So what did we learn in watching the U.S. U20 Women’s National Team open its CONCACAF Qualifying Tournament in Guatemala Thursday evening with a 6-0 win over Jamaica?

In truth, not very much.

Don’t get me wrong, I think this is an immensely talented team that Jillian Ellis and her staff are leading toward this year’s FIFA U20 World Cup in Trinidad. It may prove to be better overall than the 2008 version of the team which won the whole enchilada in Chile under Tony DiCicco, but Thursday wasn’t much of a platform to learn much, because Jamaica are awful.

While the rest of the world is getting better with its women’s program, Jamaica seems to be harkening back to the old days of mediocre fitness, technique and savvy. Most of the U.S. goals were way too easy, and although I’ve seen these players enough to know just how talented they are, they were anything but hard-pressed Thursday evening in Guatelmala.

Christine Nairn had a good night running things from the middle of the park. The TopDrawerSoccer.com Rookie of the Season with Penn State, Nairn combined with Tiffany McCarty to score the opening goal (I might have been watching the Freestate Shooters at the 2004 WAGS Invitational), then added a nice curling shot on a free kick for the team’s 5th in the 2nd half.

Sydney Leroux, like Nairn playing in her 2nd consecutive U20 cycle, scored the next two, the 1st a highlight-reel effort that would have been a good goal no matter the opposition, and the 2nd an opportunistic header after shoddy defending on a long ball.

UCLA forward Leroux then created the team’s 4th goal early in the 2nd half with a smart switch of the field that Stanford’s Teresa Noyola showed exquisite first touch in corralling. Noyola then powered a drive through the gloves of the goalkeeper and it was 4-0. Nairn made it 5-0 with her free kick before UCLA’s Zakiya Bywaters (Neusport FC and Slammers) fed Florida State’s McCarty for a deserved goal and the final 6-0 scoreline.

Eclipse and Stanford fullback Rachel Quon was steady as usual, while Albertson SC and North Carolina recruit Crystal Dunn had a chance to exhibit her considerable talent in the back line. Victoria DiMartino continues to look like a complete natural at fullback, the Albertson SC and Boston College striker was winning balls and getting forward in attack all night.

Mclean SC and UCLA recruit Jenna Richmond was comfortable in the middle (albeit against little to no pressure) while substitute Kristie Mewis (Scorpions SC, Boston College) reminded what a handful she can be with her size, agility and skill.

The next two matches, Trinidad & Tobago and Mexico, should be greater challenges. I fully expect the U.S. to show very well against good competition, but we haven’t seen the latter yet.

Incidentally, T&T features FC DELCO forward Natasha Prentice, while Mexico has at least two prominent American club players. Natalie Lagunas played at Real So Cal and is a recruit for Northwestern, while Alina Garciamendez, a TDS All-Rookie team member from Stanford, won a national title at Dallas Texans.