For the first time, the United States Under-17 Women’s Youth National Team will have currently enrolled NCAA players when it takes the field at this month’s FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup in the Dominican Republic. That fact alone would make the roster announced by U.S. Soccer on Tuesday (ussoccer.com) groundbreaking. However, more remarkably, the roster selected by head coach Katie Schoepfer also includes current professionals who play for teams in the National Women’s Soccer League. In addition to the full professionals, the roster also includes players who are associated with USL Super League teams via amateur contracts.
The list of players not included is notable as well. Only one of the five forwards who were on the USA’s qualifying roster earlier this year for the Concacaf U-17 Women’s Championship has been named to the USA’s U-17 WWC roster. The four absent players were responsible for 13 of the USA’s 32 goals scored during that tournament.
(Note: All league and collegiate stats are as of Thursday, October 3rd.)
The four NWSL players are all midfielders: Kimmi Ascanio and Melanie Barcenas, both of the San Diego Wave, plus Kennedy Fuller of Angel City FC and Ainsley McCammon of the Seattle Reign. Fuller, who was the Gatorade Girls High School Player of the Year for 2022-23, has played the most regular season minutes of the NWSL players, 966 (18 matches). Barcenas is second with 376 minutes (9 matches). Fuller and Barcenas have both scored a regular season goal this year.
Although four players are rostered on USL Super League teams under academy contracts, only one, center-back Jordyn Hardeman, has played official minutes. Hardeman has three starts for the Dallas Trinity, playing the full ninety for each of those matches. Two additional players, center-back Kiara Gilmore and goalkeeper Evan O’Steen, are on the Dallas Trinity’s roster, which also includes Kennedy Fuller’s younger sister, Kamdyn Fuller. Gilmore, Hardeman, and O’Steen are still associated with their youth clubs according to their profiles on the Dallas Trinity website. The only other USL Super League team represented is the Carolina Ascent, via goalkeeper Molly Vapensky. All four players are still eligible to play NCAA soccer (under NCAA D1 rule 12.2.3.2.1) and have announced their verbal commitments.
The four current collegiate players all graduated a year early. Center-back Trinity Armstrong has already logged over a 1000 minutes for the UNC Tarheels this season (13 matches; played the full 90 in 9 of those matches). At Alabama, forward Maddie Padelski has scored 2 goals and notched 2 assists in her 574 minutes so far this year (12 matches). For the Duke Blue Devils, forward Mary Long has netted 2 goals while playing 237 minutes (8 matches). Outside-back Katie Scott, who plays at Penn State, has contributed 2 assists during her 167 minutes (6 matches).
U-17 USWYNT Roster for the 2024 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup, By Position
Parenthetical format: Club Team; verbal commitment (if applicable), high school graduation year; Hometown
Team hyperlinks go to the player’s roster profile. For NWSL players, the “NWSL” link goes to the player’s stats on NWSLSoccer.com. Verbal commitment links go to a social media post announcing their decision.
Goalkeepers (3):
- Dunlap, Franky “Wicki” (NC Courage Acad.; Virginia, 2026; Raleigh, N.C.)
- O’Steen, Evan (Solar SC / Dallas Trinity – USL SL; Florida State, 2026; Grapevine, Texas)
- Vapensky, Molly (Carolina Ascent – USL SL; Duke, 2025; Evanston, Ill.)
Defenders (6):
- Armstrong, Trinity (UNC; Frisco, Texas)
- Gilmore, Kiara (FC Dallas / Dallas Trinity – USL SL; Wisconsin, 2025; Allen, Texas)
- Hardeman, Jordyn (Solar SC / Dallas Trinity – USL SL; Virginia, 2025; Midlothian, Texas)
- King, Daya (Legends FC; Duke, 2025; Moreno Valley, Calif.)
- Scott, Katie (Penn State; Fairview, Penn.)
- Travers, Jocelyn (FC Bay Area Surf; Duke, 2025; Santa Cruz, Calif.)
Midfielders (7):
- Antonucci, Scottie (Legends FC; n/a, 2026; Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.)
- Ascanio, Kimmi* (San Diego Wave – NWSL; Doral, Fla.)
- Barcenas, Melanie (San Diego Wave – NWSL; San Diego, Calif.)
