BOGOTÁ, Colombia (Sept. 11, 2024) – Substitute striker Jordynn Dudley ended a wild, back-and-forth contest with a dramatic extra-time winner and the U.S. Under-20 Women’s Youth National Team booked its place in the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup quarterfinals with a 3-2 win against Concacaf rival Mexico.
The USA’s quarterfinal match will be played on Sunday, Sept. 15 at 7 p.m. ET at the Estadio Pascal Guerrero in Cali, where the Americans played their first two group-stage games. The USA will learn its quarterfinal opponent on Sept. 12 as three-time FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup champion Germany, the Group D winner, faces Group F third-place side Argentina in a Round of 16 match across Bogotá at the Estadio El Techo.
On a cool night in Bogotá, forwards Pietra Tordin and Ally Sentnor also scored for the USA, which held one-goal leads twice before surrendering them.
Dudley, the Florida State star, replaced Tordin, the USA’s leading scorer, in the 86th minute of a tied Round of 16 contest at the Estadio El Campín. The pressure was on and 19-year-old Dudley rose to the occasion, sniffing out a couple scoring chances before regulation ended and then delivering the decisive goal in the 97th minute.
The USA have now reached the U-20 FIFA women’s World Cup’s last eight for the first time since finishing fourth in 2016 in Papua New Guinea. The U-20s went out in the group stage in 2018 and 2022 (the 2020 tournament was canceled), when the competition featured only 16 teams. Now at 24 nations, the expanded World Cup required a Round of 16 victory to advance. The Americans deserved theirs in front of a pro-Mexican crowd, but they had to work for it.
The win also came with the secondary bonus of avenging the loss to La Tri in the 2023 Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship Final, although only 10 U.S. players remain from the squad that suffered that setback 15 months ago. Just three Americans who played that night in the Dominican Republic were on the field at kickoff Wednesday in Bogotá. Dudley was a sub in both games.
U.S. head coach Tracey Kevins made one change to the starting XI she deployed in the previous two World Cup games (both wins), inserting midfielder Taylor Suarez in place of Yuna McCormack, who would come on the 63rd minute and greatly impact the game, eventually earning the game-winning assist.
McCormack scored in each of the group stage victories, over Morocco and Paraguay, but Suarez demonstrated her value early as she helped set up the USA’s 10th-minute opener. She held the ball in the attacking third and played a pass back to left winger Emeri Adames, who received the ball and sent a dangerous, bending cross toward the near post. Tordin timed her run well, beat her marker to the ball and hit a perfect volley past Mexico goalkeeper Renatta Cota.
It was Tordin’s fourth goal of the tournament, following her hat trick against Paraguay in the group-stage finale. Adames notched her fourth World Cup assist.
A breathless, wide-open stretch followed as the rivals traded goals.
Mexico equalized in the 22nd following a brilliant run down the left wing by Montserrat Saldívar, whose cross was redirected by Mexico’s Val Vargas, a UCLA sophomore. U.S. center back Jordyn Bugg reached Vargas’ shot at the left post but was unable to keep it out. The Americans were back in front less than five minutes later as Sentnor, the U.S. captain, scored her second of the tournament with a swerving, 25-yard blast that bedeviled Cota before stretching the net.
It was Saldívar’s turn again in the 39th. The 17-year-old Club América attacker ran into a pass played toward the left corner by Alice Soto, beat right back Gisele Thompson on the dribble with a cut back and hammered a short-range shot that skimmed off U.S. center back Heather Gilchrist and past goalkeeper Teagan Wy.
Intermission didn’t seem to slow the Americans down as Tordin thought she’d scored again in the 52nd. Following video review, referee Iuliana Demetrescu put the brakes on the U.S. celebration and ruled that Thompson was offside by half of her cleat during the build-up. Tordin then set up Sentnor for a glittering chance in the 63rd, but the Utah Royals rookie hooked her shot wide right. Kevins then made the first of her first substitutions: McCormack for Suarez and defender Leah Klenke for Thompson. Klenke was excellent on both sides of the ball in her minutes.
The second half ended with the Americans mostly in control although La Tri nearly stole the game in stoppage time when Soto hit the crossbar from distance. Otherwise, Mexico, which started to fatigue in the Bogotá altitude, had less of the ball in its attacking half and Saldívar also quieted down. The U.S. was unable to make its advantage count as it outshot Mexico, 18-12, across the 90-plus minutes and 23-13 for the match. Tordin’s nullified goal and Sentnor’s miss were among its best chances. Dudley also came close a couple times late, with her best look coming a rebound of Sentnor’s blast that was well-saved by Cota after she spilled the first shot into front of the net.
Dudley’s dangerous presence was a sign of things to come. She maintained her focus despite the misses and, seven minutes into extra time, smartly drifted toward the right side of the penalty area as McCormack dribbled left after stealing a Mexican back pass. McCormack sent the ball into the right side of the penalty area to Dudley, who instead of shooting immediately, dribbled toward Mexican defender Natalia Colín at the right post. It reduced Dudley’s angle but it got her closer to the net and she confidently blasted a shot over Cota, off the underside of the crossbar, and in.
