Mass. Sisters on U17 Squad

Team Gearing Up for First U17 Women's World Cup

October 15, 2008

The Mewis sisters have combined for 13 international goals out of the midfield. Kristen, a flank midfielder, is a year older but three inches shorter than Samantha, who patrols the center of the pitch.

The historic tournament, which will mark the first-ever world championship for women at the U-17 level, will feature 16 nations divided into four groups of four teams each. It will be held Oct. 28-Nov. 16 in New Zealand.

The U.S. team was drawn into Group C, which also features Japan, France and Paraguay. The U.S. will play its first two group matches at Waikato Stadium in Hamilton, opening the tournament on Oct. 30 against Japan before facing Paraguay on Nov. 2. The U.S. moves to Auckland for the third group match on Nov. 5, facing France at North Harbour Stadium.

�I�m really thrilled that we are at this point, making final selections,� said coach Kazbek Tambi, who coached the core of this team during 2007 with the U.S. U-16 Girls� National Team before moving with them to the U-17 level. �I�ve looked at hundreds of players over the past couple of years and I think it�s been a fair and thorough process. The support given by U.S. Soccer has been excellent and I�ve had more than enough camps to evaluate players. There were several players that were just outside this group who could have made the final roster so it was difficult to make those last few choices, but it�s great to have our World Cup team set.�

The U.S. U-17s are currently finishing up their final training camp before departing for New Zealand. The team has been encamped in New Jersey since Oct. 9, putting the final touches on its World Cup preparations.

�Now we can just focus on the team concept, rather than having the players worry about making the squad,� said Tambi. �The focus becomes the group before the individual, which is very important if we are going to have success at this World Cup.�

US UNDER-17 WOMEN�S NATIONAL TEAM ROSTER

GOALKEEPERS (3): Alexa Gaul (Naperville, Ill.), Jennifer Pettigrew (Kearney, N.J.), Taylor Vancil (South Elgin, Ill.);

DEFENDERS (6): Amber Brooks (New Hope, Pa.), Cloee Colohan (West Point, Utah), Crystal Dunn (Rockville Center, N.Y.), Alexis Harris (Plano, Texas), Rachel Quon (Lake Forrest, Ill.), Julia Roberts (Fredrick, Md.);

MIDFIELDERS (8): Kate Bennett (Clyde Hill, Wash.), Morgan Brian (St. Simons Island, Ga.), Elizabeth Eddy (Costa Mesa, Calif.), Olivia Klei (Pleasanton, Calif.), Mandy Laddish (Lee�s Summit, Mo.), Kristie Mewis (Hanson, Mass.), Samantha Mewis (Hanson, Mass.), Erika Tymrak (Bradenton, Fla.);

FORWARDS (4): Tani Costa (Honolulu, Hawaii), Vicki DiMartino (Massapequa Park, N.Y.), Samantha Johnson (Palmdale, Calif.), Courtney Verloo (Tualatin, Ore.).

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