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Thori Bryan's goal launches USA to 3-1 victory over Norway

January 23, 2003 - Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA)
San Jose CyberRays News Release


YIWU, China (Jan. 23, 2003) – Tireless defender Thori Bryan has often been counted on to stop goals, but never to score them.

As the WUSA's all-time minutes-played leader with 3,975 minutes on the field over 44 CyberRays matches – every minute the CyberRays have ever played – she is yet to score her first professional goal. And in 61 previous international matches for the United States, Bryan was also scoreless.

But in today's opener of the Four Nations Tournament, a major tune-up for September's Women's World Cup, Bryan headed Aly Wagner's corner kick in the 24th minute to open U.S. scoring in what turned out to be a 3-1 victory over arch-rival Norway.

``To score my first goal with that kind of crowd, against Norway and in this kind of game was awesome,'' Bryan said afterward.

U.S. coach April Heinrichs said she had made changes on some of the team's attacking set plays ``and one of them was to bring Thori forward because of her leaping ability and her courage to head the ball and anything that gets between her and the ball.''

Bryan, who stands 5-8, said ``I was making a back post run and the ball flew over everyone. I headed it down, but it seemed like it took forever to get to the goal, and then I saw it hit the back of the net.''

Wagner, who just finished her career at Santa Clara and is the odds-on favorite to go first in the Feb. 2 WUSA Draft, assisted on all three U.S. goals including New York Power striker Tiffeny Milbrett's 12-yard blast in the 64th minute and 18-year-old Heather O'Reilly's 14-yard shot in the 87th.

``It was a stupendous performance by Aly to get three assists against Norway, to set play the way that she did and to embrace our defensive mentality,'' Heinrichs said. ``The

final pass was a missing ingredient in the first half, but in the second half she was putting the ball on people's feet. It's a really good sign when players can get better during the course of a game.''

Boston Breakers forward Dagney Mellgren scored Norway's only goal off an assist from Carolina Courage midfielder Hege Riise in the 42nd minute.

Coupled with a scoreless tie in the China-Germany match in the other half of the doubleheader played before 27,000 fans on a cold night, the United States has now taken over first place in the tournament, which matches the world's top four women's teams. It was the second U.S. victory in a row over 2000 Olympic champion Norway, the world's only team with a winning record against the United States.

``Any time you score three goals against Norway, you know you've stepped out on the field prepared to play and you've capitalized on the few opportunities you got,'' Heinrichs said. ``We started off well and got better every minute during the course of the game and finished the game with disciplined defense and confident attacking.''

The United States travels to World Cup venue Wuhan on Friday and will face China on Sunday in a rematch of the 1999 World Cup final.



Women's United Soccer Association Stories from January 23, 2003


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