U.S. U-20 Women’s National Team in Florida for final training camp before World Cup Qualifying
CHICAGO – U.S. Under-20 Women’s National Team head coach Michelle French has called 24 players to a training camp running from Dec. 14-21 in Sunrise, Fla. that will serve as the final preparation for the 2014 CONCACAF Women’s U-20 Championship. The top three finishes at that tournament will advance to the 2014 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup being held in Canada in August of next year.
The U-20 event will run concurrently with a U.S. Under-23 Women’s National Team camp and the teams will scrimmage against each other during the week.
As the collegiate season is now over, the roster features many of the top college-aged players in the country, including two from the newly-crowned NCAA Champion UCLA Bruins in goalkeeper Katelyn Rowland and forward Darian Jenkins, the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year.
The roster features 12 players who have seen game action in a FIFA U-17 or U-20 Women’s World Cup as well as several of the top goal scorers in the country from this past season. Forward Savannah Jordan scored 23 goals as a freshman for the Florida Gators while Makenzy Doniak knocked in 20 as a sophomore while helping lead UVA to an undefeated regular season and a berth in the Final Four. Sophomore McKenzie Meehan also scored 20 times for Boston College.
Defenders Stephanie Amack (Stanford) and Cari Roccaro (Notre Dame) are both in their second U-20 cycles and were a part of the U.S. team that won the 2012 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Japan.
Following the camp, French will name a 20-player roster for the Women’s World Cup qualifying tournament that will run from Jan. 9-19 at the Truman Bodden Sports Complex in George Town, Cayman Islands.
The tournament features eight nations divided into two groups of four teams. The top two finishers in each group will qualify for the semifinals, with the winners of those games along with the winner of the third-place match earning berths to Canada.
The USA is in Group A with Costa Rica, Jamaica and Guatemala while Group B features the host Cayman Islands, Honduras, Trinidad & Tobago and Mexico.
The USA opens play on Thursday, Jan. 9, against Costa Rica, faces Jamaica on Saturday, Jan. 11, and finishes the group against Guatemala on Monday, Jan. 13. All three of the USA’s group games kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET. The semifinal matches will take place on Friday, Jan. 17, and the Championship and Third-Place match are on Jan. 19.
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 (4): Jane Campbell (Stanford; Kennesaw, Ga.), Tarah Hobbs (Minnesota; Hugo, Minn.), 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.), Mandy Freeman (USC; Royal Palm Beach, Fla.), Laura Liedle (Stanford; San Diego, Calif.), Katie Naughton (Notre Dame; Elk Grove Village, Ill.), Cari Roccaro (Notre Dame; East Islip, N.Y.)
MIDFIELDERS (5): Morgan Andrews (Notre Dame; Milford, N.H.), Rachel Hill (UConn; Rollinsford, N.H.), Rose Lavelle (Wisconsin; Cincinnati, Ohio), Andi Sullivan (Bethesda SC; Lorton, Va.), Allison Wetherington (Portland; Acworth, Ga.)
FORWARDS (8): Makenzy Doniak (Virginia; Chino Hills, Calif.), Summer Green (UNC; Milford, Mich.), Darian Jenkins (UCLA; Riverton, Utah), Savannah Jordan (Florida; Fayetteville, Ga.), McKenzie Meehan (Boston College; Scituate, R.I.), Amber Munerlyn (UNC; Corona, Calif.), Midge Purce (Harvard; Silver Spring, Md.), Jackie Stengel (NC State; Melbourne, Fla.)
