Danielle Etienne will have a busy next couple of months. (Photo courtesy of Fordham SID)
MIAMI, Fla. – Fordham University freshman midfielder Danielle Etienne will have a busy next couple of months for two Haitian national teams. She will participate in the Concacaf Women’s Olympic Qualifying as well as the Concacaf Women’s Under-20 Championship.
Etienne, a Paramus Catholic graduate from Paterson, N.J., is the only U.S. college player to be named to Haiti’s roster.
“I believe we can reach that level,” Etienne told Concacaf.com. “We all have strong individual mindsets, but collectively we’re on the same path. The vibe is very good in camp. We play a 4v4 in training like it is the World Cup. We’re very motivated to play this tournament.”
“We are proud of Dani and her call up to the senior team,” Fordham head coach Jessica Clinton said. “She’s worked hard to put herself in that position to earn a call up and a cap. Dani has also created a new set of Haiti Soccer fans here at Fordham and we can’t wait for her to kick off on January 28th.”
The Olympic qualifying matches begin with Haiti taking on the United States on Jan. 28, followed by Costa Rica on Jan. 31 and Panama on Feb. 3. All matches will take place at BBVA Stadium in Houston, Texas. The other four countries competing are Canada, Mexico, Jamaica, and Saint Kitts and Nevis at H-E-B Park in Edinburg, Texas. The top two teams in each group move on to the knockout phase at Dignity Health Sports Park in Los Angeles, Calif., on Feb. 7th and 9th.
Etienne will follow up and compete in the Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship from Feb. 15 to March 1 in the Dominican Republic. Haiti will participate in Group F against Trinidad, Panama, and the Cayman Islands.
Earlier this season, Etienne took part in the Caribbean Concacaf qualifiers and helped Haiti win Group C and advance to the Olympic Qualifying tournament. In games played at Juan Ramón Loubriel Stadium in Puerto Rico, Haiti beat Suriname, 10-0, where Etienne assisted on two of the goals before coming off the pitch. Haiti then beat Puerto Rico, 2-1.
As a freshman last fall, Etienne appeared in 14 games, starting 13, and contributed to four shutouts. She was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie team.