The United States U14 Girls National Team will gather for a week-long training camp at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California. The 35-player camp will run from September 18th to the 25th and will be led by former U.S. international Michelle French instead of coach Mike Dickey who had to excuse himself due to schedule conflicts.

The pool of players was created from this summer’s U14 Girls National Identification Camp in Portland, Oregon, meaning this is the first bona fide Youth National Team training camp for the participants.

“The national ID camp started in 1999 and was the only event for the U-14s, and over time US Soccer started to have one or two camps for this age group,” explained US Soccer press officer Aaron Heifetz. “The goal for this national team camp is to indentify the top competition and get them started toward the U17 Women’s national team and onward to possibly the full women’s national team.”

With the cycle for the 2012 FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup beginning, the 35 players (1996 birth year) will be eligible to be chosen for the U17 World Cup roster.

“These girls that are going to the camp are all from 1996, and even though the 2012 U17 team players will be from 1995, these girls do have a chance of getting into the team,” said Heifetz. “It should be one of their goals, but some don’t have any idea, so the training camp is a start to educating them on the program.”

The camp has programmed several scrimmages throughout the week. On Monday, the girls will be facing two Southern California club teams, Real So Cal and South Bay Force. Later in the week, the camp will again play two evening scrimmages against ODP teams and will conclude with an intra-squad scrimmage on Friday.

US U14 GNT Training Camp Roster: (courtesy U.S. Soccer)

GOALKEEPERS (4): Kelsey Dossey (Zionsville; Plainfield, Ind.), Casey Murphy (PDA; Bridgewater, N.J.), Alexandra Nicholas (Pleasanton Rage; Pleasanton, Calif.), Abigail Pyne (Black Bear United; Dixmont, Maine)

DEFENDERS (14): Michaela Abam (Albion FC; Sugarland, Texas), Emilia Bladin (Seattle United; Seattle, Wash.), Victoria Bowman (Dallas Sting; Colleyville, Texas), Hannah Coy (Magic Jacks; Boca Raton, Fla.), Schuyler Debree (Match Fit Chelsea; Fair Haven, N.J.), Delaney Fechalos (Atlanta Fire; Suwanee, Ga.), Monica Flores (SDFC Lynx; Livingston, N.J.), Sabrina Flores (SDFC Lynx; Livingston, N.J.), Shelby Fredericks (Massapequa Stars; Babylon, N.Y.), Eva Gordon (Empire United; Syracuse, N.Y.), Chloe Hemmingway (West Coast FC; Irvine, Calif.), Mariah Lee (Washington Premier FC; Covington, Wash.), Annie Mejia (Arsenal FC; Bloomington, Calif.), Meaghan Mulligan (PDA; Freehold, N.J.)

MIDFIELDERS (11): Betsy Brandon (Colorado Rush; Littleton Colorado), Megan Buckingham (Michigan Hawks; Novi, Mich.), Maddie Burdick (Atlanta Fire; Alpharetta, Ga.), Jordan Di Biasi (Colorado Rush; Littleton Colorado), Maddie Huster (Ohio Elite; Cincinnati, Ohio), Hannah Lopiccolo (West Coast FC; Coto de Caza, Calif.), Rilka Noel (Michigan Hawks; West Bloomfield, Mich.), Shannon Patterson (Oregon Rush; Bend, Ore.), Haley Pounds (Challenge SC; Spring, Texas), Josie Thurman (Carmel United; Noblesville, Ind.), Amanda Shorin (PSV Union FC; Palo Alto, Calif.)

FORWARDS (6): Jorian Baucom (Sereno SC; Scottsdale, Ariz.), Sarah Chase (West Coast FC; Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.), Mikaela Harvey (Lonestar SC; Liberty Hill, Texas), Gabriella Kaplan (MVLA Lightning; Emerald Hills, Calif.), Mary Gracin Palmer (CASL Spartan Elite; Clinton, N.C.), Pilar Torres (San Diego Surf; Encinitas, Calif.)