Goalkeeper Cori Alexander and midfielder Angie Woznuk will look to lead the U.S. to its eighth straight Nordic Cup title

CHICAGO (ussoccer.com) --- University of Portland soccer stars Cori Alexander and Angie Woznuk will represent the United States at the 2006 Nordic Cup as members of the Under-21 Women’s National Team, announced head coach Jillian Ellis. The Pilots’ duo was named to the 18-player squad that will travel to Norway for the 16th Annual Nordic Cup being held July 16-22 in five small venues in and around Stavanger, Norway.

Held in Northern Europe every summer, the Nordic Cup is the top competition in the world for U-21 women and the focus of the USA’s oldest youth national team during its six-month run-up to the prestigious tournament. The USA has won eight Nordic Cup titles, including a dominating 6-1 championship game win vs. Sweden in Norway in 2001.

Ellis will bring a relatively inexperienced squad to Norway this summer with just four players who have previously played in the Nordic Cup, and just three from last year’s squad, defenders Rachel Buehler and Kendall Fletcher and midfielder Sarah Huffman.

While the unavailability of players currently in preparations for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Championship has affected the depth of the U-21s for the Nordic Cup - including fellow Pilots Stephanie Lopez and Kelsey Davis - Ellis will have Woznuk and defender India Trotter on the team, both of whom have been training with the full WNT in Residency Training Camp this summer.

Buehler and Woznuk are among the most experienced players on the roster, having played in both the 2002 and 2004 FIFA U-19 Women’s World Championship. Buehler had 30 caps for the U-19s and has seven with the U-21s.

Woznuk, who last fall helped lead the University of Portland to an undefeated season and an NCAA title, was one of the stars of the U.S. team that finished third in the 2002 FIFA U-19 Women’s World Championship. She won the Silver Ball as the second most outstanding player and the Bronze Boot as the third leading scorer in the tournament. Both Woznuk and Trotter have one cap with the full Women’s National Team. On last year’s Nordic Cup side, there were eight players with full Women’s National Team caps.

Ellis was able to call up two players from head coach Tim Schulz’s U-20 World Championship roster in goalkeeper Val Henderson and midfielder/forward Danesha Adams. Alexander, who anchored the NCAA champion Pilots in the nets, joins Henderson to form the goalkeeper corps on the roster.

Alexander made her international debut with the U-21s during a three-game tour through Holland and Germany April 29-May 4. She recorded a 3-0 shutout win over the German Women’s Bundesliga club Duisburg and also played one half in a 2-1 win over Seastum, a club in Holland.

The USA will face a tough challenge in Group A, taking on Denmark, Iceland and host Norway. Group B features England, Sweden, Germany and Finland. The top two finishers in each group will cross over to play for the championship on Saturday, July 22, while the two second place finishers will play for third, the third place finishers for 5th and the last place finishers in the groups will vie for 7th place.

The USA opens the tournament against Denmark on Sunday, July 16, in Randaberg, and then faces Iceland on Tuesday, July 18, in Algard. The U.S. will finish first-round play with a clash against Norway on Thursday, July 20, in Sandnes. All four placement matches are set for Saturday, July 22.

The USA has won an amazing eight out of the last nine Nordic Cups, and seven in a row

U.S. U-21 Women’s National Team – 2006 Nordic Cup Roster

GOALKEEPERS (2): Val Henderson (UCLA), Cori Alexander (Portland)

DEFENDERS (5): Rachel Buehler (Stanford), Kendall Fletcher (UNC), Brittany Taylor (Uconn), India Trotter (Florida State), Lauren Wilmoth (UCLA)

MIDFIELDERS (7): Bristyn Davis (UCLA), Sheree Gray (Penn State), Sarah Huffman (Virginia), Noelle Keselica (Virginia), Jennifer Maurer (Boston College), Rebecca Moros (Duke), Angie Woznuk (Portland)

FORWARDS (4): Danesha Adams (UCLA), Amanda Cinalli (Notre Dame), Katie Griffin (Colorado), Tiffany Weimer (Penn State)

2006 Nordic Cup Schedule - Norway - July 16-22, 2006

U.S. Schedule