MIAMI, Florida – The group stage of the 2022 Concacaf Women’s Under-20 Championship begins to wrap up on Tuesday, as teams in Group E and Group G play their final contests before the knockout round.
It will be a crucial day in Group E, with Puerto Rico facing Nicaragua and the United States taking on the Dominican Republic at the Estadio Olimpico Felix Sanchez in Santo Domingo.
Puerto Rico have three points through their first two matches and will look to avoid any complications against a Nicaragua side that will try to grab one of the final knockout round places with a convincing win.
The Pinoleras got some confidence in their narrow 3-1 loss to the Dominican Republic, with Ines Navarrete scoring the team’s first goal of the tournament, while Puerto Rico will try to rebound from a 7-0 loss versus the U.S.
The U.S. got a huge boost from Avery Patterson in that 7-0 victory against the Boricuas, as Patterson scored four first half goals. The U.S. already have 13 goals to their name in the tournament and will aim to make it a perfect group stage against a Dominican Republic side that will hope to thrill the home fans.
Angelina Vargas scored a brace against Puerto Rico and will be on the hunt for more against the U.S.
Play in Group G returns to the Estadio Panamericano in San Cristobal in a crunch battle between El Salvador and Saint Kitts and Nevis. Both teams sit on three points and can advance to the knockout round stage with a draw, but each side is no doubt thinking of a win and a chance to pull ahead of Canada atop the group.
El Salvador played Canada tough in a 4-0 defeat, while Saint Kitts and Nevis got star performances from Jahzara Claxton and Iyanla Bailey-Williams in the 7-2 win over Trinidad and Tobago in which each notched a hat trick.
The day then ends with Canada squaring off with Trinidad and Tobago and a chance for the Soca Warriors to turn things around after two defeats. Meanwhile, a Canada defense that has yet to conceded a goal will try to make it three clean sheets to finish the group stage.
