PALO ALTO, Calif. – January 30, 2018 – Anyone's game for the taking, the final match between the U.S. Women’s National Team and No. 1 The Netherlands had fans sitting on the edge of their seats. Scoreless through the first half, the Oranje tallied one three minutes into the third quarter and it only took a minute later for USA to find the equalizer. The battle persisted until The Netherlands netted the game winner with five minutes remaining and take the series with a score of 2-1.

"We didn’t make key changes," said Janneke Schopman, USWNT Head Coach, when asked about what went into preparation for this final match. "We went further down the road on the journey and worked on our goals we set at the start of the series."

USA came out in this match with a different fire than the previous three. On attacking in the first 5 minutes, USA had some circle entries but were unable to produce any outcomes. The Netherlands was quick to respond using their one and two touch passing to eliminate downfield. In the 12th minute, the Oranje earned their first penalty corner but Jackie Briggs (Robesonia, Pa.) denied the drag flick attempt. A second penalty corner came at the end of the quarter, but the chance went over the end line.

In the second quarter, The Netherlands came off the line quick tallying a shot that forced Briggs to make a diving save. A few more close chances came for the Oranje with one redirect going just wide and a goalmouth scramble resulting in no outcome. USA didn’t let off the pressure as Jill Witmer (Lancaster, Pa.) earned their first penalty corner where Ashley Hoffman’s (Mohnton, Pa.) drag was deflected wide off a defender’s stick. The halftime score stood locked at zeroes.

The Oranje held possession in the opening minutes of the third and as they continued knocking, their forward exertion paid off when Marloes Keetels finished a swift passing pattern to grab a 1-0 lead. USA was quick to respond as they instantly took possession the other way and earned a penalty a minute later. Kathleen Sharkey (Moosic, Pa.) got the equalizer off a straight strike to make it 1-1. The Oranje continued to threaten and almost received a penalty stroke, but the play was reviewed and overturned.

As the final quarter commenced, both team's knew they had to make the most of their opportunities. In the 46th minute, USA’s Ali Froede (Burke, Va.) received a 5-minute yellow card giving The Netherlands a player advantage for a period of time. This was short lived as two minutes later, Kitty van Male also received a 5-minute yellow card for not being five yards from the play. This foul happened inside USA’s attacking quarter resulting upgrading to a penalty corner. Unsuccessful on the attempt, The Netherlands’ used their quickness to beat a few USA defenders and take possession down field. USA tried to dribble it out of the backfield and Lidewij Welten stripped the defender, took it into the circle and grabbed the game winning goal. USA didn’t let up and countered a minute later and earned back-to-back penalty corners. The first attempt struck an Oranje foot and the second drew excitement within the crowd as the shot was deflected off a defender’s stick and rung off the crossbar. The final score stood at USA 1, The Netherlands 2.  

"The Dutch set the standard in world hockey," commented Schopman. "It’s now up to us to work hard every day to get closer to their level by playing to our own DNA. I’m very happy how the series progressed for us and look forward to our next training block in Chula Vista."

Stefanie Fee & Janneke Schopman, USWNT Head Coach

Another highlight in today's competition was that USWNT defender Stefanie Fee (Virginia Beach, Va.) received her 100th international cap.

The U.S. Women’s National Team has a regeneration period before heading to Chula Vista, Calif. to continue their West Coast training block. The squad will take on Canada from February 21-25 in a closed test series.