The U.S. women’s national team put on a dominant performance in outclassing Japan 3-0 before over 30,000 fans May 24 in Yokohama’s newly opened National Stadium. The victory gave the Americans a three-game sweep in their first-ever tour of Japan. The U.S. took the lead early, as Brandi Chastain scored in just the eighth minute of play. She headed Christie Pearce’s corner kick off the crossbar, and the ball rebounded to midfielder Julie Foudy. Her close-range shot was cleared off the goal line, but Cindy Parlow played the rebound back to Chastain, who knocked the bouncing ball into the net from eight yards out. “Prior to the game, Tony [DiCicco] asked the midfield to get more involved and to score some goals, which we did,” said Chastain, whose tally was the 16th of her international career. “The team played much better as whole today. We attacked and defended together and could have scored a few more.” The Americans played with increased defensive tenacity and a quicker speed of play than in the first two matches, and had Japan on the run for 90 minutes. The USA won virtually every head ball and with a more productive attacking rhythm, produced 19 total shots for the game to Japan’s four. Kristine Lilly, who set the world record for international appearances at the May 21 game in Kobe, scored the second goal in the 33rd minute, finishing a rebound of Joy Fawcett’s shot that Japanese goalkeeper Nozimo Yamago saved, but couldn’t hold. Japan came close to pulling a goal back in the 72nd minute, when Mayumi Omatsu beat the U.S. offside trap. U.S. goalkeeper Briana Scurry got a piece of the Omatsu’s low shot to slow it down, and Joy Fawcett recovered to clear the rolling ball off the goal line. The U.S. added the final goal four minutes from the end of the match as Lilly ripped a shot from 22 yards out that was pushed off the crossbar by the flying Yamago. Parlow ran down the rebound in the right corner and chipped a pass back to Shannon MacMillan, who struck a shot that was seemingly headed wide left of the goal, but Venturini, falling to her knees, re-directed the ball into the net with her head from eight yards out. “We were always in charge of the game,” said U.S. coach Tony DiCicco. “We played much better on both sides of the ball than in the first two matches. But Japan is a very well-coached and organized, and these three results in their country were all quality wins.” Defender Kate Sobrero made her first international start for the U.S., while forward Mia Hamm, who injured her right hamstring in the May 17 game in Tokyo, was held out of her second straight match for precautionary reasons. The U.S. women return home to face New Zealand May 30 at RFK Stadium as part of a doubleheader with the men’s national team. The match will be shown live on ESPN2. The U.S. faces New Zealand agai on June 2 at Elmore Field in Oneonta, N.Y. May 24 in Yokohama Japan 0 USA 3. Goals: Chastain 8, Lilly 33, Venturini 86. Japan — Yamago, Yamaki, Nishina, Isozaki, Nakachi, Sakai (Morimoto, 79), Hara (Omatsu, 46), Sawa, Mitsui, Otake (Sugawara, 87), Uchiyama (Kishi, 69). USA — Scurry, Overbeck, Pearce (Roberts, 46), Fawcett, Sobrero, Chastain (Fair, 46), Foudy (Whalen, 76), Parlow, Keller (Venturini, 46), Lilly, Milbrett (MacMillan, 58). Yellow cards: none. Referee: Yayoi Watanabe (Japan). Att.: 34,885.