July 21, 2010
BIELEFELD, Germany -- - The United State U-20 Women's National Team, led by Penn State student-athletes Christine Nairn (Arnold, Md.) and Maya Hayes (Livingston, N.J.), defeated South Korea, 1-0, on Wednesday afternoon at the 2010 U-20 World Cup.
Nairn started her third consecutive match for the Americans, while Hayes garnered her second straight start at forward for the U.S. The Group D match pitted the first-place Korean Republic side, who had assured entrance to the quarterfinals prior to Wednesday's match thanks to two wins, while the Americans needed a tie just to advance. The 1-0 win assured the Stars and Stripes of winning their group and a quarterfinal matchup against Nigeria on Sunday at 5:30 a.m. ET.
The U.S. (2-0-1, 7 points) took the game to the Koreans (2-1-0, 6 points) early on, knowing a win would assure a group win. The attack led by Nairn, Hayes, Amber Brooks and U.S. captain Sydney Leroux saw an opportunity in the 18th minute go just wide before Leroux took a Brooks through ball in the 21st minute and slotted it home for the one-goal margin.
Hayes didn't record a point on Wednesday's match, breaking a streak of two straight games where the incoming freshman forward notched assists, both to Leroux, who has five goals in the tournament.
The Koreans fought back with pressure offensively, but the Americans were up to the task, taking a 1-0 lead into the halftime whistle. In the second half, Hayes was subbed out in the 57th minute, while Nairn finished off the game in the holding midfield position, helping a U.S. defense that was under an onslaught for portions of the second half by a crafty and possession-laden Korean side. In the end, the staunch U.S. defense fended off the South Koreans, taking top Group D honors and avoiding a rematch with Mexico in the quarterfinals.
The win also helped the U.S. be assured of not facing Germany or North Korea until the finals. Germany and North Korea are two of the stronger sides in the tournament, while the U.S., should it advance to the semifinals, would see the winner of the Colombia-Sweden game. Those two teams are making their first U-20 Women's World Cup appearances in the 2010 edition.
The U.S.-Nigeria game will be played in the city of Ausburg in the state of Bayern. The first two U.S. games were at Dresden, the team's home base, before Wednesday's match in Bielefeld. A win assures two games in Bielefeld as the semifinals, third-place game and final are in the North Rhine-Westphalia state. The United State are the holders of the U-20 World Cup, winning the 2008 title, which featured Nairn and three-time NSCAA All-American Alyssa Naeher.
For complete updates on Nairn and Hayes with the U.S. U-20s, visit GoPSUsports.com as well as Twitter (@PSUWomensSoccer) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/PSUWomensSoccer).
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