Woznuk, Enyeart Called to U.S. Training Camp

The camp is basically the beginning of the run to the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

Angie Woznuk and Michelle Enyeart Photo courtesy: University of Portland Athletics

PORTLAND, Ore. - The U.S. Women’s National Team will hold its last training camp of 2007, and first under new head coach Pia Sundhage, from Dec. 8-12 at The Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif.

Among the 24 invitees are University of Portland players Angie Woznuk and Michelle Enyeart. They are two of seven collegians partaking in the camp. Stephanie Lopez will not be among the group as she prepares for her wedding on Dec. 16.

Woznuk was the 2007 West Coast Conference Player of the Year and finished the season with nine goals and seven assist. She capped her career No. 6 on the school assists charts (34) and No. 13 in total points (72).

Enyeart led the Pilots in scoring for the second straight season with 39 points (12g, 15a). Her 15 assists are second on the UP single-season charts. The 2006 WCC Freshman of the Year, Enyeart earned All-WCC First Team honors for the second straight season. Through two years, Enyeart is already tied for 10th in career scoring with 77 points.

The mini-camp is designed to give Sundhage a quick look at the core of the U.S. team, plus a handful of young players just coming off the college season, before the squad regroups in early January to prepare for the Four Nations Tournament in China.

The camp is basically the beginning of the run to the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, with the USA preparing for the CONCACAF Women’s Olympic Final Round qualifying tournament, being held April 2-13 in Chihuahua, Mexico. Two countries from the six-team tournament will advance to China.

“It’s a short camp, but it will be valuable time spent together as a team and a unique moment for me to have a chance to work with the best players in the United States for the first time,” said Sundhage. “It will give us the chance to get to know them as players a little bit more, they’ll get the chance to learn my style and I’ll also get the chance to get to know them off the field. It will be a good start to something new.”

The mini-camp roster features 16 players from the 2007 U.S. Women’s World Cup Team, along with seven players who recently finished their collegiate seasons. Defender Heather Mitts has regained her fitness and makes a return to the squad after suffering an ACL tear on May 12, 2007, which required surgery and caused her to miss out on the Women’s World Cup in China.

Of the seven players coming in from the college ranks, all have considerable youth National Team experience, with five (Yael Averbuch, Rachel Buehler, Tobin Heath, Casey Nogueira and Woznuk) having represented the USA at a FIFA youth world championship while the other two (Enyeart and Nikki Washington) are in the running for a spot on the U.S. U-20 team that will attempt to qualify for the 2008 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.

Of the seven collegians, four come from the University of North Carolina, two from the University of Portland and one from Stanford. Buehler and Woznuk, both of whom have trained with the full National Team during Residency Training Camps, are the only two seniors, having finished their college eligibility with their school’s runs in the NCAA playoffs.

Source: UP Athletics

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