Vineland native Jillian Loyden is headed to the Olympics in London this summer as an alternate, U.S. national women's soccer coach Pia Sundhage announced Sunday.
As an alternate, Loyden, a 27-year-old goalkeeper, will not dress for games but will travel with the team and be available to play in case another player is injured.
The U.S. will open Group G play with two matches in Glasgow, Scotland. The first will be against France on July 25 and the second against Columbia on July 28.
"My goal is not just to make the team, but win gold," Loyden said this month at a U.S. national team practice at Princeton.
"I have to do everything I can to help everyone else around me so we could win and beat up on all those teams in London."
Eighteen players were picked for the active roster, and four alternates were chosen. Hope Solo and Nicole Barnhart are the two primary U.S. goalies and both were considered locks for the position.
The U.S. National team leaves for Sweden on June 16 for a two-week training camp but will return to compete in a sendoff match June 30 in Utah against Canada.
Loyden was a two-time first-team Press All-Star selection who earned 28 shutouts during her scholastic career. As a senior in 2002, she was named The Press Player of the Year and chosen for The Associated Press All-State team. She then had a record-setting career at Villanova Unviersity, three times being chosen the Big East Conference Goalkeeper of the Year.
She played in the now-defunct Women's Professional Soccer league. As a member of the Chicago Red Fire, Loyden was named a WPS All-Star in June 2010.
Contact Susan Lulgjuraj:
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