Leroux leaves baseball -- and Canada -- behind

• by Soccer America , Jul 8, 2008

[RISING STAR] Before she made a name for herself in soccer, she excelled at baseball. Before she played for the USA, she traveled with Canada to a world championship. Since entering the U.S. club circuit, she has played for clubs in the state of Washington and Arizona. At the age of 18, Sydney Leroux has already had a full sports experience and it should only get more eventful.

Leroux was one of only two high school players (along with Christine Nairn of Maryland's Freestate Shooters) who played on the U.S. under-20 national team that qualified for this fall's Under-20 Women's World Cup in Chile.

In 2002, Leroux was playing centerfield for the British Columbia provincial Little League champion Whalley all-stars, the first girl to play for the Whalley all-stars. Leroux's father, Ray Chadwick, played on season in the majors with the California Angels and her mother, Sandi, played softball for Canada at the 1987 Pan-American Games.

Two years later at the age of 14, Leroux was on the fast track -- the soccer fast track -- and was selected to play for Canada at the Under-19 Women's World Cup in Thailand.

She played two games for Canada in the finals but within two years had switched her allegiance and was playing for the U.S. under-17 national team.

After a stint with Seattle youth soccer power Eastside, Leroux moved to the Phoenix area, where she joined the Sereno White and finished up her schooling at Scottsdale's Horizon High School.

Leroux -- who is headed to UCLA, where she will join former Canada teammate Kara Lang -- started two games and came on as a sub in two other others at the Concacaf under-20 qualifying tournament. The started in the championship, which the Americans lost to Canada, 1-0, Saturday in Puebla, Mexico.

CONCACAF QUALIFYING
GROUP PLAY
June 18 in Puebla
USA 4 Mexico 0. Goals: Enyeart 9, 30, 76, O'Hara 32.
USA -- Naeher, Dallstream, Fowlkes, Marshall, Klingenberg, Edwards, Nogueira, Winters (DiMartino, 72), Enyeart, Morgan (Leroux, 60), O'Hara (Washington, 58).

June 20 in Puebla
USA 9 Cuba 0. Goals: Morgan 2, Washington 33, 43, O'Hara 46, 54, 80, Enyeart 59, 66, Edwards 72.
USA -- Arnold, Dallstream (Leroux, 59), Fountain, Marshall, Klingenberg, Edwards, Wells, DiMartino (Nairn, 46), Morgan (Enyeart, 37), O'Hara, Washington.

June 22 in Puebla
USA 3 Mexico 0. Goals: O'Hara 10, Enyeart 67, Washington 88.
USA -- Naeher, Dallstream, Fowlkes, Marshall, Klingenberg, Edwards, Nogueira, (Nairn, 77), Winters, Leroux (Morgan, 46), O'Hara (Washington, 62), Enyeart.

SEMIFINALS
June 25 in Puebla
USA 4 Costa Rica 0. Goals: Klingenberg 4, Wells 15, O'Hara 20, McDonald 44.
USA -- Naeher, Dallstream, Fountain, Marshall, Klingenberg, Edwards (Nairn, 69), Winters, Wells, Morgan (McDonald, 42), O'Hara (Washington, 46), Enyeart.

FINAL
June 28 in Puebla
Canada 1 USA 0. Goal: Schacher 45+.
USA -- Naeher, Dallstream, Marshall, Fountain, Klingenberg, Winters, DiMartino (Nairn, 65), Nogueira (Edwards, 53), O'Hara, Enyeart, Leroux (McDonald, 46).

U.S. ROSTER
GOALKEEPERS: Kristin Arnold (Texas A&M), Alyssa Naeher (Penn State)
DEFENDERS: Kaley Fountain (Wake Forest), Lauren Fowlkes (Notre Dame), Nikki Marshall (Colorado), Elli Reed (Portland)
MIDFIELDERS: Becky Edwards (Florida State), Meghan Klingenberg (North Carolina), Christine Nairn (Freestate Shooters, Md.), Ingrid Wells (Georgetown), Keelin Winters (Portland)
FORWARDS: Kiersten Dallstream (Washington State), Gina DiMartino (Boston College), Michelle Enyeart (Portland), Sydney Leroux (Sereno, Ariz.), Jessica McDonald (Phoenix College), Alex Morgan (California), Casey Nogueira (North Carolina), Kelley O'Hara (Stanford), Nikki Washington (North Carolina).