WSOC | Former Gael Representing Philippines at 2023 Women’s World Cup
7/14/2023 12:00:00 PM | Women's Soccer
MORAGA, Calif. – It's always a special occasion when a former Gael gets to represent SMC on the big stage, and no stage is bigger than the World Cup.
Maya Alcantara '22 is no stranger to success on the big level, and this time around she'll be with team Philippines as a reserve player as they head to Australia and New Zealand for the 2023 Women's World Cup.
Alcantara was a defensive rock in the Saint Mary's lineup during her four-year career with the Gaels. Featuring in 54 games over her career, Alcantara notched four goals over 4100 minutes of play. During her senior season, she played 90 minutes or more in 16 matches, and received All-Regional accolades from United Soccer Coaches.
This is the second time Alcantara has been included with the squad, with her first being back in April 2022. The team had just qualified for the World Cup when Alcantara reached out to the head coach about potentially playing with the squad.
With former Australia Women's Team Head Coach Alen Stajcic on board, the program included Alcantara in its current infusion of North American-Filipina talent along with home-grown players from the Philippines on their roster. The success of this current team is helping raise the profile of soccer in the Philippines as well.
Stajcic believed in Alcantara's values and skills, and she now finds herself heading to the biggest tournament in the world representing her home country.
The Philippines squad has a strong base of players from the United States, including 12 who are currently based here — some still in college — while their three European-based players (in Cyprus, Spain, and Sweden) and two abroad in Japan's WE-League, were all born in the U.S. and played collegiately here.
2023 marks the first time team Philippines has qualified for the Women's World Cup, and they're poised to cause some noise and disrupt some of the world's best squads.
Only six of the 23-person roster at last year's AFC Women's Asian Cup Finals in India played for club teams in the Philippines. The program's ability to find talented players of Filipino descent in the U.S. and was crucial to the team's qualification.
The Philippines Women's National Football Team was formally organized after the Philippine Ladies' Football Association (PLFA) was established in 1980 by Christina Ramos, who played for the team from 1980-86.
The national team had a training camp in the United States in 2012 where management scouted for players with Filipino heritage in the United States, similar to the invites extended to U.S. born Filipina players now, as they did during an ID camp in The States in 2017 and in November of 2021.
Philippines will be in Group A when the tournament begins on July 20. Their group includes Switzerland, Norway, and host country New Zealand. Their first match will take place on Thursday July 20 when they take on the Swiss at 10 PM PT.
#GaelsRise
Maya Alcantara '22 is no stranger to success on the big level, and this time around she'll be with team Philippines as a reserve player as they head to Australia and New Zealand for the 2023 Women's World Cup.
Alcantara was a defensive rock in the Saint Mary's lineup during her four-year career with the Gaels. Featuring in 54 games over her career, Alcantara notched four goals over 4100 minutes of play. During her senior season, she played 90 minutes or more in 16 matches, and received All-Regional accolades from United Soccer Coaches.
This is the second time Alcantara has been included with the squad, with her first being back in April 2022. The team had just qualified for the World Cup when Alcantara reached out to the head coach about potentially playing with the squad.
With former Australia Women's Team Head Coach Alen Stajcic on board, the program included Alcantara in its current infusion of North American-Filipina talent along with home-grown players from the Philippines on their roster. The success of this current team is helping raise the profile of soccer in the Philippines as well.
Stajcic believed in Alcantara's values and skills, and she now finds herself heading to the biggest tournament in the world representing her home country.
The Philippines squad has a strong base of players from the United States, including 12 who are currently based here — some still in college — while their three European-based players (in Cyprus, Spain, and Sweden) and two abroad in Japan's WE-League, were all born in the U.S. and played collegiately here.
2023 marks the first time team Philippines has qualified for the Women's World Cup, and they're poised to cause some noise and disrupt some of the world's best squads.
Only six of the 23-person roster at last year's AFC Women's Asian Cup Finals in India played for club teams in the Philippines. The program's ability to find talented players of Filipino descent in the U.S. and was crucial to the team's qualification.
The Philippines Women's National Football Team was formally organized after the Philippine Ladies' Football Association (PLFA) was established in 1980 by Christina Ramos, who played for the team from 1980-86.
The national team had a training camp in the United States in 2012 where management scouted for players with Filipino heritage in the United States, similar to the invites extended to U.S. born Filipina players now, as they did during an ID camp in The States in 2017 and in November of 2021.
Philippines will be in Group A when the tournament begins on July 20. Their group includes Switzerland, Norway, and host country New Zealand. Their first match will take place on Thursday July 20 when they take on the Swiss at 10 PM PT.
#GaelsRise
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