The 2024 USA Women soccer Team
Jaedyn Shaw , Casey Krueger , Naomi Girma , Trinity Rodman , Sophia Smith , Mallory Swanson , Lynn Williams , Crystal Dunn pose with their gold medal after winning the Women’s Gold Medal match between Brazil and United States of America during the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Parc des Princes on August 10, 2024 in Paris, France. Photo: Daniela Porcelli/ISI Photos/Getty Images
No one can say the U.S. women’s national team didn’t rise to the occasion in big moments during the Olympics tournament. There was Trinity Rodman’s wonder-strike in extra time against Japan in the quarterfinals that gave them a 1-0 win, and a Sophia Smith goal in the semis against Germany, also in extra time that also sealed a 1-0 win. Well, in the gold medal match against Brazil, it came down to one moment, one goal, this one from Mallory Swanson, who netted in the 57th minute to provide the United States the only cushion they’d need. It was an extraordinary performance for a team that has remade itself under new coach Emma Hayes, injecting new talent into a system that, for all its dominance over the last two decades, had begun to get stale. The gold is the U.S. women’s fifth and the first since 2012.
HPS Magazine 