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| Your Senior Women's National Team |
Among those announced are the ladies representing the Philippines, which earned their way into the finals for the first time ever.
The 23 players announced are as follows:
Inna Palacios (formerly of La Salle)
Claire Lim (UC-Santa Cruz)
Alesa Dolino (OutKast FC)
Krystal De Ramos (Portland State)
Hali Long (formerly of Little Rock)
Morgan Brown (formerly Santa Clara)
Camille Rodriguez (Hiraya FC, formerly of Ateneo)
Marisa Park (formerly of Wake Forest)
Jesse Shugg (Fylkir)
Caitlyn Kreutz (UNLV)
Ryley Bugay (Marquette)
Kearra Bastes-Jones (Crescenta Valley Soccer Club / Bishop Amat HS)
Leah Larot (formerly Sacramento State)
Sara Castaneda (La Salle)
Alexa Diaz (currently an assistant at Pacific Northwest Soccer Club)
Stacey Cavill (Beckenham Angels)
Calah Simarago (formerly of UC-Santa Barbara, currently Fram Ajax Soccer Club)
Tahnai Annis (formerly Florida, currently an assistant at Averett University)
Patrice Impelido (Hiraya FC)
Quinley Quezada (UC-Riverside)
Jessica Miclat (UC-Irvine)
Chalise Baysa (Olympic Soccer Academy)
Sarina Bolden (Loyola Marymount)
This group, alongside Mea Bernal, Eva Madarang, Amy Aquino, Sofia Harrison, and Dylan Patterson, comprise the final training pool that wrapped up its preparations last week. Under the mentorship of Rabah Benlarbi, they played a couple of friendlies in Japan, then made it back in time to witness their male counterparts qualify for their version of the AFC Asian Cup at Rizal Memorial Football Stadium.
Palacios, Dolino, Long, Impelido, and Castaneda were part of the squad that both secured qualification in Tajikistan and participated in the SEA Games last year. Lim was part of the Tajikistan qualifiers, but was not on the SEA Games roster. Rodriguez was part of the SEA Games roster, but had to bow out from attempting to make the Tajikistan qualifiers roster.
The newcomers to this squad are a combination of former national team players as well as recent participants to the identification camps that took place late last year and earlier this year
Annis and Impelido serve as the team's co-captains for this tournament.
Here are some quotes from some of the overseas-based players called up for international duty:
Claire Lim: "It feels amazing and surreal to be a part of this team that is making history for Philippine football," Lim said. "I am beyond excited to play in Jordan, and I can't wait to see how far we'll go!"
Krystal de Ramos: "I'm grateful to have this opportunity again. Having the chance to represent the Philippines again, with the stakes being so high this time, is such an honor. There is no better feeling than playing for something bigger than myself." "The sacrifices I've made in this process have been completely worth it. All the women I've had the chance to play with on this journey have worked so hard and have given up so much. I feel lucky to share this experience with them and am looking forward to Jordan."
Caitlyn Kreutz: "The steps to qualify were far from easy. The trainings were physically exhausting and mentally draining. We had a new coaching staff, so previous experience didn't matter. Every training forced me to push myself to the max to ensure that I would make the team. It was well worth it and I can't wait to try and make my country proud." "It means a lot for me to play for the Philippines because my my mom was born there and her family still lives there. The Filipino culture is different because once you do something for them, everyone you meet you bond with. It's so nice to know that support from strangers is genuine. It's also important to me because the better the Philippines National Team becomes, the better women's soccer becomes at younger levels there. I'm really hoping to make a difference with this team." "I think with having a fairly young team, my experience can help us prepare mentally for what's to come during the season. All the travel and demands are not always easy, but I hope the lesson is that with a great group of girls and a team mentality we can get through anything."
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