NJ/NY Gotham FC midfielder Taryn Torres has been selected for U.S. women’s youth national team duty as the Under-23 squad prepares for two friendlies in Sweden.

Torres and the U.S. will take on India on June 25 before facing the Swedes on June 29.

Torres has started the last three regular season matches for the National Women’s Soccer League team and made four appearances in the Challenge Cup.

She was a 2021 draft pick for the club but opted to play a final year at the University of Virginia. During her collegiate career, she earned All-ACC honors four times. Torres also has experience with the U-20 team at the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

The U-23s is coached by Jené Baclawski, the former long-time technical director of the South Texas Youth Soccer Association and current U.S. Soccer coach educator who also heads U.S. Soccer’s SheBelieves Cup MVP selection committee.

Gotham FC returns to Red Bull Arena to wrap up the regular season series with Alex Morgan and the San Diego Wave on Sunday, June 19 at 4 p.m. ET

The U.S. roster consists of eight current National Women’s Soccer League players, 12 collegiate players and one youth club player in Alyssa Thompson, who plays for a Total Futbol Academy boys’ team in Los Angeles. Thompson, a speedy winger, was a member of the U.S. Under-20 Women’s Youth National Team that won the Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship in the Dominican Republic in March and helped the USA qualify for the 2022 U-20 Women’s World Cup. The 17-year-old Thompson is the only player from that U-20 squad on this roster.

The roster

GOALKEEPERS (2): Shelby Hogan (Portland Thorns FC; Franklin, Mass.), Ruthie Jones (Duke; Charlotte, N.C.)

DEFENDERS (5): Kerry Abello (Orlando Pride; Batavia, Ill.), Megan Bornkamp (Clemson; Mooresville, N.C.), Emily Madril (Florida State; Boise, Idaho), Brianna Martinez (Notre Dame; Albuquerque, N.M.), Kate Wiesner (Penn State; Monrovia, Calif.)

MIDFIELDERS (8): Hannah Bebar (Harvard; Naperville, Ill.), Croix Bethune (USC; Alpharetta, Ga.), Mikayla Cluff (Orlando Pride; Kaysville, Utah), Savannah DeMelo (Racing Louisville FC; Long Beach, Calif.), Sierra Enge (Stanford; Cardiff, Calif.), Jenna Nighswonger (Florida State; Huntington Beach, Calif.), Brianna Pinto (North Carolina Courage; Durham, N.C.), Taryn Torres (NJ/NY Gotham FC; Frisco, Texas)

FORWARDS (6): Messiah Bright (TCU; Dallas, Texas), Ava Cook (Chicago Red Stars; Battle Creek, Mich.), Anna Heilferty (Washington Spirit; Falls Church, Va.), Samantha Meza (UNC; Dallas, Texas), Alexa Spaanstra (Virginia; Brighton, Mich.), Alyssa Thompson (Total Futbol Academy; Studio City, Calif.)

 

 

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Front Row Soccer editor Michael Lewis has covered 13 World Cups (eight men, five women), seven Olympics and 25 MLS Cups. He has written about New York City FC, New York Cosmos, the New York Red Bulls and both U.S. national teams for Newsday and has penned a soccer history column for the Guardian.com. Lewis, who has been honored by the Press Club of Long Island and National Soccer Coaches Association of America, is the former editor of BigAppleSoccer.com. He has written seven books about the beautiful game and has published ALIVE AND KICKING The incredible but true story of the Rochester Lancers. It is available at Amazon.com.