USA battles Canada for top spot in Group A at Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship

U.S. Under-20 Women’s Youth National Team
USA vs. Canada
2023 Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship
Estadio Olimpico Félix Sánchez; Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
May 30, 2023 (6:00 p.m. ET on FS2)

U-20 WYNT FACES CANDADA FOR TOP SPOT IN GROUP AT THE CONCACAF WOMEN’S U-20 CHAMPIONSHIP: With two wins in as many games at the 2023 Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship, the U.S. Under-20 Women’s Youth National will play its third game in five days when it takes on Canada in the final Group A match for both teams.

Both countries have qualified for the all-important semifinals so this match will determine the top spot in the group and the seeding for the semifinals where the Group A winner will take on the second-place finisher in Group B and vice versa. The winners of the semifinals and the third-place match qualify for the 2024 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup. Mexico and Costa Rica both won their first two matches in Group B and will face off on May 29 for first place in that group. Panama, Jamaica, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, all of whom lost their first two matches, have all been eliminated from World Cup contention.

WIN OR TIE NEEDED TO TOP GROUP: The match against Canada will take place on Tuesday, May 30 (6 p.m. ET on FS2). The USA, which holds a superior goal difference over Canada after two games (plus-10 to plus-nine) needs a win or a tie to finish first in the group. Canada will need a win to take first. Due to the impact of heavy rains on the stadium fields, the first day of Group A matches was canceled and all the Group A match days were shifted two days forward, meaning this match will take place on what was originally a rest day. All of the USA’s matches are being played at Estadio Olimpico Félix Sánchez in Santo Domingo, capital of the Dominican Republic.

2023 Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship Standings

A HATTIE FOR MADDIE: The USA’s 4-0 win over Jamaica on May 28 combined with Canada’s 5-0 win over Panama qualified both teams for the semifinals. Forward Madeline Dahlien, playing in her first international match at any level for the USA, registered a hat trick. Her first goal came 10 minutes into the match against Jamaica courtesy of connection with winger Onyeka Gamero, who also assisted on Dahlien’s second goal. The USA went into halftime up 1-0 but then quickly put the game away with two goals in the first four minutes of the second half, one from Dahlien and one from left back Tessa Dellarose. Dahlien’s third goal was a crucial one for the USA as it put the Americans in sole possession of first place in the group. The match featured several other notable events for the U-20 WYNT:

• Forward Ally Sentnor assisted on Dahlien’s third goal, giving her two goals and an assist in the tournament.
• Goalkeeper Valentina Amaral got her first start of the tournament and first U-20 cap. Amaral started two matches at the 2022 U-17 Women’s World Cup in India. She was cleated in the neck in the 35th minute while coming out for a cross by an incredibly high boot of Destiny Powell, who inexplicably escaped with only a yellow card.
• Head coach Tracey Kevins made eight changes to the USA’s starting lineup from the one that faced Panama in the team’s opening match of the tournament. The only starters vs. Jamaica who also started the previous match were defenders Savannah King and Ella Emri on the back line and Jasmine Aikey in the midfield.
• Midfielder Tessa Dellarose’s goal marked her first of the tournament and her first international goal and came in her second U-20 cap.
• In addition to Madeline Dahlien and Amaral, midfielders Jill Flammia and Sofia Cook both earned their first U-20 caps. Both Flammia and Cook hit posts with shots that were inches from going in, Cook in the first half and Flammia in the second.
• Twenty of the 21 players on the U.S. roster have played in the tournament, with the exception of goalkeeper Makenzie Gress.
• Kevins has spread the minutes around so far in the tournament. Midfielder Ally Lemos leads the USA in minutes played so far with 126, but 11 players have played more than 100 minutes and five more have played at least 90. Dahlien leads the USA in goals with three while Onyeka Gamero leads in assists with two.

