[CONCACAF UNDER-17 CHAMPIONSHIP] Coach Richie Williams named the 20 players that will represent the USA at the 2013Concacaf U-17 Championship in Panama. Eleven are in their fourth semester at the Under-17 Residency Program in Bradenton, Fla.
The USA is looking to qualify for its 15th straight U-17World Cup, which runs Oct. 17-Nov. 8 in the United Arab Emirates. The four teams that advance to the Concacaf U-17 Championship semifinals qualify the U-17 World Cup.
The U-17s will becaptained by defender Shaquell Moore, who along with fellow defender John Requejo Jr. played in all 24 internationalmatches last year for the U-17s. The leading scorer among the group is forward Rubio Rubin, who scored 11 goals in 22 international games in 2012.
The roster consists of 19 players who are members of the U.S. U-17 Residency Program. The only player not part of the Residency Program is midfielder JoelSonora, who plays for Boca Juniors in Argentina and is the son of three-time MLS All-Star Diego Sonora. Defender Justen Glad joined the Residency Programfor the first time for the 2013 Spring Semester.
The U-17s open qualifying against Haiti Sunday at Estadio Rommel Fernandez. The game kicks off at 6:30 p.m. ET (TV: Fox Soccer, live).They then face Guatemala on April 11 (6:30 p.m. ET kickoff; 7 p.m. ET coverage on Fox Soccer).
U.S. U-17 Men’s Roster:
GOALKEEPERS (2): Jeff Caldwell (North Carolina Fusion; Todd, N.C.), Evan Louro (New York Red Bulls; South River, N.J.)
DEFENDERS (6): ConorDonovan (NC Alliance; Fuquay Varina, N.C.), Justen Glad (Real Salt Lake AZ; Tucson, Ariz.), Shaquell Moore (Unattached; Powder Springs, Ga.), Tommy Redding (FC America Premier; Oviedo, Fla.), JohnRequejo Jr. (Real So Cal; Carpinteria, Calif.), Peter Schropp (Omaha FC; Omaha, Neb.)
MIDFIELDERS (7): Corey Baird (San Diego Surf; Escondido, Calif.),Junior Flores (Unattached; Manassas Park, Va.), Angel Heredia (San Jose Earthquakes; San Jose, Calif.), Christopher Lema (New York Red Bulls; Ridgefield, N.J.), Elijah Martin (Unattached; Fresno,Calif.), Joel Sonora (Boca Juniors; Buenos Aires, Argentina), Tyler Turner (South Central Premier; West Haven, Conn.)
FORWARDS (5): Mukwelle Akale(Minnesota Thunder; Minneapolis, Minn.), Sebastian Elney (Boca United; Lake Worth, Fla.), Rubio Rubin (Unattached; Beaverton, Ore.), Ahinga Selemani (CSA Wolves; Ann Arbor, Mich.), Alan Winn (SolarChelsea FC; Garland, Texas)