Western Washington Female Hockey Association (WWFHA) proudly announces the Big Sister – Little Sister partnership between the New York Riveters women’s professional ice hockey team in the National Women’s Hockey League (NWHL) and WWFHA’s Washington Wild teams.

The Washington Wild makes history as the first-ever ‘Little Sister’ team partnered with a ‘Big Sister’ team in the NWHL. The NY Riveters and Washington Wild partnership grew from WWFHA’s desire to connect their female student athletes on the Washington Wild teams with role models from the women’s professional hockey league. Because the Riveters boast five west coast players—four from California and one from Montana--they are an ideal sister-team for the Washington Wild. In addition, the Wild teams include several players of Japanese descent, and the NY Riveters drafted goaltender Nana Fujimoto from Sapporo, Japan. Wild players will have the opportunity to connect with their favorite NY Riveter players and possibly meet them at a future, local event hosted by WWFHA.

The Riveters showcase such players as Gabie Figueroa, 23, from Branchburg, New Jersey, who had a standout defensive career with the Princeton Tiger Lilies. A structural engineering student, she was a four-time Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) All-Academic team selectee and co-captained her team in her senior year. From Princeton's blue line Figueroa scored 36 points in 116 games, including a 13 point in 30 game performance as a senior. Known for her skating and work ethic, Figueroa skated for USA Hockey's silver medal-winning team in the 2009 IIHF U-18 World Championships prior to her college hockey career. While living in New York and playing hockey she works for the Gilbane Building Company and contributes to the Kingsbridge National Ice Center project in the Bronx.