The USA men's national team will have to wait another day to determine its Pan American Games qualifying fate after battling to a 1-1 draw with Mexico in game two of the best-of-three series.
The USA leads the series with a 1-0-1 record (4 points) to Mexico's 0-1-1 (1 point) and can clinch the final spot in this summer's Pan American Games tournament with a victory, draw or a loss by less than three goals in the series finale Sunday at the Bermuda National Sports Centre. The USA won Thursday's opening match 3-0.
ÔÇ£We knew it was going to be a tough match,ÔÇØ said US coach Nick Conway on the second game of the series. ÔÇ£Mexico came out really hard and we had to battle just to get a point. But it's a very valuable point in that now we've put ourselves in a favourable position for Sunday's match and we have another opportunity to clinch.ÔÇØ
After Mexico took a 1-0 halftime lead, the USA finally got on the scoreboard when a Sean Harris (Moorpark, Calif.) penalty corner shot went off the stick of a Mexican defender and into the goal to even the match at 1-1 midway through the second half.
The two neighbouring rivals held each other scoreless for the remainder of the game as the draw gave the USA a formidable advantage heading into Sunday's match while keeping alive Mexico's hopes of returning to the Pan American Games for the first time since 1999.
While the USA received a hard-earned point for the draw, the team did lose the services of Andy Sheridan (New York, N.Y.) who was taken to the hospital after suffering a knee injury in the second half. Sheridan was making only his second international match appearance as a member of the USA national team.
The winner of the series will join Argentina, Canada, Chile, Cuba, Netherlands Antilles, Trinidad & Tobago and host Brazil at the Pan American Games, 15-25 July in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Pan American Games serve as the continental qualifier for the Olympic Games with the winner of the competition earning the continent's automatic berth in Beijing in 2008.
ÔÇ£We're a little bit low right now, but we're still poised,ÔÇØ said Conway on his team's demeanor after Mexico forced the series to a third game. ÔÇ£We're still very positive and we're still in a very strong position to go out and qualify for the Pan American Games.ÔÇØ
Source: US Field Hockey