It was Dudley’s first goal of the World Cup and her fourth with the U-20s. She missed the previous two matches in concussion protocol but was cleared to play tonight. The ACC Freshman of the Year is accustomed to contributing in decisive moments as she had a goal and an assist in the Seminoles’ NCAA championship win over Stanford last December.
The USA could’ve doubled its lead in the 113th minute but the penalty kick by midfielder Riley Jackson was well-saved by substitute netminder Mariángela Medina, who had replaced the injured Cota in overtime. It wouldn’t matter, as Mexico did not have a third comeback in them and the USA did well to salt away the remaining minutes in overtime and move on to the quarterfinals.
USA -- Pietra Tordin (Emeri Adames), 10th minute: Adames whipped in a left-footed cross from the left wing and Tordin did the rest, beating her marker with a near post run and side-footing a first-time shot inside the left post. USA 1, MEX 0
MEX -- Val Vargas (Montserrat Saldívar), 22nd minute: Mexico capitalized on its first chance of the game as Saldívar raced past U.S. right back Gisele Thompson and hit a low cross to a wide-open Vargas on the right side of the penalty area. Her seven-yard shot sneaked just inside the left post. USA 1, MEX 1
USA -- Ally Sentnor (Pietra Tordin), 27th minute: The USA recaptured the lead as Tordin controlled the ball, occupied a couple defenders and slipped a pass backward to Sentnor, who dribbled left to set up her shot from about 25 yards out. Sentnor’s well-struck blast swerved quite a bit, catching Mexico goalkeeper Renatta Cota wrong-footed and she was unable to keep it out of the net. USA 2, MEX 1
MEX --Montserrat Saldívar (Alice Soto), 39th minute: Saldívar once again found space with the ball on the left wing but instead of passing it, she cut the ball back against Gisele Thompson and hit a shot from the left corner of the six-yard box. It skimmed off defender Heather Gilchrist, leaving goalkeeper Teagan Wy with no chance to make the save. USA 2, MEX 2
USA -- Jordan Dudley (Yuna McCormack), 97th minute: McCormack stole a poor back pass from a Mexican defender and went to work, driving toward goal and pulling a couple defenders toward the left. She then turned and found Dudley on the right side of the penalty area. Dudley dribbled at Mexico’s Natalia Colín and, from a tight angle, ripped a shot high over the goalkeeper. USA 3, MEX 2 FINAL
Match: United States Under-20 Women’s Youth National Team vs. Mexico
Date: Sept. 11, 2024
Competition: 2024 FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup – Round of 16
Venue: El Campin Stadium; Bogotá, Colombia
Attendance: 4,352
Kickoff: 8 p.m. local (9 p.m. ET)
Weather: 59 degrees, chilly
| Scoring Summary | 1 | 2 | OT1 | OT2 | F |
| USA | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| MEX | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| USA - Pietra Tordin (Emeri Adames) | 10th minute |
| MEX - Montserrat Saldivar (Valerie Vargas) | 22 |
| USA - Aly Sentnor (Pietra Tordin) | 27 |
| MEX - Montserrat Saldivar (Alice Soto) | 39 |
| USA - Jordynn Dudley (Yuna McCormack) | 97 |
Lineups:
USA: 1-Teagan Wy; 2-Gisele Thompson (13-Leah Klenke, 64), 4-Jordyn Bugg, 15-Heather Gilchrist, 3-Savy King (5-Elise Evans,101); 6-Claire Hutton (10-Ally Lemos,101), 16-Riley Jackson, 14-Taylor Suarez (18-Yuna McCormack, 64); 9-Ally Sentnor (Capt.), 19-Pietra Tordin (8-Jordynn Dudley, 86), 11-Emeri Adames (17-Maddie Dahlien, 74)
Substitutes not used: 7-Giana Riley, 12-Mackenzie Gress, 20-Addison Halpern, 21-Caroline Birkel
Head coach: Tracey Kevins
MEX: 1-Renatta Cota (21-Mariangela Medina, 118); 2-Michel Fong (14-Isabela Esquivias, 57), 3-Ana Mendoza (17-Tatiana Flores, 118), 4-Natalia Colin, 5-Giselle Espinozal; 8-Fatima Servin (Capt.) (15-Silvana Gonzalez, 84), 16-Yareli Valadez, 10-Alice Soto; 11-Valerie Vargas (7-Maribel Flores, 68), 9-Paola Garcia (18-América Frías, 68), 19-Montserrat Saldivar
Substitutes not used: 6-Alejandra Lomeli, 12-Valeria Martinez, 13-Nicol De Leon, 20-Hailey Gordon
Head coach: Ana Galindo
Stats Summary: USA / MEX
Shots: 22 / 13
Shots on Goal: 11 / 8
Saves: 6 / 8
Corner Kicks: 9 / 2
Fouls: 10 / 12
Offside: 1 / 1
Misconduct Summary:
None
Officials:
Referee: Luliana Demetrescu (ROU)
AR1: Svitlana Grushko (UKR)
AR2: Amina Gutschi (AUT)
4th Official: Casey Reibelt (AUS)