Carson Vom Steeg on U.S. U18 squad for Nordic Cup

Santa Barbara’s Carson Vom Steeg has been named to the U.S. Under-18 Men’s National Soccer Team for the Open Nordic Cup Tournament in Sweden.

Vom Steeg was picked by coach Javier Perez as a defender on the 19-man roster. He is the son of UCSB men’s soccer coach Tim Vom Steeg. Carson played for the Real So Cal Soccer Club in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy. He is going into his junior year at San Marcos.

The U.S. opens the Nordic Cup on Aug. 4 against the Faroe Islands and continues group play against Iceland (Aug. 5) and Sweden (Aug. 7).

The trip kicks off a new cycle for this crop of players at the U-18 age group. The players previously competed with the U-15 and U-16 National Teams.

In other soccer news, UCSB freshman Sam Strong is among the 28 players called in by U.S. Men’s Under-23 coach Andi Herzog for a College Identification training camp at the national training center in Carson, Aug. 5-8.

U.S. Soccer is using the camp to build the U-23 talent pool as it prepares for 2016 Olympic qualifying.

Strong, a San Marcos alum, is a freshman defender for the Gauchos. This is his second call-up to the U-23 national team. He was on the roster when the U.S. played Mexico in April.