Wednesday night was a good night for the U.S. Men’s National Team, which downed Mexico 2-0, but it was truly an unforgettable night for sophomore forward Jordan Morris of the Stanford men’s soccer team.
The Mercer Island, Washington native, making his third cap for the national team, scored his first career USMNT goal in the 49th minute of the friendly to put the U.S. up 1-0.
“You jump for joy, because that’s what you feel for this guy,” said head coach Jurgen Klinsmann.
The U.S. had been threatening Mexico immediately upon return from the halftime break, and in the 49th minute, Michael Bradley found DeAndre Yedlin just outside the penalty box, and Yedlin’s pass deflected off Mexican midfielder Mario Osuna toward the goal. Morris beat Mexican defender Oswaldo Alanis to the ball on a dead sprint and eased the ball under the diving goalkeeper Cirilo Saucedo into the net for an easy score.
Morris emphatically celebrated on the sideline and was mobbed by his teammates before being replaced by Juan Agudelo in the 63rd minute. Agudelo accounted for the USMNT’s other goal on the night.
Contact Do-Hyoung Park at dpark027 ‘at’ stanford.edu.