The U.S. Women’s Youth National Team (WYNT) announced coach Tracey Kevins’s 20-player roster for the 2022 Concacaf Women’s Under-20 Championship Tuesday, with Portland Thorns’ Oliva Moultrie headlining the team.
Moultrie, the youngest player ever to compete in the NWSL at 15 years old, is the only 2005-born player on the U-20 squad.
The tournament will run from Feb. 25-March 12 in the Dominican Republic, with a 2022 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup berth on the line.
The 2022 Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship features 20 teams, with four squads receiving automatic bids to the Round of 16, while the remaining teams are divided into four groups of four. The top three teams in the four groups will advance to the knock-out rounds, joining the four pre-qualified teams for the single-elimination competition.
In addition to Moultrie, the U-20 WYNT features 17 collegiate players and two youth club players, including Emily Mason and UNC’s Talia DellaPeruta, who led the USA on a run to the 2020 Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship.
Full Roster:
Goalkeeper (2): Mia Justus (Florida State; Lakewood, Ohio), Neeku Purcell (OL Reign Academy; Seattle, Wash.)
Defenders (8): Lauren Flynn (Florida State; Arlington, Va.), Samar Guidry (Virginia; McKinney, Texas), Emily Mason (Rutgers; Flemington, N.J.), Aidan McConnell (Wisconsin; Dexter, Mich.), Ayo Oke (California; Lawrenceville, Ga.), Avery Patterson (UNC; Jacksonville, Fla.), Lilly Reale (UCLA; Hingham, Mass.), Laney Rouse (Virginia, Cary, N.C.)
Midfielders (5): Emily Colton (UNC; Carlsbad, Calif.), Talia DellaPeruta (UNC; Cumming, Ga.), Sally Menti (Santa Clara; Seattle, Wash.), Alexis Missimo (Texas; Southlake, Texas), Olivia Moultrie (Portland Thorns FC; Wilsonville, Ore.)
Forwards (5): Trinity Byars (Texas; Richardson, Texas), Michelle Cooper (Duke; Clarkston, Mich.), Simone Jackson (USC; Redondo Beach, Calif.), Andrea Kitahata (Stanford; Hillsborough, Calif.), Alyssa Thompson (Total Futbol Academy; Studio City, Calif.)