WASHINGTON, Oct 7, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Ji So-yun scored a first half goal as
South Korea tied the United States 1-1 on Sunday, spoiling the final game of
coach Jill Ellis and snapping the Americans 17-game winning streak.
South Korea, ranked 20th in the world, opened the scoring on Ji’s goal then
held on for the draw despite some furious pressure by the mighty Americans in
the final minutes of stoppage time in front of a crowd of 33,020 at Soldier
Field in Chicago.
The number one ranked US rang one shot off the crossbar in stoppage time
and had another goal called back in extra time because Carli Lloyd was ruled
offside.
Lloyd scored the lone US goal in the 37th minute with a superb header that
sailed over the top of three South Korean defenders and past the arms of
goalkeeper Kang Ga-ae.
Lloyd’s marker came just three minutes after Ji’s goal for South Korea, who
were forced to play the final 10 minutes of the contest shorthanded because
forward Son Hwa-yeon was sent off for a red card.
Head coach Ellis announced on July 30 that she was stepping down from her
post after five-plus years at the helm of the world’s top team.
The Americans were riding a 17-match win streak and Ellis was hoping to
sail off into the sunset with another dominant victory against an Asian
minnow.
The US did extend its unbeaten streak to 21 games after dropping the first
game of 2019 to France 3-1 in Le Havre.
In July, the Americans captured their fourth World Cup title with a 2-0 win
over the Netherlands.
The Americans pressed hard in the second half on Sunday to try and get the
winning goal but they headed one shot off the post in the 82nd minute and
another header by Mallory Pugh clanked off the crossbar in stoppage time.
Earlier in extra time, Pugh whiffed on a half volley from in close that saw
the ball dribble into the arms of a diving Kang.
The draw comes just three days after the US beat South Korea 2-0 in
Charlotte, North Carolina. That was Ellis’s 106th victory as coach and saw
her surpass Tony DiCicco for most at the helm of the US women’s team.