U.S. Women advance to Gold Medal Game against Great Britain on Sunday, Aug. 7, at 12:30 p.m. ET

The U.S. Women’s Tackle Football National Team defeated Finland 28-10 in the semifinals of the 2022 International Federation of American Football (IFAF) Women’s World Championship in Vantaa, Finland, on Wednesday, August 3.

The U.S. (2-0) advances to the world championship’s Gold Medal Game against Great Britain (2-0) on Sunday, Aug. 7, at 12:30 p.m. ET. The game will be livestreamed here on Olympics.com, the official website of the Olympic Games. Great Britain defeated Canada in the other semifinal game, 20-13.

Led by head coach Callie Brownson, Chief of Staff and Assistant Wide Receivers Coach for the Cleveland Browns, and a coaching staff with more than 90 years of football coaching and playing experience with careers spanning U.S. National Teams, NFL clubs, women’s professional football leagues, and college and high school programs, the U.S. roster of 45 women is competing among the world’s eight best women’s tackle football national teams across three continents.

The U.S. Women’s Tackle National Team won its opening match against Germany 63-0 on July 30 to advance to today’s semifinal matchup against Finland. With today’s victory, the United States advances to its fourth IFAF Women’s Tackle World Championship Gold Medal Game. U.S. National Teams, built and managed by USA Football, have won gold medals at each of the previous three world championships. The global competition previously took place in 2010 (Sweden), 2013 (Finland), and 2017 (Canada).

USA Football is the sport’s national governing body and a member of the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee. IFAF is a provisional member of the International Olympic Committee with 72 member nations spanning five continents.

IFAF Women’s World Championship games are livestreamed here at Olympics.com while stats and other world championship information resides here. News about the U.S. Women’s National Team and the IFAF Women’s World Championship is posted on Instagram and Twitter at @usnft.

Wednesday, Aug. 3 – IFAF Women’s World Championship

United States 28, Finland 10

In a tale of two halves, the U.S. Women’s Tackle National Team (2-0) found itself trailing 10-7 to Finland at halftime in the semifinal round of the 2022 IFAF Women’s World Championship in Vantaa, Finland, on Wednesday, Aug. 3 before scoring 21 unanswered points in the game’s final 24 minutes to win 28-10. The Americans will play Great Britain in the world championship’s Gold Medal Game on Sunday, Aug. 7.

U.S. QB Brittany Bushman (Boston, Mass.) led a U.S. passing attack that was instrumental in outpacing the Finland offense. Bushman completed 20 of 35 pass attempts for 189 yards against two interceptions. Finland finished the game with just three completions for two yards.

Bushman had the hot hand on the United States’ first scoring drive. Down 3-0 in the first quarter, Bushman completed four consecutive passes to four different receivers, including a 12-yard connection to WR Angela Baker (Belleville, N.J.), who also is the New York Giants offensive quality control coach. The string of completions set up RB DAjah Scott (Fairfax, Va.) for a 15-yard touchdown run.

The Americans’ offense stagnated for the rest of the first half while Finland scored a touchdown with 4:23 left in the second quarter to take a 10-7 lead at the half.

U.S. Head Coach Callie Brownson pushed the right buttons at halftime as the United States looked like a completely different team in the second stanza. American LB Satoria Bell (Philadelphia, Pa.) jumped on a muffed punt return deep in Finland’s territory with 9:34 left in the third quarter. Offensive coordinator Jim Farrell's unit capitalized with another 15-yard touchdown run by Scott to take a 14-10 lead.

“We do our best work in adversity and the players continue to prove that,” Brownson said after the game. “We came out a little flat, but I think those kinds of things need to happen in order to show you where you need to improve. I’m really proud of who they decided to be after halftime. The leaders really stepped up and were vocal. It says a lot about our football team.”

Bell’s fumble recovery shifted the game’s momentum permanently as the United States’ offense found its rhythm. A screen to TE Krishna Lee (Kansas City, Mo.) late in the third quarter resulted in a 32-yard gain, which led to a five-yard touchdown plunge by Scott. The running back’s third touchdown of the day extended the United States’ lead to 21-10. Scott finished the game with 17 carries for a game-high 71 rushing yards and three TDs. She also caught a pair of passes for 12 yards.

“We’re going to have to make a few more adjustments for the next game,” Scott said after the win. “We need to play more fast-paced than this previous game and be a lot more physical up front.”

Finland’s special teams woes carried into the fourth quarter. With 5:38 left in the game, U.S. DLs Danielle Fournier (North Andover, Mass.) and Quineshia Leonard (Suffolk, Va.) forced a blocked punt that was recovered by Kristen London (Denver, Colo.).

Shortly after the blocked punt, RB Adriana Gutierrez (San Diego, Calif.) punched in a one-yard touchdown and kicker Alaina Lange (Albany, N.Y.) hit the extra point to seal the win for the United States.

A stingy defensive performance by defensive coordinator Stephanie Balochko's unit made the United States’ comeback win possible. Linebacker Carla Odom (Atlanta, Ga.) led the team with six tackles while Fournier amassed three tackles for loss, including a sack. Defensive lineman Shanice Cole (Fairfax, Va.) also posted a sack.

