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Becky Sauerbrunn, Sophia Smith return to USWNT roster after injury spells
Becky Sauerbrunn is back on the United States women's national team roster after missing out on what would have been her fourth consecutive World Cup appearance due to a foot injury.
The center back and longtime captain is one of 27 players that interim coach Twila Kilgore has called up for a pair of upcoming friendlies against Colombia on Oct. 26 at America First Field in Sandy, Utah, and on Oct. 29 at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego.
Forward Sophia Smith, who recently won the NWSL Golden Boot with 11 goals, is also back in camp after recovering from a knee injury she sustained playing for the Portland Thorns.
This USWNT roster includes many familiar faces, like Alex Morgan, Crystal Dunn and Lindsey Horan, as well as some newer ones, including two uncapped 18-year-olds in forward Jaedyn Shaw and Olivia Moultrie. This is the first senior call-up for Moultrie, and just the second for Shaw, who was called into the September camp. Both played for the U.S. at the 2022 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup.
"I was very impressed and pleased with the focus, energy and dedication of the players to prepare for the two games against South Africa in September, and I'm expecting the same for this camp, even if we'll only have a few training days together," Kilgore said in a statement.
"Once again, this roster is a mix of the players from the World Cup team who are fit to play international minutes, players trying to establish themselves in the environment and players who are taking a next step in their growth through this experience with the senior national team. All of these players are excited for the future and for these two tough tests against Colombia, which is a team we might see in the Olympics next year."
Rose Lavelle, Tierna Davidson and Catarina Macario were not selected for this camp because they are "not ready for international minutes" as they recover from their respective injuries, Kilgore said Wednesday. Lavelle has been nursing a leg injury she's had since before the World Cup. She was technically available for the OL Reign's match on Sunday, but only if the team "desperately needed her" club coach Laura Harvey said after Seattle's 3-0 win over Chicago.
"Rose is making progress," Kilgore said. "She's just not ready for this event."
Davidson, who did not make the World Cup roster but was invited into the USWNT's September camp, was kicked in the face during a match against Racing Louisville on Sept. 30, and is still recovering.
Macario, who tore her ACL more than a year ago, is "integrating at Chelsea, she's just not ready for international minutes yet," Kilgore said. Kilgore added that U.S. Soccer is in "collaborating" with the English club and staying up to date on Macario's health.
This training camp is expected to be the final one before the USWNT has its new head coach in place. U.S. Soccer Sporting Director Matt Crocker told a group of reporters last month that the federation is "confidently on track" to make the hire by December.
The last two USWNT training camp rosters — from September and this one in October — includes every player who was on the World Cup roster that is fit to play, which was a directive from Crocker. Kilgore said she had leeway in picking the rest of the group.
Which means it was Kilgore's decision to include some of these younger players, like Shaw, Moultrie and Mia Fishel, who could be key for the future of the national team.
"It's really important that we create a pathway for them to integrate into the environment and learn from it so that they can [not only] take advantage of their time when they're in the environment, but also when they're in their home markets," Kilgore said.
"Every time we expose the younger players to this team and high quality international soccer, they learn something that then affects their game and allows them to go back in their home markets and work. The idea is to accelerate their development. They're also talented and capable of helping now."
It was also Kilgore who ensured that Sauerbrunn would return to the team now that she's recovered from her foot injury. While another World Cup cycle may be unlikely for the 38-year-old, she can still impact the squad and strive to make the Olympics roster for next summer.
"I think it's really important to remind everybody that Becky would have been on the World Cup roster had she been fully fit for international minutes at that time," Kilgore said. "The quality of play that Becky has shown in her return has been very, very high.
"She has been called into this camp because she continues to be one of the best center backs that we have. She is a leader, she helps this program in every single way, and my expectations for Becky are simply for her to come back into the environment and be herself. And, like every player, continue to prove that she belongs in the environment."
Colombia, led by 18-year-old star Linda Caicedo, was one of the Cinderella teams at this summer's World Cup. Las Cafeteras won Group H after beating two-time champion Germany 2-1 before later losing a heartbreaker to England in the quarterfinal.
Both the USWNT and Colombia have already qualified for the 2024 Olympics in Paris and are using these two friendlies as preparation.
U.S. Women's National Team Roster by Position (Club; Caps/Goals):
GOALKEEPERS (3): Aubrey Kingsbury (Washington Spirit; 1), Casey Murphy (North Carolina Courage; 15), Alyssa Naeher (Chicago Red Stars; 96)
DEFENDERS (9): Alana Cook (OL Reign; 27/1), Crystal Dunn (Portland Thorns FC; 138/24), Emily Fox (North Carolina Courage; 35/1), Naomi Girma (San Diego Wave FC; 22/0), Sofia Huerta (OL Reign; 31/0), Casey Krueger (Chicago Red Stars; 40/0), Becky Sauerbrunn (Portland Thorns FC; 216/0), Emily Sonnett (OL Reign; 79/2), M.A. Vignola (Angel City FC; 1/0)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Sam Coffey (Portland Thorns FC; 4/0), Savannah DeMelo (Racing Louisville FC; 4/0), Lindsey Horan (Olympique Lyon, FRA; 135/29), Olivia Moultrie (Portland Thorns FC; 0/0), Ashley Sanchez (Washington Spirit; 26/3), Andi Sullivan (Washington Spirit; 51/3)
FORWARDS (9): Mia Fishel (Chelsea FC, ENG; 1/0), Ashley Hatch (Washington Spirit; 20/5), Alex Morgan (San Diego Wave FC; 213/121), Midge Purce (NJ/NY Gotham FC; 24/4), Trinity Rodman (Washington Spirit; 24/6), Jaedyn Shaw (San Diego Wave FC; 0/0), Sophia Smith (Portland Thorns FC; 34/14), Alyssa Thompson (Angel City FC; 7/0), Lynn Williams (NJ/NY Gotham FC; 57/17)
Laken Litman covers college football, college basketball and soccer for FOX Sports. She previously wrote for Sports Illustrated, USA Today and The Indianapolis Star. She is the author of "Strong Like a Woman," published in spring 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Follow her on Twitter @LakenLitman.
