U.S. Women’s Team Qualifies for Olympic Soccer Tournament

“It’s exciting,” Andonovski said. “I’m glad that they’re just as excited, and maybe more.”

“It’s very important for a team that just won two World Cups back to back, that those emotions and that motivation is something that’s the hardest to get back up again. I was just glad to see that the emotions are there, that the motivation is there to make it happen. We are moving in the right direction, and I’m very happy with the stage we are at.”

Lavelle, the breakout star of the Americans’ World Cup run in 2019, opened the scoring against Mexico in the fifth minute, running onto a back-heel pass from Megan Rapinoe and driving at two defenders at the top of the circle. Before the backpedaling Mexican players knew what was happening, Lavelle had pulled a left-footed shot from the top of the circle behind them into the lower right corner.

Mewis doubled the lead less than 10 minutes later, pouncing on a Julie Ertz backheel off a bounding Rapinoe corner and one-timing a finish from near the penalty spot. Barely 15 minutes after kickoff, the game felt over. The United States, which has outscored its four opponents in this tournament by 22-0, and Canada, which has done one better at 23-0, have once again been the class of the region.

Canada’s victory meant that the best player in the country’s women’s soccer history, Christine Sinclair, will head back to the Olympics just a month after her 37th birthday. She can thank her heir apparent, Jordyn Huitema, who is only 18, for the trip.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/07/sports/soccer/uswnt-women-soccer-olympics.html?emc=rss&partner=rss