Australia, USA and Canada win their first game. United States keeps the impressive good stats at 6 on 5 play, now scoring 8 out of 10 man-up opportunities.
Our coach Petie scored 2 goals to help the USA team to win.
GREECE 8 AUSTRALIA 9
Referees: Marie-Claude DESLIERES (CAN), Jaime MOLINER (ESP)
Quarters: 2-3, 1-3,1-0, 4-3
GREECE: Anthoula MYLONAKI, Alexandra ASIMAKI, Angeliki GEROLYMOU (2), Sofia IOSIFIDOU, Kyriaki LIOSI (1), Stavroula KOZOMPOLI (1), Aikaterini OIKONOMOPOULOU, Antigoni ROUMPESI (1), Evangelia MORAITIDOU (2), Nicoleta KOTSIDOU, Stavroula ANTONAKOU (1), Georgia LARA, Maria TSOURI. Head Coach: Kyriakos IOSIFIDIS.
AUSTRALIA: Victoria BROWN, Fiona HAMMOND, Lisa CALLAHAN, Jane MORAN (2), Suzie FRASER (3), Gemma HADLEY (1), Larissa WEBSTER, Kate GYNTHER (1), Erin DOUGLASS, Mia SANTOROMITO (1), Melissa RIPPON (1), Katie FINUCANE, Lea BARTA. Head Coach: Greg McFADDEN
SPAIN 3 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 12
Referees: Cristina TACCINI (ITA), WANG Yaqi (CHN)
Quarters: 1-2, 0-3, 1-4, 1-3
SPAIN: Patricia DEL SOTO, Blanca GIL (1), Cristina PARDO, Irene HAGEN, Miriam LOPEZ-ESCRIBANO, Jennifer PAREJA, Cristina LOPEZ, Anna PARDO, Pilar PENA, Samantha MIGUEL, Maria GARCIA (2), Laura LOPEZ, Elisabeth GAZULLA. Head Coach: Vicenc TARRES.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Elizabeth ARMSTRONG, Heather PETRI (2), Erika FIGGE, Brenda VILLA (1), Lauren WENGER (2), Natalie GOLDA, Patricia CARDENAS (1), Jessica STEFFENS (3), Elsie WINDES (1), Alison GREGORKA, Moriah VAN NORMAN (1), Kameryn CRAIG (1), Jaime HIPP. Head Coach: Guy BAKER.
Game report from www.fina.org:
World champion United States of America did as expected with a well-constructed win over Spain. The USA was always in control but stubborn Spanish resistance kept the rampant USA in check. Gazulla played goal for Spain, as captain Del Soto was ill but sat on the bench. Hipp guarded cage for USA.
The USA started strongly with an extra-man goal on the first attack thanks to captain Villa. Despite further assaults, the USA couldn’t capitalise for some time but Steffens rifled in a shot on extra at 3:50. Garcia played a magnificent lone hand in the dying seconds when smothered by two players at centre forward. She held the ball, turned in two motions and scored into the bottom right.
Spain didn’t get a look in during the second quarter with the USA consolidating. The goals didn’t come that easy though with Van Norman on extra at centre forward, Cardenas from the top, also on extra, and Wenger with a superb goal. The best player at the Melbourne World Championships, Wenger stole the ball at the five-metre line, sprinted upfield and scored for 5-1 at 3:06. The USA hit the post several times but no further goal came by halftime.
The third period was a flurry of activity. Pareja had a chance to narrow the gap but her penalty shot hit the right post. Petri walked in to five metres to score for 6-1. Gil, the highest goal-scorer in Melbourne, gained her first of the series with a penalty at 4:47. Petri claimed a second goal from the top, as did Wenger on extra from deep right-hand catch. Windes wound up from eight metres in the last second to score on the hooter for 9-2.
Craig opened the fourth on extra for the USA and Garcia responded for Spain after a tactical timeout. Nineteen-year-old Steffens plastered the goal twice on extra with the second coming off the far upright from her deep-left shooting position.
COACHES’ COMMENTS:
Vicenc TARRES (ESP): “I am not disappointed (with the result) as we have only been together for a few days. We are using this tournament as a preparation for the Olympics and European Championships, playing against the stronger teams. In all these games we learn something. We know we can play this level of game and we are improving all the time.”
Guy BAKER (USA): “They scored one from 10 and we scored eight from 10 (on extra). For the most part it was good but we turned the ball over 11 times in the first half. We haven’t played Spain since the World Championships and they have a new coach. We were curious to see what they were doing. You have to play all styles… it was interesting to see how we reacted.”
CHINA 5 CANADA 13
Referees: Vasiliou NIKOSS (GRE), Yesenia MARRERO (PUR)
Quarters: 1-3, 0-3, 1-4, 3-3
CHINA: YANG Jun, TENG Fei, SUN Yujun (1), HE Jin (1), SUN Yating, GAO Ao, MO Fengmin, WANG Yi (1), MA Huanhuan (1), SUN Huizi, TAN Ying, QIAO Leiying (1), ZHU Jiayi. Head Coach: PAN Shengwa.
CANADA: Rachel RIDDELL, Krystina ALOGBO (3), Sandra LIZÉ (1), Emily CSIKOS, Joelle BEKHAZI (1), Rosanna TOMIUK, Cora CAMPBELL, Dominique PERRAULT (1), Alison BRADEN (1), Christine ROBINSON (3), Tara CAMPBELL, Marina RADU (3), Whynther LAMARRE, Jenna CROOK. Head Coach: Pat OATEN.
