National Team Call-Ups:
D.C. United Academy standouts Alex Herrera and Travis Pittman were among the 72 players selected to attend the upcoming U.S. Under 18 National Team training camp, which will take place from December 28 to January 5, 2009 at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California.
"Both Travis and Alex are certainly in that top group of elite players at this age group and deserve the call-up," said United's Director of Youth Development John Maessner. "We know they will represent D.C. United well and we wish them all the best."
Furthermore, Academy goalkeeper Bill Hamid has been called into the U.S. Under-20 National Team that will travel to Madrid, Spain on November 15-23 to play several exhibition matches against several Spanish teams' reserves. The U20 National Team will begin their exhibition campaign on Wednesday, November 19 against Real Madrid, and will then play against Atletico Madrid on Thursday, November 20 and against Rayo Vallecano on Saturday, November 22.
"Bill is a very talented goalkeeper and has experience with Thomas Rongen and the U20 national team," Maessner added. "This is another great opportunity for Bill to show that he is one of the top goalkeepers in the country and [the tour] will be a great experience for him. We are excited for him."
Academy Pre-Season: Both Academy teams were in action this weekend, as they face D.C. United Academy Affiliate Club Freestate. In the first match on Saturday, the Under 16 squad defeated Freestate's U18 team 3-1. The second match was also a victory for the Black-and-Red, as the U18s downed Freestate's U17 team by a 2-1 scoreline.
"We were very happy to bring Freestate, our Affiliate Club, in to play our Academy teams this past weekend at RFK," Maessner said. "It's a great relationship that we have formed with a very good local club. We are excited to such a good relationship with Freestate and look forward to working together to identify and develop the area's most talented players."
The D.C. United Academy will conclude its preparation for the upcoming US Soccer Development Academy season this Sunday when they face another Affiliate Club, D.C. Stoddert at Ft. Stevens Field in Washington DC. The U16s will be in action first at 12 p.m. against D.C. Stoddert's U17 team, followed at 2:30 p.m. by the U18s match against D.C. Stoddert's U19 team.
The Development Academy's season will start in December, when the D.C. United Academy teams travel to Lancaster, Calif. for the Academy Winter Showcase. The teams will face the California Odyssey on Dec. 5, Metro United on Dec. 6 and the Virginia Rush on Dec. 8.