- Fuller, Kennedy (Angel City FC – NWSL; Southlake, Texas)
- McCammon, Ainsley (Seattle Reign – NWSL; Bedford, Texas)
- Nguyen, Y-Lan (Virginia Dev. Acad.; Stanford, 2025; Fairfax, Va.)
- Rodriguez, Jaiden (San Diego Surf; USC Trojans, 2025; San Diego, Calif.)
Forwards (5):
- Babcock, Anna** (Crossfire Premier SC; Penn State, 2026; Sedro-Woolley, Wash.)
- Johnson, Micayla (Michigan Hawks; Florida State, 2025; Troy, Mich.)
- Long, Mary (Duke; Mission Hills, Kan.)
- Padelski, Maddie (Alabama; Nolensville, Tenn.)
- Powell, Leena (Tudela FC; UCLA, 2026; Culver City, Calif.)
*May also be used as a center forward
**Primarily utilized as an outside-back during the calendar year 2024
U-17 USWYNT Detailed Roster for the 2024 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup
Edits
- 10-Oct-2024: Missing dates of birth added, sourced from FIFA’s official list of players for this tournament (PDF).
- 15-Oct-2024: Some heights have been adjusted, sourced from U.S. Soccer’s media guide for this tournament (link after table).
Caps and goals are for the U-17 WYNT. The player’s age is calculated as of the first day of the U-17 WWC (16-Oct-2024).
PLAYER POS. HEIGHT D.O.B. AGE CAPS GOALS
Dunlap, F. "Wicki" GK 5'10" 11/06/2007 16.94 2 –
O’Steen, Evan GK 5'10" 03/22/2008 16.57 2 –
Vapensky, Molly GK 5'10" 05/17/2007 17.42 6 –
Armstrong, Trinity DF 5'6" 07/25/2007 17.23 4 0
Gilmore, Kiara DF 5'10" 02/11/2007 17.68 8 0
Hardeman, Jordyn DF 5'9" 05/05/2007 17.45 9 1
King, Daya DF 5'6" 10/01/2007 17.04 7 0
Scott, Katie DF 5'3" 06/20/2007 17.33 9 1
Travers, Jocelyn DF 5'5" 10/10/2007 17.02 7 1
Antonucci, Scottie MF 5'3" 01/04/2008 16.78 2 0
Ascanio, Kimmi MF 5'5" 01/21/2008 16.74 9 4
Barcenas, Melanie MF 5'4" 10/30/2007 16.96 14 2
Fuller, Kennedy MF 5'5" 03/09/2007 17.61 8 9
McCammon, Ainsley MF 5'9" 08/16/2007 17.17 5 1
Nguyen, Y-Lan MF 5'3" 06/02/2007 17.37 4 1
Rodriguez, Jaiden MF 5'3" 05/27/2008 16.39 2 0
Babcock, Anna FW 5'5" 10/06/2007 17.03 2 0
Johnson, Micayla FW 5'6" 01/18/2008 16.74 2 1
Long, Mary FW 5'10" 01/24/2007 17.73 2 2
Padelski, Maddie FW 5'5" 09/29/2007 17.05 2 0
Powell, Leena FW 5'6" 10/03/2007 17.04 7 1
Sources for heights and dates of birth: U.S. Soccer media guides. The heights for Babcock, Johnson, and Padelski have been updated to match those listed in U.S. Soccer’s U-17 WWC media guide for the U-17 USWYNT (PDF download). Heights may be different than those reported by FIFA. Caps and goals were reported in the roster announcement press release.
Roster Notes
Expected and Unexpected Absences
Of the five forwards on the roster for Concacaf qualifying earlier this year, only Leena Powell will be going to the Dominican Republic this month.
One of those absences was known well in advance: Kansas City Current forward Alex Pfeiffer suffered a torn ACL at the end of June and is thus unavailable for injury reasons (Current website). Pfeiffer netted six goals in qualifying, which was the most of any forwards on the USA squad. Only midfielder Kennedy Fuller, who won the Golden Boot (Instagram), scored more goals — eight, in total — for the USA.
