It’s been an amazing week for Sounders Academy prospects Alfonso Ocampo-Chavez and Josh Atencio.
Within hours of leading the young Sounders to their second consecutive Youdan Trophy title, U.S. Soccer announced that both players had been called in to represent the U.S. U-15 Youth National Team at the upcoming CONCACAF Championships. This is the second call-up for the pair in the last three months, with Ocampo-Chavez and Atencio leading the Stars and Stripes to victory at the Torneo Delle Nazioni in Gradisca d’Isonzo, Italy, back in May.
Head Coach Dan Van Den Bergh unveiled his 18-man roster for the tournament, which will run from August 13-19 at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. The young Yanks have been placed in Group B with Canada (9:00 a.m. ET on August 13), Trinidad & Tobago (11:00 a.m. ET on August 14) and Costa Rica (9:00 a.m. ET on August 16), while Mexico, Honduras, Jamaica and Panama have been drawn into Group A.
If the U.S. manages to finish first or second in their group, they’ll advance straight to the semifinals on August 17, with the tournament final taking place on August 19.
Both Sounders Academy players have been in excellent form for both club and country of late. Atencio appeared in every match and earned two starts at the Tornea Delle Nazioni, while Ocampo-Chavez bagged three goals and three assists, but missed the final through injury. The pair also led to the Sounders U-14s to a third-place finish at the Manchester City Cup, the U-16s to a quarterfinal berth in the USSDA national playoffs and won the prestigious Youdan Trophy in Sheffield, England, this week. Ocampo-Chavez was awarded the Golden Boot as the Youdan Trophy’s top-scorer with eight goals and two assists from five matches.
The full roster for the CONCACAF Championships can be found here.
