Rapinoe lifts U.S. women to victory
the night by the Germans.
The opportunities were limited for both teams because of the wind.
“The wind was going across the field, side-toside,” U.S. forward Alex Morgan said. “It wasn't even going from one end to another end. That's where we had difficulty.”
Sara Dabritz got a pointblank shot for Germany inside the box in the game's 16th minute but misfired and pulled it right. Less than a minute later, Morgan headed a long goal kick to Rapinoe, whose subsequent in-stride shot squirted through the legs of goalkeeper Almuth Schult. “Once we got the goal, it was a game of keeping that lead,” Morgan said.
Germany got another good chance in the 20th minute when Dzsenifer Marozsan hit the post. U.S. team captain Carli Lloyd, who is just two goals short of 100, nailed an accurate shot in the 57th minute, but Schult made a terrific leaping save. It was the best chance of the second half for the Americans.
“It was a workmanlike game in challenging conditions,” U.S. coach Jill Ellis said. “We were doing the best we could with what we had against a good opponent.”
Rapinoe was surprised the 1-0 lead held up.
“I thought there was going to be a lot more in the game,” she said. “I think the weather got a little bit worse throughout the game.”
Earlier in the day at the stadium, No. 3 England routed No. 6 France 4-1 on goals by Toni Duggan, Jill Scott, Jodie Taylor and Fran Taylor.
The tournament continues Sunday at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey, with the U.S. facing France.
In last year's tournament, the U.S. women's team lost consecutive home games for the first time in 17 years, dropping games to England and France after beating Germany in the opening round.