Pia Sundhage's last match as head coach of the U.S. women's national team was certainly memorable as they rolled to a 6-2 win over Australia this evening at Dick's Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado. It was the 14th straight win for the top women's side in the world.
Australia, who had lost to the U.S. 2-1 on Sunday in California, was actually up 2-1 in the first half but that lasted all of nine minutes as Alex Morgan scored her first of two goals right before halftime (43rd minute). From there, the Americans blitzed the Australians with four goals in the second half.
Now, Sundhage leaves for Sweden (her native country) with a four-year deal set to begin on December 1. It will be fascinating to see who the U.S. chooses as its next head coach. It's hard to argue with Sundhage's success since she took over in November 2007: 91-6-10 with two gold medals (2012, 2008), three Algarve Cups and runner-up in the 2011 World Cup.
The U.S.' next two matches are a month away against Germany: October 20 in Bridgeview, Illinois and October 23 in East Hartford, Connecticut. During this game, former national team member and ESPN2 commentator Julie Foudy speculated that the U.S. wanted to name a coach by Halloween but it is possible they won't have one in place by the Germany matches. In that case, an assistant would temporary hold the position.
Five different goal-scorers helped the U.S. improve to 22-0-2 all-time against Australia. In 2012, they are 23-1-1 (only loss to Japan) and they've outscored their opponents 100-17.
Morgan led the U.S. with two goals and two assists, Megan Rapinoe had two assists while Heather O'Reilly, Abby Wambach, Shannon Boxx and Sydney Leroux all scored goals. Heather Mitts and Kelley O'Hara rounded out the scoring with assists.
O'Reilly opened the scoring with a deflected goal in the 25th minute. Morgan broke down the left flank but then passed it back to the top of the box. O'Reilly came from out of the picture and hit a low hard shot that nicked off an Australian defender.
Two defensive breakdowns in rapid succession gave Australia the brief 2-1 lead. Lisa de Vanna scored her second goal against the U.S. in as many games with a pretty toe poke past Hope Solo in the 32nd minute. Two minutes later, Sarah Walsh-who was playing her last match for Australia-found herself in alone on Solo and she deposited it into the net.
Morgan went to work in the 43rd minute with a top-notch goal, her 33rd in 51 international matches. O'Hara had the assist as Morgan placed the shot in the far corner with her preferred left foot. It was a big goal in terms of momentum since the U.S. nearly trailed at halftime. Instead, that must have pumped them up because they never looked back in the second half and Australia could do nothing to stop them.
Wambach was the recipient of a crazy bounce after she stuck her foot out and got a touch on Morgan's shot in the 53rd minute. It took a huge deflection and ended up in the goal. After that, the U.S. scored on three headers in a span of 19 minutes with each one more spectacular than the last.
Morgan bagged her second strike in the 63rd minute when she won a 50-50 cross from Mitts. It's easy to forget that Morgan is only 23-years-old. I'm having a hard time finding any holes in her game, she seems to do everything well: shoot, distribute, win headers, run off the ball. It is scary to think she'll most likely get even better the next few years.
Substitute Shannon Boxx got in on the action with a powerful header off Rapinoe's corner kick in the 69th minute. Leroux was the second sub to score a goal as she also connected on a cross from Rapinoe in the 82nd minute. What made Leroux's my favorite is that she dove toward the ground to head the ball rather than wait for it to come to her feet. At 22, the youngest player on the team, her skills are remarkable and she is definitely the most exciting prospect on the national team.
All that's left to do is wish Sundhage all the best and thank her for all her hard work over the years with the U.S. team. Good luck in Sweden Pia, haha except when you face the U.S.
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