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123 Jul 29 '19
BELO HORIZONTE, Brazil -- Whitney Engen went to the Womens World Cup last year but didnt play in a single match. Jimmie Foxx Red Sox Jersey . A year later at the Olympics, the 28-year-old American got her chance on a big stage.Engen was in the starting lineup for the 1-0 victory over France on Saturday night. While most of the attention was on United States goalkeeper Hope Solo, who made her 200th international appearance, Engen was steady at center back.Anytime you get the opportunity to put on our jersey and represent the United States is a tremendous honor. Obviously, the Olympics adds to that, Engen said. I was happy to get some minutes and get my feet wet in an international tournament.United States coach Jill Ellis made the move because defender Julie Johnston was out with a groin injury. Johnston is key to a stellar backline that is considered among the best in the game. During the World Cup last year, the group anchored by Solo went 540 minutes without conceding a goal.That Engen was so capably able to fill in on that solid line is testament to the U.S. teams depth.Mallory Pugh, the 18-year-old sensation who has been steadily winning playing time, was also held out of the match against France in Belo Horizonte because of an ankle injury in the group opener last week.Ellis later described Pughs availability for the match at 50-50. But she didnt need her. The team inserted Crystal Dunn into the lineup.Like Engen, Dunn was making her first start of the Olympics. In fact, both she and Engen were also making their first starts in a major tournament at the senior level. Allie Long, making just her 12th appearance with the senior team, got her second start.Those players are among 11 first-time Olympians on the U.S. national team, which has a decidedly different -- and younger -- look than the squad that won the World Cup.Veteran stars Abby Wambach and Lauren Holiday have retired. Sydney Leroux and Amy Rodriquez stayed home because of pregnancy.And the roster for Rio de Janeiro was also smaller, at 18 players, than the 23-player squad for the World Cup. So Ellis had to choose her players carefully with an eye on versatility.All 22 players that are here -- the 18 that were selected and the four reserves -- every single one of them could step on this field and play for this team, Engen said. So I knew I had a great cast around me and all I had to do is do my role and they would support me.While Engen was on the World Cup roster, Long stayed home last year, playing for the National Womens Soccer Leagues Portland Thorns. Dunn, the last player cut from the World Cup team, played for the Washington Spirit and was named the leagues most valuable player.The newcomers will be important as the Americans seek their fourth straight Olympic gold medal. Ranked No. 1 in the world, the United States is also vying to become the first to win and Olympics after earning a World Cup title.The team continues to wait for the return of veteran midfielder Meghan Rapinoe, who hasnt played since knee surgery late last year.Rapinoe, playing in her third Olympics, has looked strong in pregame warmups and could play as early as the quarterfinals.With the victory over France, the United States was assured a spot in the quarterfinals. Canada and host Brazil have also gone through to the knockout round with one match remaining in their groups.Weve got a great support staff here that keeps us ready no matter what, Engen said. And I think we knew coming into this tournament it was going to take 22 players to get the gold medal, and at the end of the day were all ready if our name is called.The United States will play Colombia on Tuesday in the final group match in Manaus, more than 1,700 miles away from Rio de Janeiro. Bobby Doerr Jersey . It was hard for Luck to pull off another comeback, or even get into the end zone, while standing on the sideline. Rivers threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to rookie Keenan Allen and Nick Novak kicked four field goals to give the Chargers a 19-9 victory against the Colts on Monday night. Chris Sale Red Sox Jersey . Sgt. Eric ONeal says most of the arrests at Monday nights game were for public drunkenness, though one person was taken into custody on suspicion of trying to steal a seat from the stadium. http:///...holt-red-sox-jersey/ . They reached the 100-point plateau for the fourth time in five games, bested the visiting Trail Blazers by 34 in the paint and scored 19 of the final 25 points in regulation. MONTREAL -- Carey Price eased back into action with the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night.Price made 27 saves in his season debut to help the Canadiens beat the Arizona Coyotes 5-2.It was nice to get back into the routine and get to play a regular-season game, Price said. I felt fine. I felt pretty good in the skate this morning. We were skating well and moving the puck. Its always a bonus to put up five (goals).Price made his first NHL start since injuring his right knee on Nov. 25, 2015. He also missed the first three games of this season because of the flu.For a guy who hasnt skated for a while, because of his flu, he was sharp, Canadiens coach Michel Therrien said. Very encouraging to see.Alexei Emelin, Torrey Mitchell, Shea Weber, Alex Galchenyuk and Artturi Lehkonen scored for Montreal (3-0-1).Hes got such a calming presence, Mitchell said about Price. Hes such a big leader for us. He was joking about not setting the bar too high and getting a shutout in game one, so it was nice to get five goals for him.Jakob Chychrun and Laurent Dauphin scored for the Coyotes.Playing for the injured Coyotes starter Mike Smith, backup Louis Domingue allowed four goals on 19 shots before being pulled in the second period. Justin Peters stopped 23 of 24 shots in relief. Arizona dropped to 1-2-0.It got away from us in the second period, Arizona coach Dave Tippett said. We were all right, we competed hard, but there are areas of our game that we still have to clean up. The execution is not what it needs to be. We need all the parts to work to be competitive.Price wasnt tested much in the first period, stopping all eight shots he faced.Things werentt as smooth in the second. Blake Swihart Jersey. A sprawled-out Price was helpless against Chychrun at 6:36 for Arizonas first of the night to make it 4-1. The Coyotes scores again with 3:11 left in the period, a short-handed goal after a bad giveaway by Nathan Beaulieu in his own zone.Montreal put the game out of reach with three goals in less than 4 minutes in the second period.Mitchell made it 2-0 with a one-timer at 2:07 off a beautiful cross-ice pass from Beaulieu. Weber then scored his first in a Canadiens uniform 2 minutes later with a hard slap shot through traffic.It was unbelievable, said Weber of the fans response to his goal. I cant describe the feeling. Its really special. Happy to be part of this team.Galchenyuk dangled around Arizona captain Shane Doan before beating Domingue with a wrister at 5:49 to make it 4-0.Lehkonen fired home his second of the season to make it 5-2 in the third.Emelin opened the scoring for the Canadiens at 13:20 of the first period. Using Andrew Shaw as a screen, he beat Domingue with a slap shot between pad and blocker.Game notes Price is 8-0-0 in his career against the Coyotes. ... Emelin scored for the first time since March 17. ... Montreal defenseman Zach Redmond broke his foot during practice Thursday morning. Hes expected to be sidelined six weeks.UP NEXTCoyotes: Arizona has four more games left on a six-game trip. The Coyotes are at the New York Islanders on Friday night and will face the New York Rangers on Sunday night.Canadiens: Montreal is at Boston on Saturday night. ' ' ' 
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