U.S. Women’s CP National Team Opens 2024 World Cup with 9-2 Win against Republic of Ireland

SALOU, Spain (Nov. 15, 2024) – The U.S. Women’s Cerebral Palsy National Team utilized a hat trick from Cassidy Leake, and braces from Catarina Guimaraes, Joey Martin and Jesslyn Kuhnel to earn a comfortable 9-2 win against the Republic of Ireland in the team’s opening match of the 2024 IFCPF Women’s Cerebral Palsy World Cup at Mediterranean Sports Complex.

Idle on the first day of the five-team tournament Friday, the USA was tested just seconds in, as U.S. goalkeeper Leah Glaser turned away Eva Walsh’s, effort from the left.

After working past the early danger, the CP WNT got on the board in the fourth minute when Guimaraes dispossessed Ireland’s Casey Heaney on the left side of midfield, strolled towards goal and slotted her low effort inside the left post.

The game evened out and led to an Ireland equalizer in the 10th minute. Walsh won the ball off Guimaraes on the left side of midfield and played it for Katie Finnegan. She returned the pass and Walsh uncorked a laser, left-footed effort into the top right corner to pull Ireland level in the 10th minute.

After some back-and-forth play, the USA would regain the advantage from the penalty spot. The ball found its way to Kuhnel in the area before Heather Jameson missed on a clearance an upended the U.S. midfielder, forcing the referee to point to the penalty spot. On the ensuing take, captain Leake stepped up and calmly slotted her spot kick to the left of Reeva Merriman to make it 2-1 in the 15th minute

Leake grabbed her second goal from a corner kick two minutes later as Guimaraes alertly played a low ball to the unmarked U.S. captain as she arrived in the penalty area and one-timed a right-footed effort past Merriman in the 17th minute.

After a foul at the top of the arc, Ireland pulled it back to 3-2 when captain Heather Jameson threaded her 19th minute free kick past Glaser and inside the right post.

In the 22nd minute, Guimaraes slotted a low ball across the box for Kuhnel, whose headed effort clanged off the crossbar before Leake’s follow-up header went over. That chance was a sign of things to come for the U.S. as it pulled away before half time.

A misplayed clearance from Ireland’s Casey Heaney came straight to Leake at the midfield stripe, who alertly powered an effort right back at goal to claim her hat trick in the 23rd minute.

In the 25th minute, Guimaraes stood over a free kick from inside the midfield stripe on the left, and placed her effort inside the top left corner to grab her second of the match, pushing the USA into halftime with a commanding 5-2 lead.

On the other side of the break, Glaser was called back into action when Jameson uncorked a low blast from midfield that the U.S. ‘keeper was equal to in the 30th minute.

In the 32nd minute, Joey Martin, who scored in extra time of the 2022 IFCPF Women’s World Cup Final victory against Australia, came off the bench and needed mere seconds to make her mark. Leake drove the ball forward into the box and played over to Martin on the right, where she powered her effort inside the right post to take it to 6-2.

The goal was an emotional one for Martin, who earned her first cap after undergoing surgery to remove a brain tumor earlier this year, but she wasn’t done yet. In the 45th minute, fellow substitute Kaia Spencer’s corner kick from the left found her crashing at the right post where Martin redirected her second of the match to make it 7-2.

At the other end, Glaser made her best save one minute later. Finnegan latched onto a loose ball in the back and hit a point-blank shot that the U.S. ‘keeper parried over the bar with her left to ensure she kept a second-half clean sheet.

The U.S. had two more goals in it before full time. In the 47th minute, Spencer strolled through midfield before finding Kuhnel open on the left side of the penalty box where she hit home her first of the tournament. Then two minutes into stoppage time, Spencer again collected the ball on the left before centering for Kuhnel, whose low effort was initially saved by Merriman before it trickled over the line for her second of the match and to close the scoring at 9-2.

Now with a 7W-0L-1D all-time record, the U.S. CP WNT is back in action on Saturday when it faces Australia in a rematch of the 2022 IFCPF Women’s World Cup Final. Kick from Salou, Spain is scheduled for 8:15 a.m. ET and will be broadcast live via the IFCPF YouTube channel.

-U.S. WOMEN’S CP NATIONAL TEAM MATCH REPORT-

Match: United States Women’s CP National Team vs. Republic of Ireland
Date: Nov. 15, 2024
Competition: International Friendly
Venue: Mediterranean Sports Complex; Salou, Spain
Attendance: 100
Kickoff: 2:15 p.m. local (8:15 a.m. ET)
Weather: 65 degrees, cloudy

Lineups:
USA: 12-Leah Glaser; 2-Cassidy Leake (3-Annie Wickett, 35), 4-Michelle Cross (5-Joey Martin, 32), 7-Catarina Guimaraes (8-Kaia Spencer 43), 10-Jesslyn Kuhnel
Substitutes not used: 1-Rebecca Ostrander, 6-Isabella Stankunas
Head coach: Tricia Taliaferro

IRL: 23-Reeva Merriman; 3-Casey Heaney, 4-Heather Jameson (Capt.), 5-Eva Walsh (7-Robin Ennis, 50+1), 6-Katie Finnegan (2-Ella Sherlock, 48)
Substitutes not used: 8-Elsie Friel, 9-Shauna Hanlon, 10-Aine Monk
Head coach: Aisling Conway

Stats Summary: USA / IRL
Shots: 15 / 14
Saves: 9 / 4
Corner Kicks: 8 / 2
Fouls: 4 / 6

Misconduct Summary:
none

Officials:
Referee: Shu Thing Yang
AR1: N/A
AR2: N/A
Fourth Official: N/A