U.S. WNT Earns 7-0 Win Against Ukraine


Sunday, July 10, 2005

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U.S. forward Tiffeny Milbrett scored her historic 100th career goal as the U.S. Women’s National Team was never threatened in a dominating 7-0 win over Ukraine on a cool Northwest afternoon at Merlo Field on the campus of the University of Portland. Christie Welsh and Kristine Lilly (who also had two assists) scored in the first half and Danielle Fotopoulos (two goals), Aly Wagner and Heather O'Reilly added goals in the second, but it was Milbrett's dramatic score that sent the fans home happy.

After firing six previous shots, each one bringing the crowd to its feet, the former University of Portland star scored a classic in the 57th minute after she ran onto a perfect over-the-top pass from Wagner. With Ukrainian goalkeeper Veronika Shulha caught out of the net, Milbrett deftly lifted the ball over her and into the goal from just outside the penalty area as the crowd erupted.

“Our focus wasn’t on Tiffeny, our focus was on winning the game and continuing to grow as a new team,” said U.S. head coach Greg Ryan. “I think attitude was good for her too, so that she could settle down and play the game. In the end, though, that kind of goal with that kind of quality was incredible.”

With the goal, which came in her 201st career appearance, Milbrett joins Mia Hamm (158), Elisabetta Vignotto (107), Carolina Morace (105), Michelle Akers (105) and Kristine Lilly (104) as the only players in the history of international soccer to score 100 goals for their country.

The win moved the USA to 6-0-0 on the year on the sixth anniversary date of the historic 1999 Women’s World Cup Final and marked the USA’s seventh consecutive shutout. No team has found the net against the Americans in 2005 as the team ran their shutout streak to seven games dating back to December 8, 2004.

While tough into the tackle, Ukraine did not have the athleticism to run with the U.S., which kept the pressure in the attacking half all match long. The USA started in a 3-4-3 formation with Lilly, Welsh and Milbrett up top and peppered the Ukrainian goal with 15 shots in the first half, but could not break through until 31 minutes into the match.

The first goal came when Wagner threaded a pass behind the Ukrainian defense to the charging Welsh, who found herself in a scrum with Shulha and sliding defender Inesa Titova. The ball spilled out the right side of the penalty area, and with Shulha late in untangling herself from Titova, Welsh had time run the ball down and bend her seven-yard shot into the net from a sharp angle. Welsh has now scored in all six games the USA has played this year and has seven goals total. She also upped her career total to 20, becoming the 14th player in U.S. history to score 20 or more goals.

The second goal came when Welsh received the ball on the right side of the penalty area in the 36th minute. She cut inside, but was cut down by a defender. As she was falling, the ball bounced off her toe and rolled right to Lilly, who lined up her deadly left foot and smacked a whistling shot just inside the right post from 18 yards out for her 104th career goal.

After a somewhat sluggish performance in the first half as the U.S. played down to the pace of the Ukrainians, the American women played with more urgency after the break and it paid off with five goals.

Wagner (who also hit the crossbar twice in the match) scored to make it 3-0, courtesy of Lilly, who received the ball at the top of the Ukrainian penalty area courtesy a poor Ukrainian back pass. Lilly whirled and then darted past Titova in the left side of the box before chipping a short cross into the middle. Wagner beat Shulha to the ball and struck a short, bouncing volley past the flying goalkeeper and into the net from five yards out.

The fourth goal came off a beautiful long ball from Shannon Boxx as she dropped her pass right into the path of Lilly, who was running hard at the restraining line. The ball bounced before Lilly back-heeled it into the middle to a wide-open Fotopoulos, who drove her shot through the legs of Shulha from 13 yards out.

Milbrett scored the fifth goal, making history on the field where she enjoyed so much success as a college player, but the USA was not done. Fotopoulos added her second off a scramble that came from a free kick. The ball was lofted into the penalty area from the left flank and spun off the foot of a Ukrainian defender before the 5-foot-11 forward pounded her left-footed volley into the net from close range. The two goals upped Fotopoulos’ career total to 14 (five of which have come against Ukraine), but they were her first scores since she tallied on January 12, 2002, in a 7-0 rout of Mexico.

