Feb. 16, 2002

Four current Notre Dame women’s soccer players recently participated in training and evaluation camps with their respective national team programs. Junior defender Vanessa Pruzinsky and sophomore forward Amy Warner were two of 20 participants at the United States under-21 camp while Irish freshman midfielder Mary Boland (U.S.) and freshman defender/forward Candace Chapman (Canada) trained with their national under-19 programs.

The U.S. under-21 camp featured four days of training in late January at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif., followed by two games south of the border versus Mexico’s full women’s national team. The U.S. squad split a pair of 1-0 games versus Mexico, with former Notre Dame players Monica Gonzalez and Monica Gerardo playing for Mexico.

Pruzinsky and Warner trained and competed under a familiar 4-3-3 system, utilized by the U.S. under-21 head coach and current Santa Clara head coach Jerry Smith, with Pruzinsky playing centrally in the defense while Warner ran at one of the frontrunner positions.

Some of the more noteworthy players at the under-21 camp included Penn State teammates Christie Welsh (forward), Joanna Lohman (midfielder) and Emily Oleksiuk (goalkeeper), plus Washington goalkeeper Hope Solo, UCLA defender Nandi Price, Santa Clara midfielder Devyn Hawkins, Portland midfielder Betsy Barr, Stanford forward Marcia Wallis and North Carolina forward Anne Morrell. Other participants included three more players from Stanford – defenders Ally Marquand and Natalie Spigler and midfielder/forward Marcie Ward – plus Michigan forward Abby Crumpton, Rutgers forward Carli Lloyd, Texas A&M forward Lindsey Johnson and Arizona State defender Amy LePeilbet.

Pruzinsky earlier has participated in U.S. training camps as a 16-year-old and last year with the under-21s. “The camp was a great learning experience and a very competitive environment, with players from all over the country,” said Pruzinsky.

“The games vs. Mexico were very similar to when we played them last spring at Notre Dame. The practices were very intense and the coaches gave you an evaluation at the end, which was very helpful. Things that I’m hoping to work on this spring include communication, agility work and limiting fouls.”

Warner likewise found her first U.S. camp to be a valuable learning experience. “There was a lot of intensity to everything we did and it was interesting to compare out games vs. Mexico to when we played them at Notre Dame,” she said.

“One thing the week did was really make me more appreciative of my teammates and coaches back at Notre Dame. I think that we have some of the best players and coaches in the country and am excited to show that next season. From the evaluation, the things that I’m going to work on this spring include skills on the ball and reading the game.”