On Friday, U.S. Soccer released their 18-player roster for the upcoming Concacaf Girls’ Under-15 Championship, which runs from August 5th to the 11th. Among the players named to the roster are Mak Whitham, who recently became the youngest player ever signed by an NWSL club, and Carolina Reyna, who is the daughter of two former U.S. internationals, Claudio Reyna and Danielle (Egan) Reyna, as well as the younger sister of current USMNT player Gio Reyna.
The United States will be in the top ‘league’ of the three-tiered competition and will face host Costa Rica, plus Haiti and Jamaica.
TOURNAMENT ROSTER
- GOALKEEPERS (2): Anne Fowler (Chicago FC United; Northfield, Ill.), Ella McNeal (St. Louis Scott Gallagher; Manchester, Mo.)
- DEFENDERS (6): Meila Brewer (Kansas City Athletics; Overland Park, Kan.), Alexandra Han (Solar SC; Dallas, Texas), Bristol Kersh (TopHat SC; Flowery Branch, Ga.), Chloe Miller (Mountain View Los Altos SC; Monte Sereno, Calif.), Taylor Morrell (Virginia Development Academy; Leesburg, Va.), Elena Vera (Davis Legacy SC; Fairfield, Calif.)
- MIDFIELDERS (5): Kendall Conway (Lamorinda SC; Sonoma, Calif.), Mia Corona (Legends FC; Cypress, Calif.), Loradana Paletta (New York City FC; Syosset, N.Y.), Deus Stanislaus (Player Development Academy; Fort Washington, Pa.), Caroline Swann (D’Feeters Kicks SC; Dallas, Texas)
- FORWARDS (5): Maddie DiMaria (St. Louis Scott Gallagher; Fenton, Mo.), Amari Manning (Players Development Academy; Flemington, N.J.), KK Ream (Utah Avalanche; Herriman, Utah), Carolina Reyna (Sting Austin; Austin, Texas), Mak Whitham (Slammers FC HB Koge; Granite Bay, Calif.)
Roster Notes
Fifteen player return from the U-15’s recent European camp, which saw 4:0 and 2:0 victories over their German and Dutch counterparts.
In the first friendly of that camp, forward Deus Stanislaus scored a brace against Germany, with other goals from midfielder Caroline Swann and forward Mak Whitham, who also had an assist. In the match against the Netherlands, forward Felicity Nguyen, who was not included on the tournament roster scored both goals for the USA. No explanation for her absence was given by U.S. Soccer.
The three players on this tournament roster who did not participate in the European camp are defender Alexandra Han, midfielder Loradana Paletta, and forward Amari Manning. Of that trio, only Loradana Paletta has not participated in a U-15 camp this year, though she was called into at least one U-14 ID camp this year, back in early June.
Sixteen of the players were born in 2009. The other two players, Mak Whitham and Loradana Paletta, have birth years of 2010 and 2011, respectively.
Tournament Format and the USA’s Schedule
The tournament consists of three different tiers. The United States, Canada, and Mexico are in the highest tier, League A, which is hosted by Costa Rica, and consists of two groups of four teams:
- Group A: Costa Rica, United States, Haiti, Jamaica
- Group B: Canada, El Salvador, Mexico, Puerto Rico
The top two teams from each group advance to the semifinals, with the winner of each group facing the runner-up of the other group.
The tournament has a ridiculously condensed schedule, as group matches are played on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, with just one day of rest (Wednesday). Then, the semifinals are played on Friday, followed by a rest day and the championship match and 3rd place match on Sunday.
USA Schedule
- Monday, August 5th: Jamaica (kick-off: 1:00 pm Eastern)
- Tuesday, August 6th: Costa Rica (kick-off: 11:00 am Eastern)
- Thursday, August 8th: Haiti (kick-off: 1:00 pm Eastern)
The semifinals are scheduled for 11:00 am and 1:00 pm on Friday, August 9th. The championship is scheduled for 1:00 pm on Sunday, August 11th, with the 3rd place match kicking off at 11:00 am. (All times are Eastern)
All matches should be streamed live on Concacaf Go and Concacaf’s YouTube channel.
Update (5-Aug-2024): It appears that the matches will not be streamed on YouTube, but only through Concacaf Go (https://www.concacaf.com/en/concacaf-go/). Unfortunately, Concacaf Go only shows live streams and not replays, so the only way to watch a match is to view it live. Both U.S. Soccer’s roster announcement as well as Canada’s roster announcement mentioned YouTube as an option.
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Official U.S. Soccer Press Release: Eighteen Players Set to Represent the USA at 2024 Concacaf Girls’ Under-15 Championship in Costa Rica
Concacaf Mini-Site for the Tournament (schedule not yet updated for 2024)
Women's Soccer Express 