EIGHT WOULD BE GREAT: The USA has won a record seven Concacaf championships at this level, including six of the last seven. The first tournament, held in 2002, produced co-champions as the two group winners advanced to the first FIFA U-19 Women’s World Cup without semifinals or a championship game being played, but the USA had by far the most goals of any team in the tournament. The USA then won six of the next nine tournaments, losing in the final to Canada in 2004 and 2008, and to Mexico in 2018. The USA returned to the top of the podium in 2020, led by 13 goals from Mia Fishel, nine from Brianna Pinto and eight from Trinity Rodman, although that year’s World Cup would be cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The USA won again last year, beating Mexico 2-0 in the title game on goals from Michelle Cooper and Talia DellaPeruta as the Americans rolled through seven victories and scored 44 goals with zero allowed. The USA has advanced to the final at every Concacaf U-20 tournament that has held one, facing Canada five times and Mexico five times in the title match. The USA has compiled a record of 53W-2L-4D in this tournament. The U.S. has qualified for all 11 FIFA U-20 WWCs that have been contested for this age group (including the canceled 2020 tournament) and won the FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup in 2002, 2008 and 2012. 

2023 CONCACAF WOMEN’S U-20 CHAMPIONSHIP ROSTER BY POSITION (COLLEGE OR CLUB; HOMETOWN; U-20 CAPS/GOALS)

GOALKEEPERS (3): Valentina Amaral (Florida Kraze Krush SC; Oviedo, Fla.; 1), Mackenzie Gress (Penn State; Lyndhurst, N.J.; 0), Teagan Wy (California; Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.; 2)

DEFENDERS (6): Tessa Dellarose (UNC; Grindstone, Pa.; 2/1), Ella Emri (San Diego Surf SC; San Diego, Calif.; 2/0), Elise Evans (Stanford; Redwood City, Calif.; 2/0), Savannah King (Slammers FC HB Køge; West Hills, Calif.; 2/0), Leah Klenke (Notre Dame; Houston, Texas; 2/0), Gisele Thompson (Total Futbol Academy; Studio City, Calif.; 2/0)

MIDFIELDERS (6): Jasmine Aikey (Stanford; Palo Alto, Calif.; 2/0), Sofia Cook (UCLA; Huntington Beach, Calif.; 1/0), Jill Flammia (Virginia; Manakin-Sabot, Va.; 1/0), Shae Harvey (Slammers FC HB Køge; Hermosa Beach, Calif.; 1/0), Ally Lemos (UCLA; Glendora, Calif.; 2/1), Lauren Martinho (North Carolina Courage Academy; Cary, N.C.; 2/1)

FORWARDS (6): Maggie Cagle (Virginia; Phoenix, Ariz.; 2/0), Madeline Dahlien (UNC; Edina, Minn.; 1/3), Jordynn Dudley (United Futbol Academy; Milton, Ga.; 1/1), Onyeka Gamero (Beach FC; Cerritos, Calif;.2/0), Kat Rader (Duke; Stuart, Fla.; 3/4), Ally Sentnor (UNC; Hanson, Mass.; 7/3) 

U-20 WYNT ROSTER NOTES:

