Tag: Sofia Huerta

Sofia Huerta leaves USWNT camp with hamstring injury

Huerta will leave camp early after picking up a knock in USWNT training

The U.S. women’s national team may have posted a solid win in Julie Ertz’s final match before retirement, but the news was not all good on Thursday night.

U.S. Soccer communications told reporters after the match that defender Sofia Huerta was unavailable to play due to a hamstring injury picked up during this international window.

Per the federation, the 30-year-old will go back to Seattle to rejoin OL Reign rather than continue on to Chicago, where the USWNT will face South Africa again on Sunday evening. No timeline for her recovery was provided.

Huerta was one of four players to watch the 3-0 victory in Cincinnati in street clothes, joining Mia Fishel, Midge Purce, and Megan Rapinoe. U.S. Soccer had announced before the match that only 23 of the 27 players in camp would dress for each game in this window, with Rapinoe only set to play in Chicago.

No mention was made of any further injuries, nor was a replacement for Huerta named. With Crystal Dunn, Emily Fox, Casey Krueger, and Emily Sonnett all in the squad, it is not likely that someone will be brought in on such short notice.

The USWNT has already had to make two injury-related changes to its roster, adding Purce and Angel City left back M.A. Vignola after Rose Lavelle and Kelley O’Hara were deemed unavailable. Vignola, a Cincinnati native, picked up her first-ever cap after replacing Dunn at halftime.

Huerta injury could impact NWSL playoff race

While Huerta’s availability for the second of two friendlies may or may not be a missed chance to impress the team’s future coach, it’s guaranteed that the Idaho native’s absence would damage OL Reign’s prospects of making the NWSL playoffs.

Huerta has been a virtually ever-present starter at right back for Laura Harvey over the last two seasons, starting 35 of a possible 41 games. Moreover, Huerta’s crossing ability is a massive part of how the Reign create chances. Only three players have attempted more crosses than Huerta’s 125 in the NWSL this season, and she sits fifth in switches of play. Among defenders, Huerta’s 55 shot-creating actions are second only to Racing Louisville’s Carson Pickett in 2023 regular season play.

In other words, the Reign — who have scored just three goals in the club’s last eight competitive games — badly need for this to be a minor hamstring tweak rather than a full-blown strain.

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USWNT player ratings: Smith stands out as U.S. eases past Vietnam in World Cup opener

Smith was at the center of most of the USWNT’s best in their win

It may not have been the blowout some expected, but the U.S. women’s national team started the World Cup off with a 3-0 win over Vietnam.

A first-half brace from Sophia Smith — one goal was clinical, the other needed a fairly hefty slice of luck — set the USWNT on their way. After some missed chances, including an Alex Morgan penalty kick that was saved by Vietnam’s Tran Thi Kim Thanh, Lindsey Horan added the third on an assist from Smith.

In the context of Vietnam’s recent results, including only falling to Germany 2-1, it’s a decent result. It’s also not the rout that fans may have thought was coming, though on another day the goals may have been flowing with just a touch more sharpness from the attacking players.

As a reminder, here’s the Pro Soccer Wire player rating scale:

Our scale:

  • 1: Abysmal. Literally any member of our staff would have been been able to play at this level.
  • 6: Adequate. This is our base score.
  • 10: Transcendent, era-defining performance. This is Carli Lloyd vs. Japan in the 2015 final.

Megan Rapinoe literally, figuratively flexes on Orlando Pride in 2-1 win for OL Reign

NWSL Celebration of the Year race is something special

Few players know how to seize a moment quite like Megan Rapinoe.

Two minutes into stoppage time, the U.S. women’s national team veteran struck a dramatic game-winner for OL Reign, who came back to pick up a valuable 2-1 road win over the Orlando Pride Friday night. Rapinoe’s goal went with an assist on Bethany Balcer’s equalizer early in the second half.

It’s an important win, as the Reign are now just one point behind the three teams currently tied for the NWSL Shield lead (did we mention that the NWSL standings are wild right now?). But it’s also another entrant in the NWSL Celebration of the Year competition that is very real and is not merely a creation of Pro Soccer Wire.

The goal itself was not exactly classic Rapinoe. If anything, the “Pinoe” moment on the goal actually came from Sofia Huerta, who delivered an absolutely perfect cross to the back post that Rapinoe just barely beat Haley Hanson to, directing the ball past Erin McLeod to give the visitors a dramatic win.

The celly, though? Folks, that’s classic Pinoe, and it signals that the NWSL Celebration of the Year won’t be decided without significant say from one of the game’s great goal celebrators.

Rapinoe sprinted away and into space along the endline, removing, twirling and finally tossing her shirt. Most of her teammates finally caught up for the more traditional celebratory hugs, before Rapinoe managed to turn, find the camera for the broadcast, and nail a pose before tracking down her jersey.

Pinoe gave Orlando fans an extravagant bow before picking up her jersey, then turned to receive both a yellow card and instructions to leave the field from referee Elvis Osmanovic. Rapinoe was being substituted off, and Osmanovic apparently didn’t want Rapinoe to celebrate her way to midfield, instead directing her off the field by the Pride goal.

As a result, Rapinoe never actually got her jersey back on, and in fact was still wearing a sideline pinnie at full time, which in this site’s opinion counts as a sort of encore section of her celebration.

“Honestly, it’s just sort of an inside joke with the team,” Rapinoe, next to a laughing Balcer, told reporters after the game. “That’s really all I can say.”

Asked directly if she was trying to match Lo’eau LaBonta’s tremendous recent celebration, Rapinoe had a playful response.

