Two Olympians, nine Nordic Cup champions among the 25 players

A trio from the defending national champion North Carolina Tar Heels, including two players on the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team, highlight the 25 players named to the second preseason watch list for the Missouri Athletic Club’s Hermann Trophy. The list was compiled by a committee of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, the official selection body for the MAC’s Hermann Trophy.

The three Tar Heels include junior forward Lindsay Tarpley (Kalamazoo, Mich.), a finalist for the award last year, and sophomore forward Heather O’Reilly (East Brunswick, N.J.), who will compete with the U.S. Olympic Team at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. They are joined by teammate Lori Chalupny (St. Louis, Mo.), a junior midfielder.

Other schools with multiple representations include Notre Dame, Portland, Texas and Virginia. The Irish offer a pair of Canadians in senior defender Candace Chapman (Ajax, Ont.) and Melissa Tancredi (Ancaster, Ont.). Chapman was on the 2003 watch list but suffered a preseason knee injury that sidelined her for the year, while Tancredi was included on the list of 15 semifinalists last fall.

Portland welcomes back Christine Sinclair (Burnaby, B.C.), a junior forward who scored the goal that gave the Pilots their first NCAA title in 2002, and junior midfielder Lindsey Huie (Mission Viejo, Calif.). Sinclair sat out the 2003 season to play for Canada in the Women’s World Cup. The Texas front line of senior Kelly McDonald (Littleton, Colo.) and junior Kelly Wilson (Odessa, Texas) make for a potent Longhorn attack. Virginia placed junior midfielder Kelly Hammond (Bowie, Md.) and sophomore defender Becky Sauerbrunn (St. Louis, Mo.) on the list. Both veterans of the McDonald’s All-American High School Soccer Games, Hammond was the Most Valuable Player of the first McDonald’s game in 2002.

Nine of the players were part of the U.S. Under-21 National Team that recently gave the United States its sixth consecutive Nordic Cup title. They were Chalupny, Huie, Wilson, Nicole Barnhart (Gilbertsville, Pa./Stanford), Keely Dowling (Carmel, Ind./Tennessee), Natasha Kai (Kahuku, Hawaii/Hawaii), Carli Lloyd (Delran, N.J./Rutgers), Julianne Sitch (Oswego, Ill./DePaul) and Kati Jo Spisak (Manchester, Mo./Texas A&M).

The 25 players are considered to be among the top players entering the 2004 college season and are the ones to watch for outstanding play this fall. A list of 15 semifinalists will be announced in November, with three finalists selected in early December. The winner will be announced at a dinner at the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis, Mo., on Friday, Jan. 7, 2005.

Women's 2004 MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List
Player, Position, Class, School, Hometown
Leisha Alcia, G, Sr.:, Illinois, Mississauga, Ont., Canada
Nicole Barnhart, G, Sr., Stanford, Gilbertsville, Pa.
Lori Chalupny, M, Jr., North Carolina, St. Louis, Mo.
Candace Chapman, D, Sr., Notre Dame, Ajax, Ont., Canada
Keeley Dowling , D, Sr., Tennessee, Carmel, Ind.
Stephanie Freeman, M, Sr., Florida, Clearwater, Fla.
Leah Gallegos, F, Jr., Florida State, Los Angeles, Calif.
Kristin Graczyk, F, Sr., Connecticut, Albuquerque, N.M.
Kelly Hammond, M, Jr., Virginia, Bowie, Md.
Lindsey Huie , M, Jr., Portland, Mission Viejo, Calif.
Natasha Kai, F, Sr., Hawaii, Kahuku, Hawaii
Carli Lloyd, M, Sr., Rutgers, Delran, N.J.
Kelly McDonald, F, Sr., Texas, Littleton, Colo.
Iris Mora, F, Jr., UCLA, Cancun, Mexico
Heather O’Reilly, F, So., North Carolina, East Brunswick, N.J.
Leslie Osborne, M, Sr., Santa Clara, Menomonee Falls, Wis.
Becky Sauerbrunn, D, So., Virginia, St. Louis, Mo.
Christine Sinclair, F, Jr., Portland, Burnaby, B.C., Canada
Julianne Sitch, M, Jr., DePaul, Oswego, Ill.
Caroline Smith, F, Jr., Kansas, Edina, Minn.
Kati Jo Spisak, G, Jr., Texas A&M, Manchester, Mo.
Melissa Tancredi, D, Sr., Notre Dame, Ancaster, Ont., Canada
Lindsay Tarpley, F, Jr., North Carolina, Kalamazoo, Mich.
Tiffany Weimer , F, Jr., Penn State, North Haven, Conn.
Kelly Wilson, F, Jr., Texas, Odessa, Texas

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