University of North Carolina Athletics
Williams Named To USMNT U-23 Squad
March 21, 2012 | Men's Soccer
March 21, 2012
CHICAGO - Former North Carolina defender and current Philadelphia Union defender Sheanon Williams was named to the final roster for the U.S. Under-23 Men's National Team on Tuesday. Williams is one of 20 players for the 2012 CONCACAF Men's Olympic Qualifying tournament.
Williams is one of four players among the final 20 to have played in both a U-17 and U-20 World Cup for the United States.
Williams appeared in all 24 games as a freshman in 2008 as he notched a goal and distributed two assists before turning to professional.
The Boston, Mass., native went on trial with Vfl Wolfsburg before signing with the Philadelphia Union in 2010. Williams has appeared in 42 matches with the Union and has found the back of the net one time.
The USMNT was drawn into Group A and will take on Cuba, Canada and El Salvador at LP Field in Nashville, Tenn. over the next week.
The group winner and runner-up will advance to the semifinal round set for March 31 at Kansas City's LIVESTRONG Sporting Park before the final April 2. The two finalists will earn a trip to the 2012 Olympic Tournament in London.
USMNT's 2012 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Schedule
LP Field, Nashville, Tenn.
Group A
March 22 - USA vs. Cuba, 9 p.m. ET
March 24 - USA vs. Canada, 7 p.m. ET
March 26 - USA vs. El Salvador, 9 p.m. ET
Semifinals
LIVESTRONG Sporting Park, Kansas City, Kan.
March 31 - Group B Winner vs. Group A Runner-Up*, 6 p.m. ET
March 31 - Group A Winner vs. Group B Runner-Up*, 9 p.m. ET
April 2 - Championships Game, 8 p.m. ET
* - Should USA finish as Group A runner-up, semifinal games will switch start times.
U.S. U-23 MNT Roster By Position
GOALKEEPERS (2): Bill Hamid (D.C. United; Annandale, Va.), Sean Johnson (Chicago Fire; Lilburn, Ga.)
DEFENDERS (6): Perry Kitchen (D.C. United; Indianapolis, Ind.), Ike Opara (San Jose Earthquakes; Durham, N.C.), Kofi Sarkodie (Houston Dynamo; Huber Heights, Ohio), Zarek Valentin (Montreal Impact; Lancaster, Pa.), Jorge Villafaña (Chivas USA; Anaheim, Calif.), Sheanon Williams (Philadelphia Union; Boston, Mass.)
MIDFIELDERS (6):
Freddy Adu (Philadelphia Union; Potomac, Md.), Joe Corona (Club Tijuana; Chula Vista, Calif.), Mix Diskerud (Gent; Oslo, Norway), Jared Jeffrey (Mainz; Richardson, Texas), Amobi Okugo (Philadelphia Union; Sacramento, Calif.), Michael Stephens (LA Galaxy; Naperville, Ill.)FORWARDS (6): Juan Agudelo (New York Red Bulls; Barnegat, N.J.), Terrence Boyd (Borussia Dortmund; Berlin, Germany), Teal Bunbury (Sporting Kansas City; Prior Lake, Minn.), Joe Gyau (Hoffenheim: Silver Spring, Md.), Brek Shea (FC Dallas; Bryan, Texas), Tony Taylor (Estoril Praia, Jacksonville, Fla.)
