COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Former University of Delaware standout Katie Evans is one of 24 athletes who have been selected to the 2009-2010 USA Women’s National Field Hockey Team roster, USA Field Hockey has announced.

Evans (at right), a native of Newtown Square, Pa. (Villa Maria Academy) who played at Delaware in 2003-06, was one of 24 players selected at the conclusion of the 2009 Women’s National Championship in Virginia Beach, Va.

“Overall, the skill level was lifted significantly from previous years,” said head coach Lee Bodimeade. “What the athletes bring to the group overall is a greater competency in executing basic skills at a higher speed under great pressure. We are getting the benefit of that now.”

The first international competition for the Women’s National Team will be a visit from 2008 Olympic bronze medalists Argentina. The teams will play a five-game series in November at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Ca.

A striker, Evans is joined the team by Kayla Bashore of Indiana, Sarah Dawson, Lauren Pfeiffer, Barb Weinberg, and Caroline Blaum of Iowa, Kelly Doton, Claire Laubach, Michelle Kasold, and Lauren Crandall of Wake Forest, Katelyn Falgowski, Jesse Gey, Carrie Lingo, Amy Tran, and Rachel Dawson of North Carolina, Maren Ford and Katie Reinprecht of Princeton, Tiffany Huisman, Melissa Leonetti, and Caroline Nichols of Old Dominion, and Katie O’Donnell, Lauren Powley, Sara Silvetti, and Keli Smith of Maryland.

Evans has already had extensive international experience. She was a member of the 2005-06 USA Under-21 team and later earned a spot on the USA Developmental squad. On October 21, 2007, she made her national team debut against Japan. This past February she helped lead the U.S. national team to a second place finish at the 2009 Women’s Pan Am Cup in Bermuda and earlier this summer competed in a five-game series against Argentina in Salta, Argentina.

A four-year standout at Delaware, Evans helped the Blue Hens win the 2004 Colonial Athletic Association title and earn a berth in the NCAA Tournament. During the run to the championship, Evans led the squad with 12 assists, marking the third-highest single-season total in program history.

During her career, she appeared in 74 games with 68 starts. She still ranks second all-time with 30 career assists, while she is one of only two players to record a pair of three-assist games in a Blue Hen uniform. A two-time All-CAA and All-Region selection, she also added 21 goals and scored 51 points during her stint in Newark.

- DDD -