Navi Mumbai, Oct 21: Nigeria beat USA 4-3 in penalty shootout to become only the second African country to qualify for the FIFA Women’s Under-17 World Cup semifinals, here on Friday.
The two sides were locked 1-1 in the regulation time of the quarterfinal match at the DY Patil Stadium, which was delayed by nearly two hours due to adverse weather.
In an evenly-contested match, Nigerian Omamuzo Edafe’s 27th minute goal was cancelled out by Amalia Villarreal’s 40th minute strike for the Americans.
In the penalty shootout, Edidiong Etim, Edet Offiong, Miracle Usani and Omamuzo Edafe scored for Nigeria while Folorunsho missed the target.
For USA, who had topped Group A to make it to the quarterfinals, Emeri Adames, Taylor Suarez and Mia Bhuta scored, while Emri and Jackson missed from the spot.
It was heartbreak for the Americans, who finished runners-up in 2008. They were playing the tournament for the fifth time. Nigeria made it to their maiden semifinal in their sixth attempt. (PTI)