• Players born on or after Jan. 1, 2004, are age-eligible for the 2023 Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship. U.S. head coach Tracey Kevins selected 13 players born in 2004, seven born in 2005 and one, forward Onyeka Gamero, born in 2006.
• The roster consists of 13 collegiate players and eight players from youth clubs. Five of the youth club players are from California with two from Slammers FC.
• North Carolina (three players), UCLA (two), Stanford (two) and Virginia (two) are the colleges with multiple players on the roster.
• All the youth club players have committed to colleges: Gisele Thompson, Shae Harvey and Onyeka Gamero to Stanford, Savannah King to UNC, Jordynn Dudley to Florida State, Lauren Martinho to Duke and Valentina Amaral to Wake Forest. King, Dudley, Amaral will be entering college this fall while Thompson, Harvey, Gamero and Martinho are coming to the end of their junior year of high school.
• There are no holdovers from the squad that won the 2022 Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship, but forward Ally Sentnor and goalkeeper Teagan Wy were part of the USA’s 2022 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup roster. While Wy did not see action, Sentnor played in all three matches in Costa Rica and scored against Ghana.
• Six players on the roster were a part of the USA’s 2022 FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup team: goalkeeper Valentina Amaral, defenders Ella Emri, Savannah King and Gisele Thompson, midfielder Lauren Martinho and forward Onyeka Gamero. All saw significant action during the World Cup in India.
• Midfielder Shae Harvey was a part of the squad that won the 2022 Concacaf Women’s U-17 Championship in the Dominican Republic, a tournament in which she scored four goals, but she did not make the World Cup squad later that year.
• In that U-17 qualifying tournament, Martinho scored in the 2-1 victory against Mexico in the championship game, one of her four goals in the tournament. Gamero had five goals during U-17 World Cup Qualifying, including a tally in the 3-0 semifinal victory vs. Canada.
• Six players on the roster were a part of the U.S. team that won the 2018 Concacaf Girls’ U-15 Championship that was played in Bradenton, Fla. Those players are Maggie Cagle, Sofia Cook, Elise Evans, Kat Rader, Gisele Thompson and Teagan Wy. That team also featured current NWSL players in Olivia Moultrie (Portland Thorns FC), Alyssa Thompson (Angel City FC) and Jaedyn Shaw (San Diego Wave FC).
• Those three NWSL players are all age-eligible for this roster but were unavailable for this event. All three played in the 2022 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Costa Rica and all three have scored in the NWSL this season.
• Defender Gisele Thompson is the younger sister of Alyssa Thompson, who was the top pick in the 2023 NWSL Draft by Angel City FC and has been starting for the club, scoring three goals so far this season as an 18-year-old rookie. Gisele was also a part of the squad that won the 2022 Concacaf Women’s U-17 Championship.
• Forward Maggie Cagle, who attends the University of Virginia, is the daughter of the former Kelly Walbert, a former professional player in the WUSA who played collegiately at Duke. Cagle’s mom is a former college head and assistant coach who earned one cap with the U.S. Women’s National Team, appearing vs. Trinidad & Tobago in 1994.
• Two players on the roster were named Freshman of the Year for their respective college conferences: Kat Rader in the ACC for Duke and Elise Evans in the Pac-12 for Stanford. In addition, UCLA midfielders Sofia Cook and Ally Lemos made the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team while Cagle, Tessa Dellarose (UNC), Leah Klenke (Notre Dame), Maddie Dahlien (UNC) and Jill Flammia (Virginia) all made the ACC All-Freshman Team.
• Three players from the U.S. team that won the 2020 Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship have earned full U.S. Women’s National Team caps: defender Naomi Girma plus forwards Sophia Smith and Trinity Rodman.

USA VS. CANADA:

• This will be the seventh meeting between the USA and Canada at the Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship but the first in group play. Five previous meetings have been in the championship game and in the 2020 tournament, the teams met in the quarterfinals, a 4-0 win for the USA.
• The USA holds a 5W-2L-0T record against Canada in this tournament with one loss coming in the title game in 2004 (2-1) and the other in the title game in 2008 (1-0).
• The USA defeated Canada in championship games in 2006 (3-2), in 2012 (2-1) and in 2015 (1-0), when current USWNT player Ashley Sanchez scored the game-winner. The teams did not meet in the 2022 World Cup qualifying tournament.
• Like all the teams in this competition – there are 60 players in the tournament who play for schools or clubs in the USA – Canada has a few U.S.-based players. Goalkeeper Coralie Lallier is at the University of Alabama, two players – defender Ella McBride and forward Thaea Mouratidis – play at Providence College and defender Sophie Murdock plays for top Bay Area club MVLA. Midfielder Olivia Smith recently played at Penn State University.
• Amanda Allen is the only professional on Canada’s roster. She plays for the Orlando Pride in the NWSL and has seen action in one league match and one Challenge Cup match so far this season.
• Canada has four players born in 2004, 11 born in 2005, four born in 2006 and two born in 2007.
• Canada’s nine goals in this tournament have been scored by Olivia Smith (3), Annabelle Chukwu (2), Renee Watson, Zoe Markesini and Amanda Allen, plus one own goal.
• To earn its place in the 2023 Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship proper, Canada ran roughshod over the competition in Group A of pre-qualifying, which was played in the DR. Canada scored 40 goals against El Salvador, Cuba, Martinique and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, while allowing just one, to El Salvador in a 9-1 victory.
• Olivia Smith led Canada at pre-qualifying with eight goals. Kayla Briggs and Annabelle Chukwu scored five each while Florianne Jourde and Nyah Rose each had four.