Ottawa player joins U-19 squad for games with Italy and Norway
Tuesday, April 22
OTTAWA, ON – Having just returned to college at Princeton from attending a training camp north of Lisbon for the Portuguese U-19 National Team, Ottawa Fury striker Alex Valerio has received the call to travel to Oporto to join the squad in qualifying games for the 2008 UEFA European U-20 Women's Championship.
Portugal is drawn in Qualifying Group 5 with Italy, Norway and Ukraine and will act as host nation for all group games. Matches will played in and around Oporto with Portugal scheduled to play Italy on April 24th, Norway on April 26th and the Ukraine on the 29th of April. Alex will join the squad for the first two games but will return for examinations at Princeton and will be unavailable for the final game against Ukraine. To be sure of advancing to the finals of the event which will take place in France from the 7th to the 19th of July, Portugal will need to win their group. Germany are the reigning U19 European champions.
“We are very proud of Alex’s achievements and congratulate her on making the Portuguese U19 squad. She is a graduate of the Fury Youth Development program and will be an inspiration to all our young players who aspire to play for their country”, commented Fury owner and CEO, John Pugh.
Alex played her early years of soccer with the Gloucester Hornets and Capital United before joining the Ottawa Fury program. She was a member of the U14 Girls Ontario Provincial program and captain of Team Ontario in 2003. She captained her Fury teams at the U15 through U17 age groups and was a member of the 2005 Fury team which won the Super Y-League New England Championship and went on to reach the semi-finals of the SYL North American Finals.
For the past two seasons, Alex has been a member of the Ottawa Fury W-League squad. She participated in the 2006 W-League Championship Final and played in 10 games for the 2007 W-League Regular Season champion squad. In her freshman season at Princeton, Alex played in all 17 games for the Tigers scoring three goals.
Ottawa ink four from Nebraska to W-League Squad
Raber, Caniglia, Powell and White sign for the Fury
Friday, April 18
OTTAWA, ON – The Ottawa Fury have announced the signing of four players from the University of Nebraska to their 2008 W-League squad. Sari Raber, a Canadian international and three US players, Anna Caniglia, Shay Powell and Anna White will join the Fury this summer.
Under head coach John Walker, the Huskers have become perennial Big 12 Conference and national title contenders. Walker, a graduate of Queens University and a former Canadian National Team coach, has an enviable winning percentage among active Division I women’s soccer coaches. Canadian internationals Brittany Timko, Tanya Dennis and Christine Latham are all graduates of the Huskers program.
“Nebraska has traditionally had a very strong Women’s program ably led by highly respected coach John Walker,” said Fury Assistant Head Coach, Dom Oliveri. “All four players will be tremendous additions to our squad. Anna and Sari have good W-League experience and Shay and Anna are two promising up and coming players who come highly recommended by John Walker. We are extremely excited to have all four of these players on our roster for the 2008 W-League season.”
Sari Raber, from Richmond, B.C., has played for Canada at the U19, U20 and full national team levels. The 22 year-old is very versatile, comfortably playing both in midfield or in the back line. A veteran of two World Cup campaigns, Sari has 17 caps at the U19/U20 level and was a member of the 2004 U19 World Cup squad in Thailand and the 2006 U20 squad in Russia. She earned one full National team cap when she played against Japan in 2004. Sari was ever-present with the Huskers last season starting all 19 games, scoring three goals and registering three assists. During last year’s W-League season, Sari played for the champion Vancouver Whitecaps.
Anna Caniglia, from Omaha, Nebraska, a junior, started all 39 games for the Huskers over the past two seasons and has become a leader in the Nebraska defence. Caniglia spent last season playing in the W-League for the champion Vancouver Whitecaps alongside new Fury teammate Sari Raber. Caniglia made 11 appearances for the Whitecaps logging 924 minutes along the way, second-most among defenders on the team. A two-time state champion and regional runner-up in 2006 with the West Omaha Gladiators, Caniglia will be a strong addition to the Fury back line.
Shay Powell, from Dallas, Texas, will be a junior next season with the Huskers. Last season, Powell, the successor to graduating Canadian international Brittany Timko in the Huskers offence, led the team with five goals despite an early season injury. Powell’s goal-scoring exploits go beyond the collegiate level however, having set numerous regional high-school tournament scoring records and leading her high school team in scoring in the 2005 division I playoffs. She comes to the Fury with previous W-League experience, having played in the 2007 season for the Boston Renegades. Powell was a regular with Boston, making 14 appearances, scoring one goal and adding two assists.
Anna White, from Warrensburg, Montana, is entering her sophomore year for the Huskers. White is a threat from the forward position, having set numerous offensive marks for Warrensburg High School including an astounding single-season scoring record of 46 goals. In addition to her scoring prowess, White is a complete midfielder with great stamina and the ability to marshal transition play quickly from defense to offense. She was a four-time state Olympic Development Program team member, and a four-time ODP regional camp participant.
The Fury have put together a tremendous W-League record over the past five seasons. They have qualified for the W-League Championship Finals in four of the last five years losing in the semi-finals in 2003 and 2004 and in the final to New Jersey and Vancouver in 2005 and 2006. In 2005 and 2007, the Fury were the W-League regular season champions. Last season, the club registered an unbeaten 11-0-1 record in regular season play before being defeated, 1-0, by the eventual W-League champion Washington Freedom in the Eastern Conference final. The club has amassed a remarkable 58-5-3 regular season record over the past five seasons.
The Fury open their 2008 W-League campaign with a home game on Saturday, June 7th when they host the Western Massachusetts Pioneers at the University of Ottawa Athletic Complex, kick off 7:00 p.m. For season ticket information visit the Fury web site at www.ottawafury.com.
About The Ottawa Fury
The Ottawa Fury Soccer Club is a member of the United Soccer Leagues (USL); the largest system of national soccer leagues in North America. The Fury are members of the W-League and the Premier Development League (PDL). The Fury also operates youth teams (U14-U17) in the USL Super Y-League and an Academy program for U11- U13 players. For additional information see the Fury website at www.ottawafury.com.
