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No mercy Hamm, Parlow lead U.S. demolition of Trinidad
Posted: Saturday June 24, 2000 12:19 AM
HERSHEY, Pa. (AP) -- There are times when the opponent doesn't matter. The U.S. women's soccer players knew that one of those times was Friday night against Trinidad and Tobago in the Gold Cup. So they worked on a new alignment, on their ball control and their passing and their conditioning in muggy weather. And they worked everything to perfection against the overmatched visitors in an 11-0 rout. "It is extremely important to dictate how the game is played," career scoring leader Mia Hamm said after scoring twice. "Soccer can have ebbs and flows, but we jumped on them tonight." Just as coach April Heinrichs promised. The Americans showed no mercy as Cindy Parlow got her third hat trick this month and Sara Whalen added two goals. In what amounted to little more than a stroll through Hersheypark, the world champions were relentless in the opener of the eight-nation tournament. They jumped ahead on Parlow's first score in the fourth minute and possessed the ball for 90 percent of the mismatch. "That is something we have been focusing on, scoring early," Heinrichs said. "When in the first five minutes we got a goal, we were celebrating on the bench, everybody standing up. "We always want more. Our team has achieved its success because of what these players do when they don't have to. We didn't have to be on the cutting edge to win, but you saw players making decisions and doing things as if they were on that cutting edge of having to win." Two of the younger, less-heralded World Cuppers were dominant early. Lorrie Fair, who has stepped in for injured Michelle Akers at center midfield, scored twice in a minute. Christie Pearce, in for captain Carla Overbeck at outside halfback, had two beautiful assists in the first half. The visitors never had a chance. Were it not for some spectacular saves by Nicole Mitchell, the United States might have reached two dozen goals. And after Mitchell banged her knee in a collision with Mia Hamm late in the first half, the Americans seemed capable of it. That wouldn't have bothered Heinrichs, who said the faucet would remain turned on regardless of the score. Heinrichs saw her team's sharp passing and overwhelming ball possession pay off with goals from veterans such as Hamm and Tiffeny Milbrett, and developing stars such as Fair and Parlow. "Every forward likes to score as much as possible and to come out of a game with three goals is a great feeling," Parlow said. Hamm, who missed a half-dozen wonderful chances in the first half, drilled home a short shot off a scramble in the 48th minute. She got another in the 68th. "We did so many good things tonight," Hamm said. "We knocked the ball around well and controlled it well." They certainly impressed Trinidad and Tobago coach Anthony Best. "It is not an easy feeling being slaughtered," Best said. "Those that don't break the back strengthen it, and our backs are not broken." Shannon MacMillan put a penalty shot over the crossbar moments after Hamm's first score, but that didn't stem the onslaught. Parlow got her second of the night with a header off a precise corner kick by Milbrett in the 51st. Hamm then made a perfect feed to MacMillan for a short tap-in in the 62nd. Eleven minutes later, Parlow headed in a long cross from Brandi Chastain to make it 9-0. It was her fourth three-goal game of the year. Sara Whalen converted for the 10th goal off MacMillan's long through pass and got the final goal on a breakaway in the 90th. A crowd of 10,483, many carrying American flags or dressed in No. 9 Hamm jerseys, first began cheering the U.S. women when they entered the stadium runway midway through the opening game between Brazil and Costa Rica. The cheers were louder when the team came out for warmups to "All-Star," blaring over the loudspeakers. But the biggest ovation came when Parlow, who had seven goals in the recent Australia Cup, sent home a loose ball in the fourth minute. Parlow was impressed that the fans stuck around all night. "There were 10,000 who came out tonight and they all were staying at the end when it was 10-0 and still screaming their heads off," she said. Earlier, Brazil had an equally easy time with Costa Rica as Roseli and Formiga scored two goals each in an 8-0 romp. The United States meets Costa Rica on Sunday in Louisville, Ky., while Brazil plays Trinidad and Tobago.
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