Mariona Ortiz will lead the Spanish national team

Mariona Ortiz takes command of the Spanish national team. Point guard “Casademont Zaragoza”, 32 years old, will lead the national team this Thursday against the Netherlands (21:00), in the second window of the qualifying stage of the 2025 European Championship. The match will take place in the pavilion of the city of Castellon. In addition, this Sunday Spain will play Croatia at 19:00 on the same stage.

These two meetings are marked by the devastating DANA, which devastated several regions of the Valencian Community. Since these are two FIBA ​​matches that paralyze the leagues of countries on different continents, It was very difficult to put them down. Given this situation, the Spanish Basketball Federation intends to hold a match in memory of more than two hundred victims and raise money and materials for the victims.

Casademont Zaragoza will be presented Mariona Ortiz, Nerea Hermosa and Helena Pueyo, who are part of the 15-player list that coach Miguel Mendes provided last week.

Spanish team arrives undefeated in the second FIBA ​​window and with the aim of adding two new victories that will bring them closer to the next European Championship, a tournament that will take place from 18 to 29 June 2025 in the Czech Republic, Germany, Greece and Italy.

At the qualifying stage 36 national teams are participating, including representatives of the four championship organizing countries already classified ex officio. The rest will compete for the remaining 12 places in three windows. The first in each of the eight groups will be classified, as well as the top four runners-up.

“For this occasion, we have created a young team consisting of players who will play in the women’s league this year and play their first important minutes. The team also consists of a group of players who they reach athletic maturity

and they will continue to achieve this and maintain it through this cycle until 2028. And we will complement it with two experienced players such as Mariona Ortiz and captain Alba Torrens,” Mendes explained.

Those who were called

List for these two meetings It consists of Maria Araujo (CBK Mersin), Aina Ayuso (Hairis), Elena Buenavida (Lointek Guernica), Maite Cazorla (USC Prague), Maria Conde (USC Prague), Irati Echarri (Lointek Guernica), Paula Ginzo (Hairis) . ), Nerea Hermosa (Casademont Zaragoza), Iyana Martin (Perfumerías Avenida), Angela Mataix (Baxi Ferrol), Mariona Ortiz (Casademont Zaragoza), Helena Pueyo (Casademont Zaragoza), Laura Quevedo (Asvel Femenin) and Alba Torrens (Valencia Basket) . Spain will not be able to count on Megan Gustafson, who is out due to physical problems.

Mendez must do three resets to configure a maximum of twelve players that can be registered in each match. Spain are top of Group A, one of nine, having won their first two games. In their debut at this qualifying stage a year ago, they won 65-70 on the Croatian court and then crushed Austria 75-34.

The Netherlands, for their part, have one win over Austria (64-45) and one defeat against Croatia (81-57). His great reviews in these first two games were Laura Cornelius and Emese Hof, both have experience playing in the Spanish league with teams such as Perfumerías Avenida or Girona.