“No. Was Lo’eau inspired by me? What do you mean?,” joked Rapinoe. “I’ve been doing this s— for like 12 years, I love celebrations.”

Rapinoe’s entry into the NWSL Celebration of the Year competition comes hot on the tail of top-tier stuff from LaBonta and Trinity Rodman, and a more confusing but nonetheless notable effort from Morgan Weaver.

Watch Rapinoe score and celebrate like a legend

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USWNT sees off Colombia in 2-0 friendly win

A scrappy game delayed by lightning still saw the USWNT come out on top

The U.S. women’s national team took a scrappy 2-0 decision over Colombia Tuesday night in a lightning-delayed friendly at Rio Tinto Stadium in Utah.

With nine changes from the USWNT’s win over the weekend and Colombia not quite sitting as deep, a higher-tempo—but more ragged—game played out at Rio Tinto Stadium. The USWNT tested Catalina Pérez from distance several times and were denied by brave, last-ditch defending in the Colombia box on a frequent basis.

However, they took the lead when an attempt to do that went awry. Tidy work from Rose Lavelle and Alex Morgan moved the ball wide to Sofia Huerta, whose cross attempt was diverted into the goal by a lunging Manuela Vanegas for a 22nd minute own goal.

Colombia’s willingness to take more chances nearly produced a stunning equalizer, but Alyssa Naeher’s brilliant save denied Leicy Santos from 20 yards early in the second half.

A 49-minute lightning delay halted play in the 75th minute, and a more composed USWNT took the field. Pressing high, they doubled their lead just two minutes later on a precise strike from Kelley O’Hara, who came in at right back for Huerta just before the stoppage.

The friendly was the USWNT’s final warm-up before the CONCACAF W Championship, which kicks off in Mexico in six days. The U.S. will face Haiti on July 4 in their Group A opener.

See the USWNT goals

https://twitter.com/USWNT/status/1542003948571095040

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USWNT looking to ‘stay the course’ against Colombia in final CONCACAF W Championship warm-up

“This is just a preparation for what is going to happen in the tournament.”

The U.S. women’s national team faces Colombia Tuesday night in Utah in the second round of a back-to-back set of friendlies designed as preparation for the CONCACAF W Championship.

The USWNT’s 3-0 win offered exactly that, with Colombia offering up a low block and a focus on slowing play down. While the final result—a multi-goal win in which U.S. goalkeeper Casey Murphy faced one shot—was not a surprise, there was a murmur of concern during a first half that saw the USWNT enter the locker room scoreless.

Having looked back on the game, the USWNT seems confident that they’ll be able to score regularly.

“If you look back at that first half, we actually had a lot of opportunities. So I think we were actually exposing (Colombia) pretty well, and we just didn’t finish,” said Sofia Huerta, who came on for the game’s final third. Huerta noted that against an organized lower block, scoring chances may be harder to come by, but that the USWNT had plenty of reason to believe that the goals would come.

“That’s just gonna happen when you’re playing against a team who’s in a low block,” Huerta told reporters in a press conference on Monday. “It is hard to break them down, but I actually think we did, and we didn’t lose any hope that we were going to score.”

Head coach Vlatko Andonovski was very pleased that his team faced a robust challenge of the sort Colombia put forward, where the team’s resolve was tested. In particular, he indicated that watching the USWNT keep their focus against a physical opponent content to stay extremely deep was “tremendous.”

“We talked about that before the game a lot,” said Andonovski. “We talked about it in the halftime, and the fact that we did not waver away from our game plan, and stayed focused on what we’re trying to do, and in fact increased some of the talking points, increased our tempo, increased our intensity, was one of the one of the key moments.”

Andonovski acknowledged the pressure that comes when the USWNT doesn’t score very quickly in a given game. “Everybody, including us, expected to score goal in the first half—which I think that we created enough opportunity to score a goal—but we also know in this game, anything can happen and we didn’t.”

For USWNT opponents, hoping to turn that expectation against the USWNT is generally part of the game plan. Andonovski acknowledged that idea was one they’re probably going to encounter next month.

“Very, very (easily), players can start panicking, and they can start doubting the plan, doubting themselves,” said Andonovski. “I thought that it was very good, the talk that we had in the locker room, but then even the talk that they had among themselves is that this is just a preparation for what is going to happen in the tournament, and we have to stay the course.”

Looking ahead to Tuesday’s rematch, Andonovski indicated there would be plenty of changes. Kelley O’Hara and Andi Sullivan, both of whom started in Colorado, will not start this match, as Andonovski said both are in return-to-play protocol as they overcome injuries that have nagged at them throughout an extraordinarily busy NWSL season with the Washington Spirit.

Andonovski said that Lindsey Horan would play, but as the Lyon midfielder came into camp after some time off, they don’t want to max out her minutes too quickly. On the other hand, NWSL stars like Alana Cook, Emily Fox, and Sophia Smith—who starred against Colombia, scoring two goals—will “probably get some rest in this game as well.”

Andonovski said that one player who isn’t on the W Championship roster—defensive midfielders Sam Coffey and Jaelin Howell, and left back Carson Pickett are the trio in camp that aren’t slated to go to Mexico—will start at Rio Tinto Stadium, but said he couldn’t announce the full starting eleven as he hadn’t told the team yet.

All in all, it seems like the USWNT is ready to apply the lessons from their first meeting to the second, a pattern that will likely play out in Group A next month, as Haiti and Jamaica are not expected to pursue a wide-open game.

“I think it’s just difficult to play teams like that,” said Huerta, summing up what the USWNT can take from these friendlies. “As long as we continue having hope that we’re going to get the goals and not get frustrated, I think obviously, no one can really keep up with us, if we continue to just go at them.”

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