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Sam Borden, ESPN Senior Editor
PARIS — Trinity Rodman don’t remember much about her horrific strike in stoppage time that left her USA The women’s national team reached the Olympic semifinals on Saturday.
In fact, Rodman later confessed, the whole thing from the moment she received the Dunn Crystal‘s pass is a blur.
“I passed out,” Rodman said afterward. USWNT 1-0 win via Japan. “The last thing I remember is Crystal playing that song and then I was like, ‘Oh!’
“It was the greatest moment of my career,” she added. “I couldn’t have asked for anything better.”
While Rodman may not remember exactly what she did, her goal will be a memorable highlight. After bringing the ball down the right wing, she dribbled inside and fired a shot into the top corner of the far post as the Parc des Princes exploded.
“Of course Trinity will do that,” Mallory SwansonRodman’s collaborator and Sophia Smith on the U.S. front line, talking about the moment. “I think sometimes in games like this, it just takes a little bit of magic, a little bit of individual talent. And that’s what Trinity did.”
It was Rodman’s third goal of the tournament — tying her with Swanson for the most by an American player — and at age 22, she became the youngest American player to score in an Olympic knockout game in 20 years.
Some of her teammates have talked about how they often see Rodman hit incredible shots in practice, but admit that doing it on stage like this is a different achievement.
“This is crazy,” Corbin Albert speak.
“It was amazing,” Smith agreed. “I just remember the relief when it went in.”
Manager Emma Hayes was quick to point out that Rodman’s contributions to the team on Saturday went far beyond that one-time hit. Known as a solid two-way player, Rodman was strong on both ends of the court, often dropping back to help when Japan counterattacked.
“We should talk more about what she does off the court,” Hayes said, and while that may be a valid argument, it’s also not likely to be successful given Rodman’s other actions on Saturday.
Her brilliance was exactly what the U.S. team needed after spending much of the game trying to break down the stout defense the U.S. team has come to expect from Japan.
“Honestly, I think that was the only way we could have scored that game,” Rodman said. “Obviously we tried all game to get in the seams and get in between them and it just didn’t work.
“Not all football is beautiful,” she continued. “But I think we knew it was going to be something great like that. If it had come from me or anyone else on the pitch, we knew it wouldn’t be tiki-taka in the box. It was a moment we had to take advantage of and that’s what happened.”
