The U.S. U17 Women’s National Team is the 2016 U17 CONCACAF Champions after defeating Mexico 2-1 in the final on Sunday in Grenada. The victory over Mexico was the fifth win for the U.S. in 10 days in the regional tournament.
Ashley Sanchez put the U.S. up 1-0 minutes before halftime when she punished a miscue by the Mexico defense and chipped the goalkeeper. Jacqueline Ovalle answered back for Mexico midway through the second half with a beautiful strike.
The U.S. grabbed the winner when substitute Sophia Smith served in a perfect ball for Civana Kuhlmann to direct into the net with only a few minutes remaining.
Both the U.S. and Mexico had already qualified for the 2016 U17 World Cup thanks to their victories in the semifinal games on Friday. Canada became the third team from the region to qualify for the international championship earlier in the day with a 4-2 win over Haiti in the third place game.
The victory over Mexico marks the third CONCACAF Championship for the U.S. U17 WNT. With the hardware in hand, the U.S. turns its focus to the World Cup, which is kicks off on Sept. 30 in Jordan.
The U.S. has never won the World Cup at the U17 level with a runner-up finish in 2008 being as close as the global heavyweights have come to the title. Does this team have what it takes to make history?
