Canada and Costa Rica on Friday secured spots in the CONCACAF Women's Gold Cup semifinals with one-sided victories in Group 2 play at Victoria, British Columbia.
Kara Lang, a 16-year-old high-schooler, scored four goals and Christine Sinclair netted her fifth and sixth goals of the tournament to lead Canada in a 9-0 romp over Jamaica.
Costa Rica got two goals apiece from Shirley Cruz and Megan Chavez, doing all of its scoring in the second half of a 5-0 rout of Haiti in the opener at Centennial Stadium.
The winners of Wednesday's semifinals in Seattle will qualify for next year's Women's World Cup in China. Canada and Costa Rica meet in the Group 2 finale Sunday in Victoria, with the winner likely avoiding a showdown with the United States until the Nov. 9 final at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif.
Lang, one of the stars of the Canadian U-19 team that finished second in the world championship last summer, scored two sensational goals — a blistering free kick off the underside of the crossbar at the upper-left corner in the 45th minute and a dipping shot from 33 yards in the 63rd — then added a close-range tap-in in the 84th and volleyed home a Sinclair cross in stoppage time.
Hers was the third hat trick for Canada in the Gold Cup. Sinclair, the Golden Boot winner at the U-19 World Cup, scored four goals and Charmaine Hooper had three in an 11-1 triumph over Haiti on Wednesday night.
Sinclair's goals, in the 13th and 77th minutes, extended her scoring lead in the Gold Cup to two goals. Sinclair has a half-dozen, and Hooper, Lang and Chavez have each scored four.
Hooper, former WUSA player Amy Walsh and W-League player Randee Hermus also tallied for the Canadians. The goal by Atlanta Beat star Hooper, her 53rd in 87 international appearances, gives her 32 in five CONCACAF women's championships dating to 1991.
Sinclair, an All-American striker at the University of Portland, has 11 in two Gold Cups. She has scored 31 goals in 37 international matches.
Walsh came on in the seventh minute when Penn State freshman Carmelina Moscato was stretchered off with an injury. Canada coach Even Pellerud gave Boston Breakers goalkeeper Karina LeBlanc her first start in the tournament. SMU's Erin McLeod was in the nets vs. Haiti.
Cruz scored in the 53rd and 69th minutes and Chavez in the 62nd and 87th for Costa Rica. Xiomara Briceno added the Ticas' fifth goal, her header from a stoppage-time corner kick finding the net after goalkeeper Gina Montinard bobbled the shot over the goal line.
Montinard was called into action after Monique Alsaint, Haiti's starting keeper, suffered a head injury in a first-half collision with Cruz.
Group A returns to action Saturday in Seattle, with the United States taking on Panama and Mexico facing Trinidad & Tobago.
CONCACAF WOMEN'S GOLD CUP
GROUP 1
Standings
United States 2-0-0 6-0 6
Mexico 1-1-0 5-4 3
Panama 1-1-0 5-7 3
Trin. & Tobago 0-2-0 2-7 0
Nov. 2 at Seattle
Mexico vs. Trinidad & Tobago, 5 p.m. PST
United States vs. Panama, 7:30 p.m. PST
GROUP 2
Nov. 1 at Victoria, British Columbia
Costa Rica 5 (Cruz 53, 69, Megan Chavez 62, 87, Briceno 91+) Haiti 0.
Canada 9 (Sinclair 13, 77, Hooper 20, Walsh 42, Lang 45, 63, 84, 92+, Hermus 56) Jamaica 0.
Standings
Canada 2-0-0 20-1 6
Costa Rica 2-0-0 7-0 6
Jamaica 0-2-0 0-11 0
Haiti 0-2-0 1-16 0
Nov. 3 at Victoria, British Columbia
Jamaica vs. Haiti, noon PST
Canada vs. Costa Rica, 2 p.m. PST
FINAL FOUR
Nov. 6 at Seattle
Semifinals, 7 and 9;30 p.m. PST
(Winners qualify for 2003 Women's World Cup)
Nov. 9 at Pasadena, Calif.
Third-place game, 4:30 p.m. PST
(Winner advances to playoff with Asia No. 3 team for berth in 2003 WWC)
Championship, 7 p.m. PST
GOALSCORERS
1. Christine Sinclair (Canada) 6
2. Megan Chavez (Costa Rica) 4
Charmaine Hooper (Canada) 4
Kara Lang (Canada) 4
5. Amarelis De Mera (Panama) 3
6. Silvana Burtini (Canada) 2
Shirley Cruz (Costa Rica) 2
Monica Gonzalez (Mexico) 2
Cindy Parlow (USA) 2
10. Maylee Attin-Johnson (T&T) 1
Maritzenia Bedoya (Panama) 1
Xiomara Briceno (Costa Rica) 1
Candace Chapman (Canada) 1
Brandi Chastain (USA) 1
Maribel Dominguez (Mexico) 1
Randee Hermus (Canada) 1
Fatima Leyva (Mexico) 1
Shannon MacMillan (USA) 1
Kencia Marseille (Haiti) 1
Tiffeny Milbrett (USA) 1
Marlene Sandoval (Mexico) 1
Tasha St. Louis (T&T) 1
Diana Valderrama (Panama) 1
Aly Wagner (USA) 1
Amy Walsh (Canada) 1