USA vs. Haiti Women's Soccer: Score and Reaction from Sunday's Friendly

The United States continued their Victory Tour with another lopsided win over Haiti on Sunday, beating the CONCACAF side 8-0 at Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama.

Carli Lloyd once again stole the show with a first-half hat-trick, while Julie Johnston, Crystal Dunn, Amy Rodriguez, Alex Morgan and Heather O'Reilly also got their names on the scoresheet. As expected, the hosts cruised to another easy win, setting up a double showdown with South American giants Brazil for the next chapter of the Victory Tour.     

Before kick-off, the team's official Twitter account shared this stat, with everyone inside the stadium expecting to celebrate the USA's incredible domestic unbeaten streak:

Haiti were only called in to play the Stars and Stripes at the last minute to replace Australia, who didn't travel to the USA because of an internal dispute, per USSoccer.com. The CONCACAF side aren”t exactly football powerhouses, and after Thursday's 5-0 loss, more of the same was expected in Birmingham.

It took the hosts less than one minute to open the score, with defender Johnston easily converting a corner kick. The American Outlaws, the team's official fan club, couldn't hide their excitement:

Dunn was one of the standouts during Thursday's friendly, and she again made a fantastic impression early on Sunday, darting in and out of play. The hosts had several good chances to increase their advantage early, but Ednie Limage showed her class, making a series of impressive saves.

The second goal eventually came courtesy of a Lloyd penalty after Morgan was barged off the ball inside the box. Less than a minute later, Dunn made it 3-0 after some fine work from Megan Rapinoe, and the people governing the team's official Twitter account had flashbacks of the World Cup final just a few months ago:

Haiti seemed just about ready to crumble, and their defenders tried a different approach, treating the American attackers to some rash challenges. Morgan was slow to get up after one particular tackle, but thankfully, she was able to continue.

A couple of minutes later, she was sprinting down the wing with the entire Haitian defence out of position, allowing Lloyd to simply tap the ball home and give the Americans a 4-0 lead.

Howler Magazine wasn't surprised:

The pace of the match finally dropped, allowing Haiti to keep some possession of the ball and enjoy some time away from their own goal. Chances were few, and the best still fell to the hosts—through Morgan and Lloyd.

The latter nearly completed her hat-trick after 33 minutes, smashing a shot onto the crossbar, but she had better luck just before half-time, as her lofted header glanced off the bar and landed in the net.

According to ESPN's Paul Carr, Lloyd joined an exclusive club in scoring her fifth international hat-trick:

As expected, coach Jill Ellis made numerous changes at half-time, allowing some of the less experienced players to show their worth in what basically amounted to a carefree friendly. Rapinoe, Lloyd, Hope Solo and Johnston all took a spot on the bench, but surprisingly, Morgan didn't join them after picking up a knock earlier.

The Guardian's Caitlin Murray didn't like the decision:

The substitutions naturally had their effect on the match, as it took the USA some time to get organised again, but Rodriguez immediately converted the first real chance of the second half, making it clear to the visitors that their nightmare wasn't over yet.

Kelley O'Hara and O'Reilly both troubled the Haiti defence throughout the second half, but the visitors did well to slow down the match and were greatly helped by Limage's heroics. Chances were limited to long-range shots, and while the USA were never troubled defensively, the gap in quality between the starting forwards and backups was clear to see.

Morgan did manage to add a seventh goal late in the match, showing some quick thinking after a flick from Whitney Engen. And with that goal, the floodgates once again opened. More chances came in quick succession, and O'Reilly took advantage of a dreadful clearance to make it 8-0.

Limage also took a late knock and had to be carried off the pitch on a stretcher, but according to the hosts' Twitter account, her injury wasn't serious. 

The team's next opponents will be Brazil, who disappointed at the World Cup but have the talent to challenge the Stars and Stripes, unlike Haiti. With the 2016 Summer Olympic qualifying tournament drawing ever closer, the challenge from a top team like Brazil will be welcomed by coach Ellis.

Post-Match Reaction

As reported by Fox Sports' Laura Vecsey, coach Ellis spoke at length about her decision to start Becky Sauerbrunn in midfield, despite her strong contributions when playing in defence:

"

Why not? I wanted to see her in there. I know she can play there. She's a very competent player. Part of the process going forward is to see who in the group can play multiple positions.

Obviously it's a big decision to have to make after we just gelled the back line and solidified. We have a pretty low goals-against percentage. That's kind of the fun part about moving forward. We have a couple of players stepping away and a slightly smaller roster to work with. It's not like you have to start all over again because you certainly have a great base but you have to explore options.

"

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