The United States Women’s National Team was given a stark challenge by a plucky Spanish side on Monday, but they eventually pulled through with a 2-1 victory to send them on to the quarter-finals of this year’s World Cup.
The Spanish women played physically and pushed the USWNT to its limits, but were ultimately unable to pull off what would have been a shocking upset thanks to the two penalty kicks that they conceded in the game.
The first goal was scored by the United States with only 7 minutes gone in the first half of the game. Spain’s Mapi León fouled Tobin Heath in the box, and USWNT legend Megan Rapinoe opened the scoring.
Spain wasn’t intimidated, however, as they came back to score after a Jennifer Hermoso strike only two minutes later to tie the game at one apiece.
The score remained there until a controversial penalty was called in the USWNT’s favor in the 70th minute of the match. Spanish defender Virginia Torrecilla appeared to lightly graze Rose Lavelle’s shin with a challenge, a dubious penalty at best. However, after VAR revision, the penalty was upheld and Rapinoe converted once again.
That was enough for a 2-1 victory for the USWNT that was tougher than many expected. Their reward will be a date with tournament co-favorites France on Friday in a blockbuster quarter-finals matchup.
