U.S. rolls, advances to CONCACAF semis

CARY, N.C. — The rain began to pour 40 minutes into Wednesday’s final Group A match, and so did the goals for the United States women’s national team.

The U.S. scored three goals in the final five minutes of the match on its way to a convincing 7-0 win over Trinidad & Tobago and a clean sweep of Group A to advance to the semifinals of the 2018 Concacaf Women’s Championship. The semifinals will be held Sunday in Frisco, Texas, where the third-place match and final will also be played Wednesday.

The defending champions started a familiar lineup that will most likely be coach Jill Ellis’ preference for the remainder of the tournament, using a 4-3-3 formation. The lineup mirrored that of the first U.S. match of the tournament, a 6-0 victory over Mexico.

"I felt our team played well tonight. I thought Trinidad presented a challenge for us," U.S. coach Jill Ellis said after the match. "I told them before the game tonight that it was about momentum, and tonight was a great way to close out the group stage."

Going into Wednesday, the U.S. had scored 11 goals, while Trinidad & Tobago has conceded seven goals. After a slow start, the U.S. was only up by one goal — Alex Morgan's 20th goal in 22 consecutive matches, which she scored in the ninth minute.

Then the rains came, and the goals in front of an announced crowd of 3,996 at Sahlen's Stadium.

Midfielder Rose Lavelle broke through the gridlock in the 41st minute with a screaming strike from outside the penalty box. Her shot, slippery from the rain, flew through the stretched fingers of Trinidad & Tobago goalkeeper Saundra Baron. About two minutes later, Lavelle added a second.

Before the half ended, left back Crystal Dunn added a fourth U.S. goal — a quick 20-yard flick into the lower-left corner.

After eight shots in the first half, midfielder Lindsey Horan finally found the back of the net in the 49th minute. Morgan recorded a brace a minute later, and Tobin Heath polished off the seventh goal in the 58th. The U.S. swept Group A with 18 goals and three clean sheets, advancing to the semifinals to play the No. 2 finisher in Group B, which concludes group play Thursday.

The top three finishers in Concacaf Women’s Championship secure World Cup spots, with the fourth place finisher playing against Argentina for the final qualification spot.

Panama advances: The Panama women’s national team needed a draw to advance out of the 2018 Concacaf Women’s Championship group stage, vying for its first World Cup qualification.

Instead of settling for a tie, the young Central American team played to win, defeating Mexico for the first time in tournament history 2-0 at Sahlen’s Stadium.

Prior to Wednesday’s match, Mexico had won all five meetings against Panama and outscored the team 19-3. Despite El Tri’s 25 shots, it could not find the back of the net.

Mexico forward Kayla Johnson, who also plays for Sky Blue FC in the National Women’s Soccer League, hit the woodwork on two of her six shots, only one of which was on target.

But it was not all Mexican errors that handed Panama victory. For the third time in Group A play, Panama’s 17-year-old goalkeeper Yenith Bailey stood strong for her national team. She made three crucial saves in the first half and totaled six over 90 minutes.

Bailey’s biggest save came in the fleeting seconds of first-half stoppage time. Panama midfielder Aldrith Quintero lunged to stop a Mexico cross, but her arm got in the way. Mexico forward Charlyn Corral took the penalty kick, rocketing the ball toward the lower right-hand corner of the net. With Mexico’s tournament fate on the line, the ball zoomed toward the goal, but Bailey ushered the shot to the right.

With the scored knotted at zero, Panama capitalized two minutes into the second half. Forward Karla Riley finished a quick cross for the opening goal, evading fallen Mexico goalkeeper Cecilia Santiago.

Panama substitute Lineth Cedeño added the insurance goal in the 86th minute. Her teammates on the bench rushing to embrace her, knowing what the late lead meant.

Panama took another step toward its first World Cup, while Mexico failed to qualify for the World Cup for the first time since 2017

Panama will now advance in the No. 2 position of Group A — behind the United States — and face the high-flying Canada national team in Sunday’s semifinals. Canada scored 12 goals against Cuba Monday and will finish Group B Thursday with a match against Costa Rica.