July 7, 2010
PEARL RIVER, N.Y.--With five days of training camp wrapped up in New York, Penn State women's soccer student-athletes Christine Nairn (Arnold, Md.) and Maya Hayes (Livingston, N.J.) are set for the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Germany later this month. The two Nittany Lions are part of the 21-team roster that looks to capture the United States' second straight U-20 World Cup title.
Nairn, making her second appearance in the U-20 World Cup, and Hayes, making her first appearance, have been key catalysts to the U-20s success in 2010. The duo led the Stars and Stripes to the 2010 CONCACAF title in January with a perfect 5-0 record. The team re-convened several times this spring and used the July 3-7 training camp in Pearl River, N.Y. as part of the team's final preparation for the World Cup taking place in Germany.
The team opens play on July 14 against Ghana in Dresden, Germany. The United States will play its other two Group C games in Dresden on July 17 vs. Switzerland and in Bielefeld against South Korea on July 21. The United States won the 2008 FIFA U-20 World Cup title when Nairn, along with former Nittany Lion, Alyssa Naeher, helped to lead the Americans. Naeher earned the Golden Glove for the best goalkeeper in the tournament, while Nairn earned six caps with four starts and a key assist in the England game on a corner kick, bringing her total of assists to two for the tournament.
For the 2010 World Cup, Nairn will share captaining duties with teammate and 2008 World Cup Golden Boot and Golden Ball winner Sydney Leroux of UCLA. Leroux scored five times in the 2008 edition and has teamed with Nairn on the U-20 squad for three years now. Nairn will wear No. 11 for the tournament and Hayes will don No. 16.
Nairn is the reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Year and a unanimous All-Big Ten First Team selection from 2009. Hayes is one of Penn State's top recruits and will join the team in August for preseason workouts.
The U.S. squad is led by coach Jill Ellis, who has been the coach of the U-20s since 2007. She has also had stints with the full Women's National Team as she served as an assistant coach alongside PSU head coach Erica Walsh at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, leading the U.S. to a gold medal.
Stay up to date with all the Nittany Lions' progress in Germany this July by following GoPSUsports.com. Frequent updates will be made about Nairn's and Hayes' experiences at the World Cup with full game reports.
For more information the Penn State Sport Camps 2010 visit http://www.outreach.psu.edu/psu-sport-camps/
For complete coverage of Penn State women's soccer, please visit http://www.GoPSUsports.com/sports/w-soccer.
Follow Penn State women's soccer on Twitter: @PSUWomensSoccer
--NITTANY LIONS--