2022 U.S. Women’s Tackle National Team Roster (Alphabetical) 

No.; Name; Pos.; Ht.; Wt.; Age; City of Residence

3; Angela Baker; WR; 5’4”; 130; 29; Belleville, N.J.

50; Ashley Beckham; OL; 5’8”; 260; 29; Methuen, Mass.

1; Satoria Bell; LB; 5’10”; 210; 31; Philadelphia, Pa.

21; Chante Bonds; DB; 5’5”; 145; 39; Dorchester, Mass.

57; Leshaunte Bowman; DL; 5’9”; 250; 29; Dallas, Texas

77; Ashley Branch; DL; 6’2”; 295; 25; Baltimore, Md.

8; Brittany Bushman; QB; 5’6”; 150; 36; Boston, Mass.

69; Eboni Chambers; OL; 5’8”; 210; 37; Temecula, Calif.

20; Shanice Cole; DL; 5’11"; 218; 34; Fairfax, Va.

16; Amber Craft; LB; 5’3”; 143; 29; Denver, Colo.

75; Hillary Crook; OL; 5’11”; 260; 34; Norton, Mass.

23; Hannah DeGraffinreed; RB; 5’10”; 195; 32; Charlotte, N.C.

26; Kathryn Floor; WR; 5’7”; 145; 33; Beltsville, Md.

70; Danielle Fournier; DL; 5’10”; 175; 29; North Andover, Mass.

10; Sara Galica; DB; 5’2”; 130; 30; Bountiful, Utah

76; Jennifer Gray; OL; 6’0”; 295; 36; Laurel, Md.

42; Adriana Gutierrez; RB; 5’0”; 125; 25; San Diego, Calif.

14; Lisa Horton; QB; 5’5”; 138; 45; Pittsburgh, Pa.

81; Maria Jackson; WR; 5’6”; 170; 37; Twinsburg, Ohio

66; Stephanie Jeffers; OL; 5’11”; 295; 37; Revere, Mass.

78; Elizabeth Jenkins; OL; 5’ 6”; 220; 41; Rowlett, Texas

7; Alaina Lange; K/P; 5’9”; 140; 35; Albany, N.Y.

45; Krishna Lee; TE; 5’9”; 200; 35; Kansas City, Mo.

14; TaShaun Leigh; DB; 5’8”; 145; 35; Newport News, Va.

92; Quineshia Leonard; DL; 6’2”; 290; 28; Suffolk, Va.

27; Darcy Leslie; LB; 5’7”; 155; 36; Chicago, Ill.

2; Kristen London; DB; 5’9”; 160; 35; Denver, Colo.

34; Gina Magana; RB; 5’1”; 128; 28; Magna, Utah

11; Knengi Martin; QB; 5’11”; 205; 38; Poway, Calif.

18; Mariette Martinez; DB; 5’6”; 150; 28; Malden, Mass.

74; Rachel May; OL; 5’11”; 268; 40; Haltom City, Texas

87; Jana Meister; WR; 5’8”; 135; 40; Marietta, Ohio

65; Tammie Moore; OL; 5’8”; 270; 39; Grapevine, Texas

44; Carla Odom; LB; 5’9”; 180; 42; Atlanta, Ga.

15; Stephanie Pascual; WR; 5’3”; 189; 29; Boston, Mass.

91; Sheena Reed; DL; 5’7”; 315; 30; Eagan, Minn.

4; DAjah Scott; RB; 5’7”; 157; 30; Fairfax, Va,

22; Eshombi Singleton; DB; 5’9”; 165; 39; Dallas, Texas

36;  Shatonya Spicer; DL; 5’8”; 202; 34; Atlanta, Ga.

12; Chantal Thacker; LB; 5’5”; 154; 34; Monrovia, Md.

6; Tori Tucker; QB; 5’9”; 180; 29; Las Cruces, N.M.

38; Clarissa Tullis; DB; 5’4”; 154; 31; Inkster, Mich.

99; Shavonne Verdree; LB; 5’6”; 167; 31; Seattle, Wash.

41; Angie Wells; DB; 5’3”; 130; 36; Philadelphia, Pa.

5; Kira Whisonant; LB; 5’5”; 165; 30; Woodbridge, Va.

13; LaShantel Wilson; DB; 5’9”; 195; 38; Beltsville, Md.

Head Coach: Callie Brownson; Assistant Coaches: Jimmy Farrell (OC/QB), Stephanie Balochko (DC/LB), Jeff Grybash (ST), Becky Worsham (OL), Odessa Jenkins (RB), John Johnson (DL), Fabien Bownes (WR)

About USA Football: USA Football designs and delivers premier educational, developmental and competitive programs to advance and grow the sport. As the sport’s national governing body, member of the U.S. Olympic Committee and organizer of the U.S. National Team for international competition, USA Football partners with leaders in medicine, child advocacy and athletics to support positive football experiences for youth, high school and other amateur players.