Mallory Swanson and Tierna Davidson Brace: USWNT Beat Korea in Colorado for Emma Hayes Debut!

COMMERCE CITY – The Emma Hayes era is off to a flying start. The United States Women’s National Team kicked off their international window on Saturday. They hosted Korea at DICK’s Sporting Goods Park in front of a sold out crowd of 19,010.

Emma Hayes did not mess around with the first lineup of her tenure with the Lady Yanks. All three Colorado natives started in a 4-2-3-1. Mallory Swanson was up top. Lindsey Horan wore the armband and was in the double pivot. Naomi Girma was in the back four. Jane Campbell was in goal.

It was a bit of a slow start to the first half with both teams getting used to the heat. The crowd was into it as expected. They cheered loud for all the Colorado girls when they got announced as starters. Hayes got a response when she took the field in the technical area.

Team USA finally broke through in the in the 34th minute. Mallory Swanson made a run through the gap as Sophia Smith played her in. She scored on a first time shot.

From there, the home sider was off and running. Horan was denied on a great chance in transition which led to a corner. Moments later in the 38th, Tierna Davidson scored on a sky high header that went over everyone’s head and dropped into the far side netting. The half ended 2-0.

Hayes’ side picked up where they left off in the second half. On the first corner three minutes in, Swanson found Davidson unmarked on the back post again. The outside back went off a knockdown header this time, bouncing the ball off the ground and into the far netting.

Davidson had a brace in this match after scoring just one goal in her previous 57 games for the national team.

After that, Hayes went to the bench to get others on the field. Jaedyn Shaw Crystal Dunn, Rose Lavelle, and Sam Staab came on just after the hour mark. Staab made her USWNT senior debut. Team USA saw out the game as the better side throughout the second half.

In the 74th, Lavelle dribbled in transition and threaded a ball through to Swanson, who took on the keeper and scored. The match ended 4-0 with a Swanson and Tierna Davidson brace doing the business.

The USWNT head to Minnesota for the second leg of their doubleheader with Korea on June 4. This will be the final game before their pre-Olympics matches against Mexico and Costa Rica.

Photo Credit: John Babiak

Thank you for reading Burgundy Wave. Support us via our Patreon starting at $5/month. We’re always looking for new talent. Let us know if you’re interested in covering Colorado Soccer.