World Cup Soccer Morgan records 5 goals as US routs Thailand

Associated Press

REIMS, FRANCE

Alex Morgan tied a tournament record with five goals and the defending champion U.S. national team opened the Women’s World Cup with a historic 13-0 rout of Thailand on Tuesday night.

Samantha Mewis and Rose Lavelle each added a pair of goals for the United States, which broke the record for goals and margin of victory in a World Cup game. Lindsey Horan, Megan Rapinoe, Mallory Pugh and Carli Lloyd also scored. The previous record margin was Germany’s 11-0 victory over Argentina in 2007.

Morgan tied Michelle Akers’ record for World Cup goals, set in the quarterfinals against Taiwan in 1991.

“We really just came into the game really wanting to showcase ourselves,” Morgan said. “Every goal matters in this tournament and that’s what we were working on.”

Asked repeatedly about the lopsided score, U.S. coach Ellis wondered if a 10-0 victory in a men’s World Cup would elicit the same questions.

“Getting off on the right foot is important,” Ellis said. “But we also feel like we’ve got more to do. So were going to stay humble and go back to work.”

The two teams were the last to kickoff in the group stage for the monthlong tournament. Host France opened the World Cup before a sellout crowd in Paris on Friday night with a 4-0 victory over South Korea.

Ranked No. 1 in the world, the Americans had dropped only one match in their previous 38, a loss to France in Le Havre in January. The team is 7-1-2 overall this year, with six straight wins going into the World Cup and its seven different scorers against Thailand set a record for most in a Women’s World Cup game.

The last time the Americans played on the world’s biggest stage, Lloyd had a hat trick in the first 16 minutes and the United States beat Japan 5-2 in Canada for the trophy.

Thailand, ranked No. 34 in the world, was clearly outmatched even though the team has shown progress on the world stage. Making its World Cup debut in 2015 four years ago, Thailand finished third in its group but earned its first win, a 3-2 victory over Ivory Coast.

Up next for the United States is World Cup newcomer Chile on Sunday in Paris.