with last month and it was more than worth the trip.

“I’m really happy I did it,” Stelzer said. “I’ll still connect with the people I met on my team and even from the other countries. Meeting all of these people, even the other delegations and other sports, was just an incredible experience.”