CHICAGO (Jan. 11, 2008) - The U.S. Under-23 Women's National Team will kick off 2008 with their first training camp from Jan. 12-20 at U.S. Soccer's National Training Center at The Home Depot Center. Head Coach Bill Irwin has named a 24-player roster for the camp.

The U.S. Under-23s will partake in the Nordic Cup this summer, and will look to earn their 10th title at the prestigious tournament.

This is the first ever camp for the U-23s at this age group on the women's national team side.  Formerly the U-21 WNT, the age group changed to U-23 as a result of the Nordic Cup becoming a U-23 competition. As a result, the U.S. U-21s, who dominated the Nordic Cup for the past decade, will become a U-23 squad with no overage players for the summer tournament that brings the USA together with Europe’s top youth teams.

The U-23s serve a valuable purpose giving players on the fringe of the full WNT player pool, some of whom have finished their college soccer, a chance to keep training at a high level in National Team camps and international matches.

During the weeklong camp, the U-23s will play a number of scimmages against local club teams.

Under-23 Women's National Team Roster by Position
GOALKEEPERS (4): Cori Alexander (Portland), Joanna Haig (Louisville), Valerie Henderson (UCLA), Jaimel Johnson (Tennessee) 
DEFENDERS (7): Marisa Abegg (Stanford), Rachel Buehler (Stanford), Carrie Drew (Notre Dame), Nikki Krzysik (Virginia), Kasey Moore (Texas), Brittany Taylor (Connecticut), Elise Weber
MIDFIELDERS (8): Ameera Abdullah (Florida), Yael Averbuch (North Carolina), Stacey Bishop (Florida), Kiki Bosio (Santa Clara), Brittany Klein (Santa Clara), Lindsey Ozimek (UNC-Charlote), Ashley Nick (USC), Meghan Schnur (Connecticut)  
FORWARDS (5): Danesha Adams (UCLA), Ashlee Elliott (Florida), Elizabeth Eng (Connecticut), Kerri Hanks (Notre Dame), Michelle Weissenhofer (Notre Dame)