SANTIAGO, Chile (November 23, 2023) - The U.S. Men’s Cerebral Palsy (CP) National Team advanced to the 2023 Parapan American Games Bronze Medal match after defeating Canada 6-0 Thursday afternoon and securing third place in the six-team group.
Captain Josh Brunais and forward Cameron DeLillo each notched first-half braces, while Frankie Lowery and Kevin McCandlish scored their first international goals in the second half. Goalkeeper Marc Estrella started the match and earned the shutout, the team’s second consecutive. With McCandlish and Estrella playing, all 14 players on the roster have seen action at the Parapan Games.
The win brings the team’s record in the competition to 3-2-0 (9 points) after round robin play, and sets up a rematch of the 2019 Parapan Bronze Medal match against Venezuela, which the U.S. won 7-0 in Lima, Peru. The teams met earlier in the week with the USA claiming the 1-0 win.
Brunais registered his first multi-goal game, bringing his career total to seven. DeLillo now has 35 goals and 12 multi-goal games.
The U.S. wasted no time getting on the board, as Brunais pushed high off the whistle, received a ball from DeLillo in the box, and turned and shot to the far side net to get things going.
Seven minutes later, DeLillo tucked a ball into the right side of the net to double the lead.
Canadian goalkeeper Ryan Watson was under pressure all day as the USA took 35 shots. He denied DeLillo a second with a quick reaction save, then received help from the woodwork on a Drew Bremer and Wes Pincince headers.
The third goal came after a quarter hour, with DeLillo taking a touch to his left from the center of the area before calmly slotting it into the goal from 12 yards out. Brunais added his second in stoppage time.
The USA made four changes at the half and retained its dominance. After 10 minutes, DeLillo took a ball on the left endline before playing it across, where a defender got his foot on it but Lowery got enough of a deflection to redirect the ball on goal from three yards out.
Watson had two great saves off long blasts from Lowery and Jacob Crumbley in the second half, and watched a free kick from Adam Ballou be cleared off the line.
McCandlish got his name in the books in the final seconds, cleaning up a loose ball in the box from close range.
The USA will seek to repeat as Bronze Medalists on Saturday against Venezuela (kickoff set for 3pm ET).
Match: United States Men’s CP National Team vs. Canada
Date: November 23, 2023
Competition: Parapan American Games
Venue: Estadio Bicentenario de la Florida
Attendance: TBD
Kickoff: 3 p.m. ET
Weather: 80 degrees; Sunny
Scoring Summary: 1 2 F
USA 4 2 6
CAN 0 0 0
USA - Josh Brunais (Cameron DeLillo) 1’
USA - Cameron DeLillo (Ben Lindau) 7’
USA - Cameron DeLillo (Josh Brunais) 15’
USA - Josh Brunais (Ben Lindau) 30+3'
USA - Frankie Lowery (Cameron DeLillo) 40’
USA - Kevin McCandlish 60’
Lineups:
USA: 12-Marc Estrella, 13-Josh Brunais (Captain) (Frankie Lowery, 31), 8-Drew Bremer, 6-Jacob Kaplan (3-Jacob Crumbley, 31), 4-Wes Pincince (11-Kevin McCandlish, 31), 10-Ben Lindau (7-Adam Ballou, 31), 9-Cameron DeLillo (14-Shea Hammond, 43)
Substitutes: 1-Sean Boyle, 5-John Sullivan
Head Coach: Stuart Sharp
CAN: 3-Ryan Watson, 2-Christopher Fawcett (14-Isaiah Smeaton-Katzenberg, 31), 4-Nicholas Heffernan, 6-Dante del Cul (13-Cuauhtemoc Flores, 30+), 7-Dustin Hodgson, 9-Daniel White, 10-Diego Gilbert
Substitutes: 1-Samuel Denton, 11-Raji Kamoun
Head coach: Andrew Ferguson
Stats Summary: USA / CAN
Shots: 35 / 0
Shots on Goal: 19 / 0
Saves: 9 / 0
Corner Kicks: 16 / 0
Fouls: 3 / 4
Misconduct Summary:
None
Officials:
Referee: Dario Rojas (ARG)
Assistant Referee: Sofia Henriquez (CHI)
Assistant Referee: Romina Meneses (CHI)
Fourth Official: Francisco Yañez (CHI)