The Canadian Soccer Association (CSA) announced today that Vancouver Whitecaps FC defender Katherine Caverly, midfielder Nicole Setterlund, and striker Abigail Raymer have all been called up to Canada's U-17 women's national team for a January training camp in Toronto, Ontario.
All three players are members of the Whitecaps U-17/U-18 Prospects full-time program. Raymer and Setterlund took part in last October's U-17 camp in Laval, Quebec, while this is Caverly's first call-up to the U-17 national team. The trio are part of a 24-player squad that are preparing for the 2010 CONCACAF Women's Under-17 Championship in Costa Rica. This March, Canada will play in Group A against Jamaica, Mexico, and Panama, with the tournament acting as the qualifier for this September's FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup in Trinidad & Tobago. In 2008, Canada reached the quarterfinals of the inaugural FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in New Zealand.
The camp, which began Saturday and runs until next Sunday, January 17, includes three friendly matches versus local clubs. The U-17's played the CSA's National Training Centre (Ontario region) team on Sunday, and will face the University of Toronto women's team on Wednesday before taking on the Ontario U-16 boys provincial team next Saturday, January 16.
Caverly, 16, joins the Canadian U-17's after moving into the Prospects full-time program last September. Known for being a very quick and attack-minded left fullback, the native of Coquitlam, BC, appeared for the U-15 and U-16 Whitecaps Prospects teams, while she was also a standout with Coquitlam Metro-Ford Soccer Club. A naturally left-footed player, Caverly was also part of the British Columbia provincial team program and the CSA's National Training Centre (British Columbia region) program from the U-13 to U-16 levels.
Recently named Canadian U-17 Women's Player of the Year for 2009, Raymer returns to the U-17 squad after taking part in the October training camp. Also in her first year with the Prospects, the native of Victoria, BC, was first invited to the Whitecaps full-time program in 2008, but elected to stay on Vancouver Island, where she played last season for Gordon Head Gold in the Premier Division of the Lower Island Women's Soccer Association. Having just turned 17 last Tuesday, Raymer currently lives and attends school in South Surrey, BC, as part of the Prospects full-time program.
Setterlund, 16, had a memorable 2009 season with the Whitecaps Prospects Women's team. The native of Surrey, BC, helped Jesse Symons' side finish as runners-up in the Pacific Coast Soccer League (PCSL) Premier Division regular season before the team won the PCSL's Dave Fryatt Challenge Cup in the playoffs. The midfielder then helped the squad to a runners-up finish at the prestigious Surf Cup youth tournament in San Diego, California, in early August. As a member of Team BC, Setterlund made the all-star starting XI and finished third in Most Valuable Player voting after helping British Columbia to a gold-medal finish in the women's soccer competition at the 2009 Canada Games in Prince Edward Island.
Vancouver Whitecaps FC Prospects is a 10‐month program that provides young elite players with the opportunity to train and develop in a high performance environment under the guidance of the Whitecaps professional coaching staff. Fully integrated with the BC Soccer Player Development Pathway, Whitecaps Prospects is comprised of two streams (full-time and part-time programs) that are delivered in two phases from October to the end of July each year.