Heather O’Reilly added the seventh and final score after coming on for Milbrett in the 77th minute. The 20-year-old chased down a long ball from Kate Markgraf near the left side of the penalty area, cut back against the grain to lose a defender, and smacked her right-footed shot into the left corner. It was O’Reilly’s fifth career goal and first since her historic overtime score against Germany in the 2004 Olympic semifinal match.

The match marked the first-ever caps for two players, as defender Tina Frimpong, a Vancouver, Washington product, came on in the 55th minute and midfielder Carli Lloyd entered the match in the 64th. Goalkeeper Nicole Barnhart, making her second-ever start in the nets for the USA, earned her second career shutout, but was not forced to make a save.

Five players on the U.S. roster – Barnhart, Lindsay Tarpley, O’Reilly, Lori Chalupny and Lloyd – will leave for Europe next week with the U.S. Under-21 Women’s National Team to compete in the 15th Annual Nordic Cup in Sweden. The USA will be going for its seventh consecutive Nordic Cup title.

The U.S. women will finish their three-game summer schedule on July 24, taking on Iceland at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif.  Kickoff for that match is 2 p.m. PT. It will also be broadcast live on ESPN2. Tickets for both matches are on sale at all local area Ticketmaster outlets and at www.ussoccer.com.

About Induction 2005
The National Soccer Hall of Fame will host Induction 2005 in Oneonta, New York on August 27th through the 29th. Induction Weekend kicks off on Saturday, August 27th with a Northern Eagle Beverage Pub Night starting at 7:00 p.m. Then on Sunday, August 28th the Hall of Fame will present the 2nd Annual Hall of Fame Golf Tournament presented by Nike at the Delhi Golf Course in Delhi, New York. For those who are interested in exploring beautiful Otsego County there will a Leatherstocking Summer Sampler tour at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday. The Hall of Fame will host the President's Reception & Dinner, sponsored by Field Turf and Clark Companies, starting at 6:00 p.m. in the Hall of Fame's Atrium.

The Induction Ceremony on Monday, August 29th honors three of the most identifiable players in U.S. Men's National Team history and pioneers of Major League Soccer as Marcelo Balboa, John Harkes, and Tab Ramos will be enshrined into the Hall of Fame starting at 10:00 a.m. The ceremony is free of charge and open to the public and will take place in the Museum. The 2005 Hall of Fame Game will kickoff at 1:00 p.m. on August 29th and will feature four-time MLS Cup Champion D.C. United as they take on the Colorado Rapids.

Tickets for the Hall of Fame Golf Tournament, President's Reception & Dinner and the Hall of Fame Game are available at the Hall of Fame by calling 1-800-545-FAME (3263), or visit 3 More Reasons ...,  our Ticket Outlet at 66 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York.

About the National Soccer Hall of Fame and Museum
L
ocated in Oneonta, New York, the National Soccer Hall of Fame opened a 30,000 square foot, state-of-the-art museum on June 12, 1999. The Hall of Fame tells the story of soccer in America through artifacts, photographs, and video clips. The new Hall features an extensive interactive, youth oriented Kicks Zone where visitors have fun kicking, heading and playing computer trivia stations and video soccer games. The VideoWall portrays some of the greatest moments and the greatest goals in history as well as live soccer action with World Cup, MLS, and U.S. Soccer matches. Unique and rare artifacts on exhibit range from the world’s oldest soccer ball to the FIFA Women’s World Cup trophy won by the USA in 1999, Pelé's and Mia Hamm’s uniforms, Kristine Lilly’s golden shoes, NASL championship rings, the original MLS championship trophy, MLS gallery - it’s all at the National Soccer Hall of Fame. In addition to the interactive Museum, the National Soccer Hall of Fame complex boasts the Kicks Zone Store, a research library, four world-class soccer fields and office/meeting facilities. The Hall plans to add a stadium, an indoor soccer arena and housing facilities in the future.

The mission of the National Soccer Hall of Fame and Museum is to Celebrate the History, Honor the Heroes, Inspire the Youth and Preserve the Legacy of the sport soccer in the United States.

Related Information
U.S. MNT Drop Canada 2-0 in 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup | U.S. MNT Beat Cuba 4-1 in 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
Media Credential Application for Hall of Fame Game Available

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