TCU Welcomes U.S. Under-20 National Team To Campus
3/22/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
March 22, 2011
FORT WORTH, Texas - The TCU soccer program hosted the United States' Under-20 Men's National Team at Garvey-Rosenthal Stadium this week. The national squad took over the Horned Frogs' facilities for a week of training, including the fields and Jane Justin Field House.
The U.S. squad set its 20-man roster last week and arrived in Fort Worth Sunday for a week of training before departing for Guatemala City, Guatemala to begin its quest to qualify for the FIFA Under-20 World Cup in Colombia. The U.S. has been drawn into Group B of the CONCACAF Championships and will face Suriname and Panama.
"We have a few players on the team from this area that spoke highly of TCU," U.S. head coach Thomas Rongen said. "It's a great pitch and the treatment that we have received from head coach Dan Abdalla and TCU has been first class. It was very important for us to be able to use all of the facilities and I would say that TCU has been a very gracious host."
"The facilities have been great, almost too good," Rongen said. "We know that when we get to Guatemala, we won't be playing on fields like this. It is in excellent condition. The facility has a nice ambiance, which is important as well. I would say thumbs up for everything from the locker rooms to equipment and the fields. The people have been very accommodating and that is very important to us and to U.S. Soccer."
The team has three players from the Metroplex, ranging from Plano, Grapevine and Dallas. The 20-man roster includes 16 professional players, including eight from Major League Soccer.
The U.S. squad is the second high-profile program to call TCU home this year. The Frogs' also played host to the AFC Champion Pittsburgh Steelers for a week leading up to Super Bowl XLV at Cowboys Stadium on Feb. 6.
TCU soccer continues spring practices and will begin the 2011 season in August.
