TOLUCA, Mexico – Penn State women's soccer alumna and U.S. Youth National Team U17 Head Coach Katie Schoepfer, as well as 2024 signee Katie Scott begin play at the CONCACAF Women's U-17 Championship Friday afternoon at the Federación Mexicana de Fútbol Asociación A.C. complex in Mexico.
Schoepfer, a native of Waterford, Connecticut, is a 2008 graduate of the Penn State women's soccer program and boasts an extensive resume at every level of the game. During her time in the Blue & White, Schoepfer was a two-time All-American and two-time All-Big Ten First Team selection, amassing 90 career points on 35 goals and 20 assists. Schoepfer was responsible for 13 match-winning goals in her Nittany Lion career, helping lead PSU to a quartet of Big Ten Championships in the process. She is the first-ever U.S. head coach for the U17 age group to have played in a women's professional league in the United States, appearing in both the WPSL and NWSL in a stretch from 2009 to 2016. Before taking over the helm of the U17 program, Schoepfer coached the USYNT U15 roster to a title at the 2022 CONCACAF Girls' U-15 Championship.
One of the most highly decorated prospects in recent memory for the Nittany Lions, Scott signed with PSU in the November signing period and will join the Blue & White on campus this fall. Scott boasts prior experience in the U.S. Women's Youth National Team organization, appearing on the U15 and U16 USYNT rosters. She was an instrumental contributor to Team USA's U15 CONCACAF Championship title during her season with the team and helped lead the U16 squad to the French Mondial World Cup title during her stint with the organization. The Fairview, Pennsylvania, native maintains the No. 26 ranking in the nation according to TopDrawerSoccer, making her one of four Penn State signees in the TDS Top 100 entering next season.
The biennial CONCACAF Women's U-17 Championship features eight teams in a pair of four-team groups playing in a round-robin format. The nations that finish in the top two in each group face off in the tournament semifinals, with the two winners of those semifinal matches earning the federation's bids to the 2024 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup in the Dominican Republic later this year. All of America's matches will be broadcast in English on FS2 and the FOX Sports App with corresponding authentication. Fans can also follow along with all the action from Toluca by visiting USsoccer.com as well as the USYNT social media channels on Facebook, Instagram and X.
The United States gets play started in Group B on Friday, February 2, with a fixture against Panama. The Red, White & Blue continue group competition on Sunday, February 4 against Puerto Rico, and return to the pitch once again against Canada on Tuesday, February 6. Semifinal action gets underway on Friday, February 9, with the third-place and championship matches scheduled for Sunday, February 11.
FOLLOW THE NITTANY LIONS
Visit GoPSUSports.com for more information on Penn State women's soccer. Fans can keep up to date with the Nittany Lion women's soccer team on X and Instagram @PennStateWSOC, in addition to the team's Facebook page at /PSUWomensSoccer.
The 30th Season of Penn State women's soccer is presented by the Smeal College of Business.
