U.S. U-20 Women’s National Team heads to Florida as Women’s World Cup prep begins
CHICAGO – U.S. Under-20 Women’s National Team head coach Michelle French has called 24 players to the team’s first training camp after winning the 2014 CONCACAF U-20 Women’s Championship in the Cayman Islands January. The camp will run from Feb. 22-March 2 in Lakewood Ranch, Fla., and will feature two matches against fellow FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup qualifier China PR.
The USA will face China on Wed., Feb. 26 at 4 p.m. ET and on Sat., March 1 at 1 p.m. ET. The camp will also include a scrimmage against the University of Florida on Wed., Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. ET, mostly for players that didn’t get to play against China earlier in the day.
The USA earned its berth to the upcoming U-20 Women’s World Cup, which will be held Aug. 5-24 in four Canadian Cities (Edmonton, Montreal, Moncton and Toronto), by rolling through the CONCACAF qualifying tournament, winning all five games by a combined 29-0 margin. The USA defeated Trinidad & Tobago 6-0 in the semifinal to clinch its berth and the won the title with a 4-0 victory against Mexico. McKenzie Meehan of Boston College led the U.S. team (and the tournament) in scoring with six goals while Savannah Jordan of the University of Florida, scored one goal in each of the five matches.
French called in 18 of the 20 players that represented the USA at qualifying in the Caymans, and among the six additional players is U.S. U-17 Women’s National Team leading scorer Mallory Pugh, who ended her U-17 career with 15 international goals in 12 matches. The 15-year-old Pugh recently helped lead the U-17s to the title at the four-team U-17 Women’s NTC Invitational in Carson, Calif., scoring the winning goal in the final game, a 2-1 victory vs. Japan, to clinch the trophy for the young Americans.
Forward Lindsey Horan, the USA’s only professional player at the U-20 level, was released from her French club Paris Saint-Germain to attend the camp. Horan is the USA’s leading scorer at this level with 16 goals in 19 international matches. The roster also includes the MVP of CONCACAF qualifying in midfielder Rose Lavelle from Wisconsin and the tournament’s top goalkeeper in Katelyn Rowland from UCLA.
Players born on or after Jan. 1, 1994, are age-eligible for the 2014 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.
U.S. U-20 WNT Roster by Position:
GOALKEEPERS (3): Jane Campbell (Stanford; Kennesaw, Ga.), Katelyn Rowland (UCLA; Vacaville, Calif.), Morgan Stearns (Virginia; San Antonio, Texas)
DEFENDERS (7): Stephanie Amack (Stanford; Pleasanton, Calif.), Brittany Basinger (Penn State; Purcellville, Va.), Maddie Bauer (Stanford; Newport Beach, Calif.), Christina Gibbons (Duke; Raleigh, N.C.), Laura Liedle (Stanford; San Diego, Calif.), Katie Naughton (Notre Dame; Elk Grove Village, Ill.), Claire Wagner (Clemson, Cary, N.C.)
MIDFIELDERS (8): Morgan Andrews (Notre Dame; Milford, N.H.), Rachel Hill (UConn; Rollinsford, N.H.), Rose Lavelle (Wisconsin; Cincinnati, Ohio), Ashley Meier (Virginia Tech; Strongsville, Ohio), Mallory Pugh (Real Colorado; Highlands Ranch, Colo.), Cari Roccaro (Notre Dame; East Islip, N.Y.), Andi Sullivan (Bethesda SC; Lorton, Va.), Mallory Weber (Penn State; Novi, Mich.)
FORWARDS (6): Summer Green (UNC; Milford, Mich.), Lindsey Horan (PSG; Golden, Colo.), Jaycie Johnson (Nebraska; Lake Winnebago, Mo.), Savannah Jordan (Florida; Fayetteville, Ga.), McKenzie Meehan (Boston College; Scituate, R.I.), Margaret Purce (Harvard; Silver Spring, Md.)
