The Under 23s Mix and Match with the Full USWNT: Who's Coming Up the Ranks

There are a couple of big Women's Soccer games I want to get to (USWNT v. Germany, the whole College Cup tourny, etc.), but I’ll start with the USWNT scrimmage earlier this week that mixed the full USWNT squad with the Under 23 squad. I only managed to catch the first game (I had a game of my own to run off to), but I’m glad I caught that at least.

Pia mixed some of her full squad with the Under23s, checking out not only if the U23ers could compete at this level, but how they worked with the full team players. Playing with the best in the world will elevate even the worst soccer-players game, but to really step up and help elevate their game in return is the trick. So seeing if the younger girls could hack it and give back what they were getting made this match really interesting to watch.

The main standouts from the U23 squad were, no surprise, those who also played in the inaugural WPS season. I wish I could name a few more of the non-WPS ladies, but no names or numbers on the jerseys coupled with a setting sun kept me from recognizing the collegiate players I've not seen as much as the WPS players.


For the first half of the game Val Henderson was in goal and you could hear her play that role. Not only a powerful presence in her own box, her voice carries across the field making her a potential presence anywhere on that field. If she saw something she didn’t hesitate to shout it out, even to USWNT veterans like her LA Sol teammate Shannon Boxx. I'm expecting her starting on her new Philly team and, knowing Val, that guarantees some great saves in the course of their season.

Another WPS player that stands out in my memory was Tina DiMartino, who always seems to get a touch on the ball and make something of it. I loved watching her play for FC Gold Pride last season and regret not catching more of her UCLA games. Keep an eye on her in the 2010 Gold Pride season.

Meagan McCray was another standout goalkeeper who stepped in for the second half. Not quite as loud as Henderson, she made some decisive saves and definitely was a strong voice for her backline. She's also an avid Twitterer so if you're into Twitter you should definitely follow her! @MeaganMcCrayGK

With so many fantastic goalkeepers coming out of the college ranks (see the WPS Countdown to 2010 WPS Draft: Experts Rate the Top Goalkeeper Prospects for more info on the most recent crop) it’s no surprise that the WPS average goals-per-game is rather low. If this is the high quality of keepers coming out of college, I imagine the quality keepers already in the league are gearing up to show these noobs how to really play.

Thankfully there is also a huge crop of offensive players graduating into the WPS this year. In this earlier “Top WPS Prospects” WPS article (2010 WPS Draft Just Two Months Away) shows North Carolina’s Tobin Heath (M) topping all but one list followed by UCLA’s Lauren Cheney (F). The other three spots are filled by Stanford’s Kelley O’Hara (F), North Carolina’s “Cup-clutch” Casey Nogueira (F) and rounded out by a variety of goalkeepers or defensive players (including my personal pick on Paul Kennedy from Soccer America’s list, UNC’s defender Whitney Engen). This paints a very offensively minded top draft picture.

I could not help but notice that most of the attacking players in the WPS last season were international players (LA Sol's Marta and Abily, FC Gold Pride's Christine Sinclair, Boston Breaker's Kelly Smith, St. Louis Athletica's Eniola Aluko, etc.) it will be nice to have some more US attackers on the field to help up the goals-per-game average.

With such support for the youth soccer-movement in the US, it’s nice to finally have more outlets for them to grow-into. Playing in the WPS clearly is a fantastic way for collegiate players to further develop their game, probably with an eye on making the full WNT.

I'll be back soon for more posts on the games I mentioned up top and some social media tips and thoughts.

Until next time,

Are You On the Ball?