January 8, 2004

Utahn Joins Adu

Less than a month after a quarterfinal run in the 2003 World Youth Championship, US U-20 National Team Head Coach Thomas Rongen got back to work with a new crop of players to begin preparations for qualifying for the 2005 U-20 World Cup.

Sergio Flores, who hails from Smithfield, Utah, has been called into camp for the Under-20 US National Team. Flores is a product of the Utah Youth Soccer Association and Olympic Development Program and he played for club teams affiliated with UYSA. He is now playing professionally for Chacarita Juniors in Argentina.

Freddy Adu is the lone holdover from the U-20 US National Team who played in the UAE. Arturo Alvarez, who was injured and replaced by Adu at the last minute, is also on the squad. The nucleus of the team consists of players from the U-17 team that reached the quarterfinals of the 2003 Under-17 World Cup.

US U-20 National Team Roster:

Goalkeepers -- Andrew Kartunen (Stanford Univ.), Phil Marfuggi (Clemson Univ.). Defenders -- Greg Dalby (Notre Dame Univ.), Hunter Freeman (Univ. of Virginia), Chris Germani (FC Delco), Brandon Owens (UCLA), Pat Phelan (Oakwood SC, Conn.), Julian Valentin (U.S. U-17 residency program). Midfielders -- Craig Capano (Chicago Fire), Steven Curfman (Wake Forest Univ.), John DiRaimondo (Saint Louis Univ.), Guillermo Gonzalez (Los Angeles Galaxy), Brian Grazier (Saint Louis Univ.), Will Hall (Univ. of Virginia), Daniel Szetela (U.S. U-17 residency program). Forwards -- Freddy Adu (MLS), Arturo Alvarez (San Jose Earthquakes), Corey Ashe (Univ. of North Carolina), Chad Barrett (UCLA), Sergio Flores (Chacarita Juniors, Argentina), Nate Norman (Notre Dame Univ.), Jacob Peterson (Indiana Univ.), Jamie Watson (Univ. of North Carolina).