GERMANY 3, U.S. 0: The Americans can't convert its opportunities and lose in the World Cup semis.
By Associated Press
Published October 6, 2003
PORTLAND, Ore. - There will be no World Cup repeat for the American women, no triumph before a raucous home crowd.
Spectacular goalkeeping by Silke Rottenberg, a brilliantly executed corner kick and two late goals gave Germany a 3-0 semifinal victory against the defending champion United States on Sunday.
Kerstin Garefrekes' header off Renate Lingor's corner kick glanced off the crossbar and into the net in the 15th minute. Then the Germans withstood one U.S. threat after another.
Maren Meinert, the WUSA MVP this past season, scored during the final minute of regulation. Then Birgit Prinz, a star in the German league, punctuated the victory with a goal just before the end of extra time.
"Everybody had a chance," Prinz said. "And I think in the end, we were lucky and we finished our chances. We were totally excited to beat the U.S. We usually lose important games to them."
Germany plays Sweden, a 2-1 winner over Canada, for the championship Sunday in Carson, Calif. The United States faces Canada Saturday for third place.
"We brought our A game in terms of the attacking," U.S. coach April Heinrichs said. "That's a great team we played.
"I said to the German coach after the game, "Go and win it' because that certainly is one of the best teams I've seen in a long time."
It was the second World Cup loss for the United States and first since it was beaten by Norway in the 1995 semifinals. The Norwegians went on to beat Germany for the championship.
The tournament originally was scheduled to be played in China. But it was moved to the United States because of the SARS epidemic. The stage seemed set for a U.S. repeat as it advanced through a tough group and a difficult 1-0 quarterfinal victory against Norway.
Germany, meanwhile, rolled through its preliminary competition, outscoring its opponents 20-3 entering Sunday's game.
Mia Hamm, the American superstar who will retire after next year's Olympics, repeatedly set up potential scores only to have them fall apart in front of the German net.
She sent a feed to Tiffeny Milbrett in the 74th minute, leaving the forward one-on-one with the German goalkeeper. But her shot sailed over the net.
"We had opportunities," Hamm said. "But it's one thing to create them. It's another to finish them."
The last gasp came on Hamm's corner kick during the 89th minute. It fell harmlessly to the ground, and the Germans kicked the ball out of danger.
"It was a hard loss because of the way it went down," U.S. goalkeeper Briana Scurry said. "They were bending and bending, but they didn't break."
When it was over, Hamm and her teammates could not hold back the tears. She pulled her shirt over her face, later hugged teammate Joy Fawcett and finally clapped her hands over her head in appreciation of the capacity crowd.
"You know the margin is so slim. It's so slim in this game," Heinrichs said. "I thought we had some chances."
Brandi Chastain, who became the symbol of the 1999 U.S. World Cup victory when she took off her shirt after scoring the winning goal in penalty kicks, came onto the field to console her teammates. She broke her foot in the victory against Sweden in the opener.
After the game, the Germans jumped on each other's backs with joy. Rottenberg held her head in disbelief.
The United States had an 8-1 advantage in shots and 3-1 in shots on goal during the first half but trailed 1-0.
Germany nearly spoiled the U.S. World Cup triumph in 1999, twice leading its quarterfinal match before the Americans rallied to win 3-2. There was no comeback this time.
Garefrekes, the 24-year-old midfielder who scored two goals in the 7-1 quarterfinal victory against Russia, could not have headed Lingor's corner kick into a better spot. The ball was hit so high that there was no way Scurry could reach it.
It was only the second goal allowed by the United States in the tournament and the first time it had trailed in five matches.
Protesters interrupt game
CARSON, Calif. - Two naked women ran onto the field in the 57th minute of the United States' loss with signs that read, "Boycott Adidas" and "Adidas Kills." Both were taken off the field by security.
Adidas is the World Cup sponsor, and the protest was aimed at the company's use of labor in Third World countries.
