NPR News

The U.S. Women's Soccer Team Has Lost Its Shot At The Gold Medal

Published August 2, 2021 at 12:34 PM EDT

Carli Lloyd the U.S. women's soccer team looks dejected after their defeat in Monday's semifinal match against Canada in the Tokyo Olympics. [Francois Nel / Getty Images] — Carli Lloyd the U.S. women's soccer team looks dejected after their defeat in Monday's semifinal match against Canada in the Tokyo Olympics.

Updated August 2, 2021 at 5:57 AM ET

TOKYO — In an upset, the top-ranked U.S. women's soccer team lost its semifinal game to Canada 1-0 at the Tokyo Olympics, pushing it out of contention for a gold medal.

The World Cup champs could still take bronze if they win their next game.

The game was scoreless at the half. The U.S. team's goalie, Alyssa Naeher, had to come out of the game in the 30 ^th minute after colliding with U.S. defender Julie Ertz. Team USA said she "landed awkwardly on her right leg."

They were both trying to stop a Canada ball right in front of the U.S. goal. Naeher was down on the turf for at least four minutes as trainers worked on her. She stayed in the game, but only for the next few minutes. Naeher winced the next time she kicked the ball and raised her hand. She was replaced by back-up goalkeeper Adrianna Franch, who played the rest of the game.

In the second half of Monday's game, U.S. defender Tierna Davidson was called for a foul after video review showed she took down a Canadian player in the U.S. penalty area. Canada's Jessie Fleming scored on the ensuing penalty kick in the 74 minutes into the game.

The U.S. had several opportunities but were not able to make a goal.

In group play, the U.S. had an uneven performance — an opening loss to Sweden, a strong win over New Zealand and a scoreless draw against Australia.

In the quarterfinals, the U.S. took on The Netherlands, the reigning European champion and a team the Americans beat in the 2019 World Cup final.

It was a back-and-forth match that ended in a 2-2 tie and was ultimately decided by a penalty kick shootout, with Megan Rapinoe's decisive final kick. At that game, Naeher emerged a hero with two key saves during penalty kicks.

Canada, which is ranked eighth and led by Christine Sinclair, is the opponent the U.S. has played more than any other. Sinclair has scored the most international goals by any woman.