Jul 17, 2008 - 2:41 AM
0 shoutsSAN DIEGO (Ticker) -- The United States women's soccer team won a friendly, but lost so much more on Wednesday.
Natasha Kai scored in the 85th minute to lead the Americans to a 1-0 triumph over Brazil, but leading scorer Abby Wambach was lost to a broken left leg in the team's final friendly before heading to Beijing to compete in the 2008 Olympic Games.
Wambach, who was taken to Sharp Memorial Hospital where X-rays confirmed the mid-shaft oblique fracture of the tibia and fibula, is expected to be out for 12 weeks - thereby missing the Olympics. She will have surgery on Thursday to have a titanium rod inserted into her leg and will begin rehabilitation in due time.
"I want to thank all the fans, the doctors, the players on the team and Tasha Kai for scoring the winning goal," Wambach said from the emergency room. "Obviously, it's devastating, but above everything else, I'm only one player, and you can never win a championship with just one player. I have the utmost confidence in this team bringing home the gold."
Wambach, who has 99 international goals in 127 appearances, injured her left leg in a collision with Andreia Rosa in the 33rd minute. After immediately signaling for assistance, Wambach's leg was immobilized in a brace before she was taken off the field on a stretcher and carted to an ambulance.
Although disappointed, Wambach believes that the Americans can successfully defend their title.
"I'm excited to watch them and cheer them on during this challenge they've been presented with," Wambach said. "It's really going to take everyone coming together. I love them all so much, and appreciate so many people involved with this game and the team. I put my heart and soul into this game every day, but sometimes accidents happen. I've gotten so many calls already, and I just want to say how much I appreciate that."
As for Wednesday's match itself, Carli Lloyd fired the ball off a set piece into the penalty area just in front of goalkeeper Andrea to Kai, who headed the ball past the Brazilian for the lone goal of the match.
"So many things happened in this game, and I've very happy with the way we ended the game with that great goal, a beautiful goal," United States head coach Pia Sundhage said. "(Scoring a winning goal late in the game) has happened to this team so many times. There is something about this team that is 'winning.' It's late in the game and they create chances and all of a sudden you get the big goals."
The United States, which will face Norway on August 6 in its opening match of the Olympics, has recorded shutouts in each of its last seven matches and improved to 21-0-1 in 2008. In addition, the Americans have yet to surrender a goal to Brazil since allowing four at the FIFA Women's World Cup semifinals in September 2007.
