May 30, 2017
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Rising sophomore midfielder/forward Laura Freigang (Oppenheim, Germany) has been named to the German Under-19 Women's National Team for the elite round of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) European Women's Under-19 Championship. Freigang is one of 18 members named to the German U-19 WNT for three upcoming matches.
The elite round of qualifying for Group 6 of the UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship takes place in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, June 7-12. Group 6 features host Germany, Iceland, Poland, and Switzerland.
Germany will compete against Iceland (June 7), Switzerland (June 9), and Poland (June 12) for a spot in the final tournament of the UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship, which takes place Aug. 8-20.
Northern Ireland, the host of the UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship, will be joined in the final tournament by the six elite round group winners and the runner-up with the best record against the sides first and third in their group. The competition will also act as a qualifier for the 2018 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup in France (who is assured of a place as the host).
Earlier this year, Freigang joined the German U-19 WNT for a friendly against Hungary in April and she was a member of the German U-19 WNT at the La Manga Tournament in March. Last fall, Freigang missed the 2016 NCAA Tournament as she started all four matches in the midfield for the German U-20 WNT that advanced to the quarterfinal round of the 2016 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup in Papua New Guinea.
In her time with the German WNT, Freigang has received 17 caps and scored 12 goals.
During her freshman year with the Nittany Lions, Freigang played in 15 matches, which included two starts, scored two goals, and recorded 31 shot attempts. In the season opener (Aug. 19), Freigang scored her first career goal against West Virginia and on Oct. 26, she scored her second career goal in a 2-0 victory over Ohio State to help the Nittany Lions capture a share of their 18th Big Ten regular season title.
Her plaudits with Penn State include: Big Ten Freshman of the Week (Aug. 23), Big Ten All-Freshman Team (Oct. 28), and TopDrawerSoccer Freshman Best XI Second Team (Dec. 12).