Jan. 26, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - UCF men's soccer goalkeeper Sean Johnson (Lilburn, Ga.) was one of 19 players who traveled to Trinidad and Tobago last week with the United States Under-20 Men's National Team. Selected by head coach Thomas Rongen, Johnson and his teammates were preparing for the CONCANAF U-20 Championship, to be held in Macoya, Trinidad and Bacolet, Tobago from March 6-15.
The U.S. spent time on both islands while staying and training in facilities in and around both host cities to get acclimated for the upcoming tournament. Johnson was one of two goalkeepers, along with Brian Perk of UCLA, who made the recent trip, which included a combination of professional, collegiate and youth players. He is one of five keepers in the 2009 U.S. U-20 player pool.
The U.S. Under-20 MNT will open their 2009 World Cup qualifying campaign on Friday, March 6, taking on Jamaica at Dwight Yorke Stadium in Bacolet, Tobago at 7 p.m. local time (6 p.m. ET). The squad will face the winner of a playoff game between Honduras and St. Vincent's & the Grenadines on March 8 at 6 p.m. and round out Group A play on Tuesday, March 10 at 7 p.m. (6 p.m. local).
Should the U.S. advance out of Group A, they will qualify for the U-20 World Cup as one of the region's top four teams. They will also travel to Marvin Lee Stadium in Macoya, Trinidad for the semifinals on March 13 and either the third-place game or final on March 15.
In two seasons with the Knights, Johnson has played in each of the team's 37 games and racked up 191 saves, good for fifth place on the program's all-time list. His 108 saves in 2008 are tied for the third-highest single-season total in UCF history and are the most by a Knight keeper since 1986. Johnson had a goals against average of 1.30.
Johnson, a sophomore who started every game in goal for UCF in 2008, also played on the international level this past summer while competing for the Jamaican National Team.
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