COLUMBUS, Ohio — The SheBelieves Cup proved to be an exercise in resilience for the trophy-lifting U.S. women’s national soccer team, which, in a two-game, four-day drill before the arrival of its new coach and the Olympic countdown, responded to deficits, showed nerve and again turned to goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher against its regional rival.
A roller coaster of a Tuesday night culminated with Naeher making three saves in a shootout and converting an attempt of her own — just as she had done against Canada last month.
And when Emily Fox rolled in her attempt in the seventh round of the tiebreaker, the fourth-ranked Americans celebrated a 5-4 triumph following a 2-2 draw before 19,049.
“I just think the resiliency of the group and to battle back from being down is going to pay dividends going forward,” said Naeher, 35, a two-time World Cup starter on a squad that has welcomed several newcomers over the past six months.
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Canada, ranked No. 9, took the lead late in the first half after a U.S. defensive letdown. U.S. forward Sophia Smith scored twice in the second half. Canada pulled level in the dying moments.
Because the ninth annual SheBelieves Cup was not an official international tournament, the match went directly to a shootout after regulation.
Naeher blocked three of Canada’s final five tries, all while moving to her right. At the recent Concacaf W Gold Cup semifinal in San Diego, she starred in the shootout following a 2-2 tie with Canada.
“She is someone that shows no emotion,” forward Alex Morgan said. “I know there are nerves under [there] somewhere, but she is never going to show them and she’s just someone that continues to show up in big moments.”
Interim coach Twila Kilgore, in her final game before joining Emma Hayes’s staff this summer, saluted her team’s persistence in both the final and in Saturday’s 2-1 comeback victory over Japan in Atlanta.
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“There is a real belief that, no matter what the situation is, we can overcome it,” she said. “Ideally, we’re not putting ourselves in these situations, but it happens sometimes. This is a really good growing moment and things we can draw on in the future.”
The shootout victories came less than a year after World Cup elimination in Australia came via a round-of-16 tiebreaker against Sweden.
“This team needed to regroup a little bit and focus on the things we felt wouldn’t get us ready and who we really are, get back to our DNA and also make sure we are evolving,” said Kilgore, who replaced Vlatko Andonovski in August. “Change has been on the horizon for a long time. They understand change is coming and, to do all of this with a lot of uncertainty, [the players] deserve so much credit. ... We’re ready for the next phase. We’re ready.”
Hayes, who is completing her tenure with English club Chelsea, will begin her U.S. tenure with friendlies against South Korea on June 1 in Commerce City, Colo., and June 4 in St. Paul, Minn. The last tests before the Olympics will come July 13 against Mexico in Harrison, N.J., and, according to people familiar with the plans, July 16 against an opponent to be named at Audi Field.
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Canada, the Olympic gold medalist in 2021, is headed to the Summer Games for the fifth consecutive time.
Against the run of play, the United States fell behind in the 40th minute. Fault lay with center back Tierna Davidson and Naeher.
On Jade Rose’s long ball, Davidson lost a foot race to Ashley Lawrence. Naeher decided to come off her line instead of sitting back, and once she did, she needed to extinguish the threat. She did not.
Naeher collided with Lawrence at the top of the box. The ball squirted to Deanne Rose, who set up Adriana Leon for a 12-yard shot between center back Abby Dahlkemper’s legs.
The answer came in the 50th minute. Jaedyn Shaw one-touched to Smith, who cut to her left and created a pocket of space against Jessie Fleming before unleashing a 20-yard left-footer with perfect placement beyond Kailen Sheridan’s reach and into the far lower corner.
Eighteen minutes later, the Americans fashioned a goal of speed and artistry. Shaw, 19, turned in the center circle and sent a well-weighted pass through the center channel to substitute Trinity Rodman in stride. Rodman slipped it ahead to Smith for a low finish past Sheridan.
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Canada drew even in the 86th minute on Leon’s penalty kick — awarded after she went down easily on Crystal Dunn’s challenge.
In the 90th, Canada’s Kadeisha Buchanan headed Leon’s corner kick off the crossbar from close range.
Then it was Naeher’s moment.
“Is it not incredible?” Kilgore said. “I mean, nerves of steel.”
Notes: The United States will play its Olympic opener against Zambia, which on Tuesday won at Morocco, 2-0, in extra time for a 3-2 aggregate victory in an Africa qualifying playoff. In their World Cup debut last year, the Copper Queens were eliminated in the group stage. ...
In the SheBelieves Cup third-place match, No. 10 Brazil defeated No. 7 Japan on penalty kicks, 3-0, following a 1-1 draw. Mina Tanaka scored in the 35th minute, but Brazilian goalkeeper Lorena saved Tanaka’s penalty kick before Cristiane equalized in the 71st. Drawn into the same Olympic group, the teams will meet again July 28 in Paris.
