The widely successful ride is over, the top spot amongst all coaches of the team is secure, Jill Ellis goes out in a tie. 33,027 bore witness to this monumental end at Solider Field under great conditions, Carli Lloyd, the greatest of her players had the sole goal just 3 days before, as they downed this same Korean team in a shutout 2-0 win. The 34' saw a shot against the grain from Ji So-Yun just beyond the box and it was 1-0 but now just a wait a minute. In the 35', it was equalized as Carli Lloyd out jumped her mark driving home a headed corner from the back post giving her 13 on the year to knot it up. Bottom line the USWNT just did not play well enough to win, less determination other than a flurry at the end. Included in the ending action were both Jessica McDonald and Mallory Pugh banging headers off the goal frame, and what I thought to be an onside goal by Lloyd, deemed off by the linesperson.
There are a pair of games remaining for the reigning World Cup Champs in Nov. with Sweden always a tough one in MAPFRE Stadium Cloumbus on the 7th at 7:30 ET on FS1 & TUDN and the 10th from TIAA Bank FIeld in FL with Costa Rica at 8 ET watch it on ESPN2 & TUDN.
Kwik Kixx:
-The record with Korea is now 10-0-3, the pregame #20 team in the world rankings.
-JIll Ellis closes her book as HC at 106-7-19 that and her total games of 132 are tops in program history.
-Pre game the USWNT was riding a 17 game win streak, Ellis' longest with the team.
-Ellis leave undefeated in World Cup play and Qualifiers, 23-0-1, the one tie being with Sweden in group play of the 2015 World Cup.
-Carli Lloyd had goal #13 on the year in her 7th start and is tops on the team.
-Injury kept 7 players out of the lineup, 2 new players had been called in.
-5 Chicago Red Star players were rostered including one who was called in, Casey Short.