Photo by ISIphotos.com
By FRANCO PANIZO
The U.S. Women’s National Team continued their unbeaten ways on Saturday and Abby Wambach moved one step closer to making history in the process.
The U.S. defeated Korea Republic, 4-1, at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. on Saturday night, riding a pair of early goals to victory to improve to 8-0-2 under head coach Tom Sermanni.
Abby Wambach came off the bench and capped the scoring in the game played in front of more than 13,000 fans, netting on a stoppage-time penalty kick that brings her within two goals of Mia Hamm’s all-time scoring record of 158 international goals. The match also marked the return of goalkeeper Hope Solo, who came off the bench to play the second half in her first game since being sidelined with a wrist injury in late February.
The U.S. got off to a dream start in the match, jumping out to a 2-0 lead in the opening seven minutes. Kristie Mewis, a Hanson, Mass. native, found the back of the net for the first time in a U.S. jersey thanks to a Sydney Leroux assist in the third minute and Lauren Cheney scored the winner shortly thereafter off a feed from Tobin Heath.
Korea Republic made things close again courtesy of a Cho Sohyun strike minutes before the half-hour mark, but the U.S. regained a two-goal advantage when Carli Lloyd scored from distance in the 57th minute. Wambach, who replaced Leroux at the start of the second half, then added the Americans’ fourth three minutes into stoppage time after Alex Morgan was brought down in the penalty area.
The U.S. will face Korea Republic again on June 20 in a friendly at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J.
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What do you think of the U.S.’s 4-1 win over Korea Republic? Who impressed you? Glad to see Solo back in action for the Americans?
Share your thoughts below.
What’s Korea Republic? There’s a Republic of Korea and a People’s Republic of Korea. I assume we played good guy Korea though.
Korea Republic seems to be the FIFA designation for South Korea (Republic of Korea). That was an odd thing about the ESPN3 broadcast yesterday, that the announcers referred to them as Korea Republic the whole time. I assume they were instructed to do so.
I don’t suppose Morgan and Heath are taking the red eye to Portland as we speak? Going to the Thorns game tomorrow to watch…. Wait, who else plays for the Thorns??? Dang.
i think red eye’s are west to east flights plus there is another game in a few days
I was at that game.. Abby started the second half and did exactly squat for 45 minutes. In stoppage time, a PK was awarded and she steps up an takes it
Sure she will get Mia’s record at some point but it makes me sick.Mia was a total package and her record should be left to stand for a long, long time. Abby is nothing like Mia and is not worthy of the title. Morgan is worthy and in the end, will easily pass Abby
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Completely disagree. Wambach has scored some great, clutch goals for the US over the years, and she’s done it in an era where the US hasn’t had as many punching bags to run up big numbers of goals on as the players of the pioneering days of the ’90s did.
Well written CW… Both Mia and Abby are soccer goddesses!
Ignorant, ignorant, ignorant