COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Allie Sentner scored in the 55th minute and the U.S. defeated Canada 1-0 on Wednesday in the She Believes Cup tournament, ending its seventh straight shutout.
Sentner scored his seventh international goal off a corner kick by Rose LaBelle, collecting the ball on the bounce before going past two defenders and Canadian goalkeeper Kylen Sheridan.
The United States hasn’t allowed a goal in 714 minutes since beating Portugal 3-1 last October.
“Honestly, our goal was just to win the game,” Sentner said. “Going into a rivalry game, I think we knew what was going to happen. It was a game on the line, and Canada gave us a great performance and we had to really work for this win.”
The United States sits at the top of the SheBelieves table with two wins, ahead of Canada and Colombia with one win each. of Colombia beat Argentina 1-0 in an early game at Scots Miracle-Gro Stadium on Wednesday.
Since their first meeting in 1986, the United States is 55-4-9 against Canada. The U.S. won 3-0 in the last meeting in July.
The last Canadian victory in the series came at the Tokyo Olympics. In the semi-finals, Jesse Fleming converted a penalty kick for a 1-0 victory. Canada won the gold medal.
U.S. coach Emma Hayes inserted Trinity Rodman into the starting lineup despite Rodman taking a hit in the back late Sunday. 2-0 SheBelieves win against Argentina In Nashville. Rodman struggled with a lingering back injury last year.
Canada, Victory over Colombia 4-1 Captain Fleming was absent from the tournament’s opening game due to illness.
The game ended scoreless at the end of the first half, even though the Americans had nearly 70% possession.
Sentner, who plays professionally for the Kansas City Current, broke the deadlock with his third goal of the year. The 22-year-old was named U.S. Soccer’s Young Player of the Year in 2024.
Canada coach Casey Stoney said he felt his team had made “huge progress” since the last time Canada played the United States, but was disappointed with the goal conceded on a set piece.
“I thought we were competitive throughout the game. I thought we kept our distance well and were disciplined,” Stoney said. “I think there were moments where we were a little more calm in the opponent’s box.”
Colombia will play the United States in the final round on Saturday in Harrison, New Jersey. Canada will play Argentina early in the game.
This is the 11th annual SheBelieves Cup hosted by the United States. This was Canada’s fourth appearance in the tournament.
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