Valentina Amaral Selected for U20 USWNT

Published on May 9, 2023

Valentina Amaral from FKK's 04/05 Krush ECNL team has been selected as a goalkeeper for the U20 US Women's Youth National Team. Valentina will be one of three goalkeepers on a roster of 21 players. She will represent the USA at the 2023 Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship, set for May 24-June 3 in the Dominican Republic.

Valentina will be graduating from Oviedo High School and attending Wake Forest University.

The U-20s kick off Group A play against Panama on Wednesday, May 24 (7 p.m. ET on FS1), face Jamaica on Friday, May 26 (6 p.m. ET on FS2) and finish the group stage vs. Canada on Sunday, May 28 (6 p.m. ET on FS2).

Before heading to the Dominican Republic, the team will train in Florida for a week, beginning on May 14.

Read the full press release below

View CONCACAF Article →

View 2023 Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship Schedule →

///////////////////////////

KEVINS NAMES USA ROSTER FOR 2023 CONCACAF WOMEN’S UNDER-20 CHAMPIONSHIP IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

Three Teams Will Qualify to 2024 FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup;

U-20 WYNT Will Face Panama, Jamaica and Canada in Group A Play

CHICAGO (May 9, 2023) – U.S. Under-20 Women’s Youth National Team head coach Tracey Kevins has selected a 21-player roster to represent the USA at the 2023 Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship, set for May 24-June 3 in the Dominican Republic.

The USA will take aim at one of three berths to the 2024 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup (for which a host has yet to be named) and a record eighth Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship after dominant runs to the confederation crown in 2020 and 2022 during tournaments also played in the DR.

“Whenever a young team is playing for a World Cup spot, it’s a chance to learn about competing with high stakes on the line and in a Concacaf tournament format,” said Kevins. “Putting players in positions where they are challenged, mentally and physically, is how they grow. We’re looking forward to continuing to develop our style of play with the goal of being Concacaf champions again.”

Players born on or after Jan. 1, 2004, are age-eligible for the 2023 Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship. Kevins selected 13 players born in 2004, seven born in 2005 and one, forward Onyeka Gamero, born in 2006.

Before heading to the Dominican Republic, the team will train in Florida for a week, beginning on May 14.

2023 Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship Roster by Position (College or Club; Hometown)

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

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

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

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

TOURNAMENT FORMAT

While the last two Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championships have been contested with 20 nations and required seven matches to win the tournament, the competition has returned to the original eight-team format which features two groups of four teams each. The top two finishers in each group advance to the semifinals and the winners of those two matches will advance to the Championship Match and qualify for the World Cup. The winner of the Third-Place Match will earn Concacaf’s third and final berth in the World Cup.

Additional Notes:

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.

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.
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 while 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 and earned one cap with the U.S. Women’s National Team, appearing vs. Trinidad & Tobago in 1994.
Two players on the roster were their college conference’s Freshman of the Year: 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 (UVA) all made the ACC All-Freshman Team.
Sentnor (5 caps/1 goal), Rader (2/3), Wy (1 cap) and Cook (1 cap) are the only players on the roster with previous U-20 WYNT caps.
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.
There are three players in the U-20 WYNT pool currently playing in the National Women’s Soccer League who are age-eligible for this roster – Olivia Moultrie of Portland Thorns FC, Alyssa Thompson of Angel City FC and Jaedyn Shaw of San Diego Wave FC – but all 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.

www.ussoccer.com