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The U.S., 21-0-3 in the past 15 months, won
Group A of the CONCACAF qualifier at 3-0-0 and will play in a
semifinal match Sunday in Frisco, Texas.
There was no drama as the U.S. moved to 30-1-0 all time in
qualifying by outscoring its three opponents in the round-robin
18-0.
Alex Morgan opened the scoring in the ninth minute. She hit the
post three more times over the next 25 minutes, and the U.S. was
held without an additional goal until Rose Lavelle scored in the
41st and 43rd minutes. Crystal Dunn made it 4-0 in the 45th
minute.
Goals continued in bunches, with Lindsey Horan scoring in the
49th and Morgan pinging one in off the post a minute later for
her 21st goal in her past 22 international matches. Tobin Heath
added a seventh goal on a tap-in in the 58th minute.
The U.S. finished with a 52-0 shot advantage.
Entering the match, Trinidad and Tobago (0-3-0) had been
eliminated from qualifying for the semifinals while the U.S. had
already advanced and would finish first in the group unless it
lost by 12 goals.
Panama (2-1-0) earned a 2-0 win over Mexico (1-2-0) to finish
second in the group and also move to the semifinals. The two
spots from Group B will be decided Thursday. The U.S. will play
the second-place finisher among Canada, Costa Rica and Jamaica.
The semifinal winners automatically advance to the World Cup in
France next summer. The winner of the third-place game also
qualifies for the World Cup, while the team that finishes fourth
will face Argentina in a playoff for another World Cup berth.
--Field Level Media
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