The most curious absence is Mya Townes, who scored five goals at the Concacaf Women’s Under-17 Championship this year. Townes was called in for the last U-17 camp in August but not the one in July where the USA played two friendlies against Brazil. Townes, who is a Georgia verbal commit (Instagram), was “struggling with injuries” earlier this year (Washington Post), so her exclusion could be due to an injury issue.
Unexpected Versatility
Anna Babcock, forward and outside-back: Prior to this roster, Anna Babcock had been named to three U-17 camps. All three times she was listed as a defender. Babcock has played two U-17 matches: The pair of July friendlies against Brazil. In the first cap, Babcock came on as a substitute for outside-back Jocelyn Travers. Then, in the second match, Babcock started and was replaced by Travers.
Kimmi Ascanio, midfielder and center forward: In the first July friendly against Brazil, Ascanio was utilized as a center forward after coming on as half-time substitute for center forward Mary Long. (full match video – Telemundo Deportes on YouTube)
Verbal Commitments
Twelve of the thirteen players who are not professionals or already playing collegiate soccer have announced their verbal commitments for either the 2025 or 2026 NCAA seasons. The lone exception is midfielder Scottie Antonucci.
Leading the list of destinations is Duke University, which has three commits, all for next season: Goalkeeper Molly Vapensky plus outside-backs Daya King and Jocelyn Travers. The only other schools with multiple commits are also in the Atlantic Coast Conference: Florida State and Virginia. For the Seminoles, forward Micayla Johnson and goalkeeper Evan O’Steen are set to join in 2025 and 2026, respectively. Meanwhile, the Cavaliers are also expecting the services of a goalkeeper, Wicki Dunlap, in 2026, and center-back Jordyn Hardeman a year earlier.
In all, the ACC has eight verbal commits (Duke, 3; Florida State, 2; Stanford, 1; and Virginia, 2). The only other conference with verbal commits is the Big Ten with four (Penn State, UCLA, USC, and Wisconsin).
Summary of NCAA Connections:
- Duke: 4 (1 current + 3 commits)
- Penn State: 2 (1 current +1 commit)
- Florida State: 2
- Virginia: 2
- Alabama: 1 (current)
- Stanford: 1
- UCLA: 1
- UNC: 1 (current)
- USC (Trojans): 1
- Wisconsin: 1
YNT Experience
Three players were only called into their first US youth national team camp during the current calendar year: Forward/outside-back Anna Babcock, goalkeeper Wicki Dunlap, and forward Mary Long.
The 5’10” Long has the least camp experience of any player, attending just two camps, in July and August. However, she made her mark in only her second youth friendly, coming on a substitute in the 67th minute against Brazil and scoring the game winner fifteen minutes later. Two minutes after that Long added an insurance goal. (U.S. Soccer match report)
Over half of the players on the roster have attended at least ten youth national teams events.
For seven players, this will be their third official youth competition together as they have competed in this year’s Concacaf Women’s Under-17 Championship and the 2022 Concacaf Girls’ Under-15 Championship. Those players are goalkeeper Molly Vapensky; defenders Jordyn Hardeman, Daya King, and Katie Scott; plus midfielders Kennedy Fuller and Ainsley McCammon.
Midfielder Melanie Barcenas also has two official Concacaf competitions under her belt: Both are U-17 Championships as she was the youngest player on the roster for the 2022 edition (U.S. Soccer press release), which was hosted by the Domincan Republic.
Six additional players on the roster competed in the Concacaf Women’s Under-17 Championship this year: Goalkeeper Wicki Dunlap; defenders Trinity Armstrong, Kiara Gilmore, and Jocelyn Travers; midfielder Y-Lan Nguyen; and forward Leena Powell. Also, forward Maddie Padelski was a named alternate for the 2024 Championship. For the 2022 U-15 Championship, Powell and Travers were named alternates.
Odds & Ends
An Extra NWSL Connection: Duke forward Mary Long is the daughter of Chris and Angie Long, who are the lead owners of the Kansas City Current (KC Star).
Third Time’s A Charm: This will be the first time that a USA squad has competed in a FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup hosted by a Concacaf country. This year, like the two previous times, Trinidad & Tobago in 2010 and Costa Rica in 2014, Concacaf only had two at-large spots available. In all three qualifying competitions, the semifinals were the decisive match, and both prior times the USA was bested on penalties: In 2010, the successful antagonist was Canada, while in 2014 it was Mexico. This time around, in the semifinals of qualifying, the USA did not face either team as its opposition was Haiti, who was handily defeated 7:1. The other U-17 WWC slot was won by Mexico after defeating Canada in extra time.
