By Amelia Hirtle
In the semi-final match against Costa Rica, the United States Women’s national team won by a score of 3-0 to move on to the finals to face Canada. The winner of the final match will be crowned the Concacaf W champions, as well as receive a trip to the 2024 Paris Olympics. The loser of the match will face off between the winner of the 2nd and 3rd place match and enter a two-leg intercontinental playoff to start in September 2023 for a chance at an Olympic berth.
Alex Morgan was close to starting the scoring off early. She missed what looked to be a tap-in in the opening minutes that would have given the team more confidence, as they have struggled to score early in games.
Instead, the Americans got on the board in the 34th minute with Emily Sonnett notching her first ever USWNT goal in her 69th cap. There was a race to the ball in front of the net by players from both sides. Sonnett got to the ball first and poked it through to give the Americans the lead.
In the 48th minute, the U.S. were off to the races again. Midfielder Rose Lavelle gave a clean backheel pass to Mallory Pugh who put the ball in the back of the net to make the score 2-0.
With left back Emily Fox still out due to Covid protocols, Vlatko Andonvski started Emily Sonnett in that position for a second straight game. While attempting to play out of the back, the ball rotation came in slow on the left side, and Andonvski will need to enforce quicker movements against Canada.
With a 2-0 lead in the second half, Andonovski made some changes, to spare some players who are likely to start in the final, from the heat. The temperature was in the 90s, however with the added humidity, it felt like over 100. The U.S. did not have the weather to their advantage as they played in the early game. While Canada and Jamaica faced off in the later time slot.
The final goal of the night came from Ashley Sanchez in stoppage time. The final match of the tournament will occur on Monday July 18th, at 10 PM ET. In the Tokyo Olympics, Canada beat the U.S. 1-0 in the semi-finals to move onto the final where they went on to win the gold medal. There is certainly a distinctive look to the American side just a year ago. Players such as Sophia Smith and Mallory Pugh were not on the roster for the Tokyo Olympics but will be starters along with Alex Morgan in the nine position for the final. The U.S. will have to finish their chances when they are available, otherwise Canada will take control of the game.