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USL Championship, League One, League Two players called up for international duty

By USLChampionship.com Staff, 05/31/22, 5:30PM EDT

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41 players from 17 countries selected for Concacaf Nations League, Africa Cup of Nations Qualifying


The Charleston Battery's AJ Paterson, El Paso Locomotive FC's Eric Calvillo, New Mexico United's Raddy Ovouka and Memphis 901 FC's Leston Paul are among 41 players called up to senior international duty this June.

TAMPA, Fla. – Forty-one players currently competing in the USL Championship, League One and League Two have been called up for senior international duty in June as the Concacaf Nations League and Africa Cup of Nations Qualifying begins during the upcoming FIFA international window.

Seventeen countries are represented among the selections, with five players apiece from El Salvador and Grenada from the USL Championship set to get the opportunity to square off with the United States Men’s National Team in Group D of Concacaf Nations League A in the coming weeks. Both countries earned promotion from League B in the prior edition of the tournament and will square off twice prior to facing the group favorites to close the international window.

El Salvador includes a pair of players apiece from FC Tulsa – forward Joaquin Rivas and defender Ronald Rodriguez – and Las Vegas Lights FC – goalkeeper Tomas Romero and winger Roberto Molina – as well as El Paso Locomotive FC midfielder Eric Calvillo. La Selecta will play host to the United States on Tuesday, June 14 at 10 p.m. ET at Estadio Cuscatlan to close the round of games.

Grenada, meanwhile, includes a pair of players from the Charleston Battery in defenders AJ Paterson and Benjamin Ettienne, while also featuring Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC’s Kharlton Belmar, Indy Eleven’s Alex McQueen and El Paso Locomotive FC’s Shavon John-Brown. The contest between the sides on Friday, June 10 at Q2 Stadium in Austin, Texas will be the first in official competition since a 4-0 win for the United States in the 2009 Concacaf Gold Cup.

Five players could also see action in the start of Africa Cup of Nations Qualifying with the Hartford Athletic duo of Prince Saydee and Joel Johnson called up by Liberia for a contest against Morocco on June 13. New Mexico United’s Raddy Ovouka (Congo) and the New York Red Bulls II’s Steven Sserwadda (Uganda) were also named in their respective country’s squads, while USL League Two club Ballard FC’s Lesia Thetsane was called up by Lesotho for its games against Comoros on June 3 and Ivory Coast on June 9.

Indy Eleven leads all teams with four players selected by their countries, with McQueen joined by Trindad and Tobago’s Neveal Hackshaw and Noah Powder, and Haiti’s Mechack Jerome in being selected.

The group stage of the Concacaf Nations League is set to open on Thursday, with four scheduled matchdays through June 14 as teams in League A, League B and League C vie for promotion and a chance to qualify for the 2023 Concacaf Gold Cup next summer.

Contests outside the United States and Mexico are set to be streamed live in the United States by Paramount Plus.

USL Championship, League One, League Two International Call-Ups – June 2022

Belize (2) – Tony Rocha (Orange County SC), Deshawon Nembhard (South Georgia Tormenta FC)

Chile (1) – Vicente Reyes (Atlanta United 2)

Congo (1) – Raddy Ovouka (New Mexico United)

Cuba (1) – Jorge Corrales (FC Tulsa)

El Salvador (5) – Joaquin Rivas (FC Tulsa), Ronald Rodriguez (FC Tulsa), Roberto Molina (Las Vegas Lights FC), Eric Calvillo (El Paso Locomotive FC), Tomas Romero (Las Vegas Lights FC)

Grenada (5) – Shavon John-Brown (El Paso Locomotive FC), AJ Paterson (Charleston Battery), Benjamin Ettienne (Charleston Battery), Kharlton Belmar (Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC), Alex McQueen (Indy Eleven)

Haiti (5) – Ashkanov Apollon (Hartford Athletic), Mechack Jerome (Indy Eleven), Carl Sainte (New Mexico United), Christiano Francois (El Paso Locomotive FC), Francois Dulysse (Central Valley Fuego FC)

Jamaica (2) – Kevon Lambert (Phoenix Rising FC), Speedy Williams (Miami FC)

Lesotho (1) – Lesia Thetsane (Ballard FC)

Liberia (2) – Joel Johnson (Hartford Athletic), Prince Saydee (Hartford Athletic)

Puerto Rico (4) – Nicolas Cardona (Chattanooga Red Wolves SC), Christopher Dilan (The Villages SC), Ricardo Rivera (Union Omaha), Jaden Servania (North Carolina FC)

St. Kitts & Nevis (1) – Raheem Somersall (North Carolina FC)

St. Lucia (1) – Peter Pearson (Greenville Triumph SC)

St. Vincent and the Grenadines (1) – Oalex Anderson (North Carolina FC)

Trinidad and Tobago (7) – Leston Paul (Memphis 901 FC), Triston Hodge (Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC), Shannon Gomez (San Antonio FC), Mekeil Williams (Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC), Alvin Jones (Forward Madison FC), Noah Powder (Indy Eleven), Neveal Hackshaw (Indy Eleven)

Turks and Caicos (1) – Billy Forbes (Detroit City FC)

Uganda (1) – Steven Sserwadda (New York Red Bulls II)

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