No Extra Time: Unlike the U-20 WWC and Concacaf qualifying for this tournament, should a match be level after the end of regulation, no extra time will be played and the teams will proceed directly to a penalty shootout. (Section 14.2 of the tournament regulations)
The Full Field:
- Group A: Dominican Republic, New Zealand, Nigeria, Ecuador
- Group B: Spain, USA, Colombia, Korea Republic
- Group C: Korea DPR, Mexico, England, Kenya
- Group D: Japan, Brazil, Zambia, Poland
Four teams are debutantes: The Dominican Republic, who qualified as host, plus Ecuador, Kenya, and Poland.
The most glaring absence is Germany, who failed to qualify for a U-17 WWC for the first time. Their team did not even qualify for UEFA’s U-17 Championship this year (Wikipedia).
Meanwhile, England is back for just the third time, after appearances in 2008 and 2016.
Familiar Territory: U.S. Soccer’s youth national teams have played multiple Concacaf tournaments in the Dominican Republic, and specifically at the main venue for this year’s FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup, Estadio Olimpico Felix Sanchez. On the women’s side, the Dominican Republic hosted both the Under-17 and under-20 qualifying tournaments in 2022 as well as the Under-20 tournament in 2020. The Dominican Republic also hosted League A of the 2023 Concacaf Boys Under-15 Championship, which included the USA.
No Named Alternates: U.S. Soccer’s press release did not mention any alternates. Nor were any details given about any pre-tournament training camps, whether domestic or in-country. Update: On October 14th, the USYNT x.com account named the three alternates who participated in the team’s pre-tournament camp. The three players were defender Edra Bello, midfielder Riley Cross, and forward Carrie Helfrich.
Lower Age Limit: For the FIFA U-17 WWC, players must be born on/after January 1, 2007, and born on/before December 31, 2009. (Section 24.2 of the tournament regulations) For the second time in a row, no players with a U-15 birth year were selected for the USA’s squad.
USA’s Tournament Schedule
As with the U-20 WWC, FOX Sports and NBC/Telemundo Deportes have the rights to show the tournament’s matches in the USA. All of the USA’s group stage matches will air on FOX Sports 2 with English-language commentary. FOX Sports and NBC/Telemundo will both stream the USA’s matches, but will need to link their cable/satellite/etc. provider account in order to access those streams.
For the full tournament schedule, along with details about how to stream the matches, see U-17 WWC 2024: Full Schedule with USA TV and Streaming Details for the 2024 FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup.
Group Stage
The US U-17 WYNT was drawn into Group B with Spain, Colombia, and the Korea Republic (South Korea). In the last edition of the U-17 WWC, both Spain and Colombia made it to the final, which Spain won 1-nil. Korea Republic also has a final appearance, winning in 2010, but failed to qualify for all but one of the last five editions of this tournament.
USA Group Stage Schedule
- Wednesday, October 16th – 4:00 p.m. EDT — Spain (FOX Sports 2 / Universo)
- Saturday, October 19th – 7:00 p.m. EDT — Colombia (FOX Sports 2 / Universo)
- Tuesday, October 22nd – 4:00 p.m. EDT — Korea Republic (FOX Sports 2)
Knockout Stage
This year’s FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup is set to be both the last biennial edition and the last 16-team edition of the tournament. So, unlike this year’s U-20 WWC, there will be no Round of Sixteen, which means that a team will need to either top their group or finish as the runner-up.
Should the USA advance out of Group B and into the quarterfinals, they will play a team from Group A, which includes the host, Dominican Republic, plus Nigeria, Ecuador, and New Zealand.
If the USA finishes first in Group B, then they will play the second-place team in Group A, which will most likely be either Ecuador or New Zealand. The winner of that match would then likely play Japan in the semifinals.
If the USA finishes as the group runner-up, their opponent would be the top team from Group A, which looks to be Nigeria. The winner of this match would then likely face Korea DPR in the semifinals.
Women's Soccer Express 