Groenen’s goal lifts Netherlands
LYON, France — When Jackie Groenen received the ball, even though she was outside the penalty area, the Dutch midfielder knew she had to seize her opening.
It was 99 minutes into a grueling Women’s World Cup semifinal, and neither the Netherlands nor Sweden was finding a clear path to the goal Wednesday night.
“I saw a nice angle,” Groenen said. “We’ve been discussing this for a couple of weeks now that I need to take shots more often. The ball just came really nicely, and I thought, ‘Let’s do this.’ ”
A slick passing sequence ended with Groenen driving a shot past goalkeeper Hedvig Lindahl. A first shot on target in France produced her first goal of the tournament.
“I’m not much of a scorer,” she said. “But I’m very happy today I got to score.”
It sent the Netherlands into its first Women’s World Cup final, where the Dutch will face the United States on Sunday, back in the Stade de Lyon.
Two years after the Dutch won their first major trophy — the European Championship — Groenen is already dreaming of a first world title in only their second attempt.
“It kind of went through my mind as soon as I got off the pitch,” she said. “The Americans are massive, they have massive players. They are the biggest team in the world but I can’t wait to play.”
Progress for the Dutch has been rapid after reaching the round of 16 during their World Cup debut four years ago.
“The potential for the Netherlands has been there for a long time,” Netherlands coach Sarina Wiegman said. “Since 2007, when the Eredivisie started and players got better facilities and could train more, the players developed so much that they improved. And then when you’re at big tournaments, like European Championships and World Cups, they develop even more. They made transfers to big clubs in Europe.”
Players like Groenen, who became the first overseas signing for Manchester United after the recently formed women’s team was promoted to England’s Super League in May.
The finalists have something in Colleges: Holy Cross named Marquette assistant Brett Nelson its next men’s basketball coach. Athletic director Marcus Blossom announced the hire less than a month after Bill Carmody retired. Nelson, 38, spent the last five seasons at Marquette, with two as associate head coach.
NBA: A person with knowledge of the situation says the Hawks have veteran F Chandler Parsons in a trade which sent Miles Plumlee and Solomon Hill to the Grizzlies. The person spoke with AP on condition of anonymity because the trade can’t be finalized before Saturday. ... Bulls C Wendell Carter Jr. will have surgery next week to repair an abdominal muscle injury. He should be ready for training camp. ... The Pistons agreed to a two-year deal with F Markieff Morris, who has averaged 11.6 points and 5.5 rebounds during his eight-year career. common: female coaches. With Jill Ellis coaching the U.S. and Wiegman in charge of the Netherlands, the run of three finals featuring a male coach comes to an end.
“It’s important that women have the opportunity to develop as players, as coaches and in society,” Wiegman said. NFL: Former Giants backup QB and Kentucky star Jared Lorenzen, 38, died after years of health problems related to his weight, his family said. Jeremy Schapp, the ESPN personality who interviewed Lorenzen for his “E:60” series last year confirmed the death on Twitter, citing a text to his producer from Lorenzen’s mother Janet: “Lorenzen’s mother Janet confirmed that Jared died today. He was only 38. Janet said, ‘I lost my sweet boy today after a long hard fight.’ ” He backed up Eli Manning on the Giants’ 2007 Super Bowl-winning team. ... Cowboys RB Ezekiel Elliott won’t be suspended over an incident in Las Vegas involving Elliott and a security guard. Commissioner Roger Goodell determined Elliott didn’t violate the league’s personal conduct policy. He was suspended for six games in 2017 over domestic violence allegations. Olympics: The U.S. Olympic Committee’s administrative costs more than doubled in 2018 over the previous year as it dealt with a $5.2 million investigation into its handling of the Larry Nassar sex-abuse cases and paid a $2.4 million severance to its former CEO. The payments to the Ropes & Gray law firm, former CEO Scott Blackmun and the Covington & Burling law firm helped raise the USOC’s administrative and general costs to $31.2 million in 2018, compared with $14.9 million the previous year.
Soccer: The Gold Cup semifinal between the U.S. and Jamaica in Nashville, Tenn., was delayed by lightning with the U.S. ahead 1-0 in the 16th minute after Weston McKennie scored for the second straight game.