Nominated from a survey of international coaches, Tran impressed opponents in international competition in 2005 as she earned Goalkeeper of the Tournament honors in July at the Rabobank Champions Challenge in Virginia Beach.

At the Champions Challenge, Tran led the tournament in saves and kept the United States in every match with a performance South Africa coach Jenny King called "absolutely fantastic."

"Amy’s job is to get in the way and stop the opposition’s shots on goal, and I can say that that is exactly what she did," said U.S. coach Lee Bodimeade. "She kept us in a number of games by coming up with magnificent saves and that can really lift a team. I would prefer that she didn’t have so much work to do during the game, but she is one of the best around and can still get better."

Joining Tran on the final ballot are two-time Player of the Year honoree (2001, 2004) Luciana Aymar (ARG), Minkee Booij (NED), Nikki Hudson (AUS), Lizzy Igasan (NZL), Rachel Imison (AUS), Fanny Rinne (GER), Janneke Schopman (NED), Zhou Wanfeng (CHN) and Ko Woon Oh (KOR)

Tran is the first USA player to appear on the ballot since former goalkeeper Peggy Storrar was nominated in 1998.

The final ballot for the Player of the Year honor will be cast by players and coaches currently competing at the Samsung Hockey Champions Trophy in Canberra, Australia. The six-team tournament includes Argentina, Australia, China, Germany, Korea and The Netherlands. Tran faced both Argentina and Australia in test matches in 2005.

The winner of the award will be announced Sunday, Dec. 4 during the closing ceremony of the Champions Trophy competition.

A member of the USA National Team since 2001, Tran has appeared in 34 international matches for the USA including 18 matches in 2005. In addition to her Champions Challenge honor, she earned a shutout victory against world No. 6 New Zealand (1-0) and earned a pair of draws (2-2, 1-1) against No. 4-ranked Australia.

Tran is a 2002 graduate of the Univ. of North Carolina where she was a two-time All-America selection for the Tar Heels.

Tran and the USA women will resume training in January as they prepare for the World Cup Qualifying Tournament, April 26 - May 7 in Rome.