June 25, 2001

From usfieldhockey.com.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Four hundred and twenty of the nation's top young field hockey players will get the chance to showcase their skills for national team selectors when the U.S. Field Hockey Association conducts its National Futures Tournament, June 27-July 1 at the University of Maryland.

The tournament represents the culmination of U.S. Field Hockey's Futures Talent Identification Program where promising athletes receive five months of elite-level training and tactical instruction in preparation for possible future selection to the U.S. National Teams. The top 10% of the program's 4200 athletes are selected to compete at the national tournament based on performances in regional events. The athletes are then placed on regional teams in the Under-16 or Under-19 division.

Through their performances at the National Tournament, athletes may be invited to U.S. Field Hockey's first-level national selection camp, earn opportunities for further skills development in the U.S. Field Hockey's Futures Elite program or be named to this year's AAU Junior Olympic Games team (for athletes 16 and younger). The tournament also provides an evaluation opportunity for collegiate coaches and assists in their efforts to recruit the nation's top field hockey athletes.

Pennsylvania led all states with 89 athletes selected to the tournament, followed by New Jersey with 56, New York, 43, Massachusetts, 36, California, 28, Virginia, 22, and Ohio with 19. Twenty-four states are represented with athletes at the tournament.

Complete rosters for the tournament are available on the U.S. Field Hockey website.

At the National Tournament, teams compete in round-robin pool play (6 games for U16, 7 games for U19) before advancing to crossover matches to determine the Under-16 and Under-19 champions.