By Scott French, Senior Editor
in Portland, Ore.
An otherworldly performance by goalkeeper Silke Rottenberg and a German backline that made big plays from start to finish ended on Sunday the United States' dreams of repeating as Women's World Cup champion.
A perfect, glancing header by Kerstin Garefrekes off a corner kick gave Germany an early lead, and defenders Ariane Hingst and Kerstin Stegemann led a superb defensive effort as Germany reached its second Women's World Cup title game with a flattering 3-0 victory in the semifinals before a sellout crowd of 27,623 at PGE Park.
Maren Meinert and Birgit Prinz added goals from each other's feeds with the Americans pushed up in stoppage time to secure a date with Sweden in next Sunday's championship at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif.
''We couldn't finish, we couldn't put away our chances, but I thought Germany was excellent,'' U.S. captain Julie Foudy said. ''I thought they were organized [and] I thought their keeper was great, but I feel proud of the way we played. We battled, we got numbers forward — it wasn't like we didn't create chances — but, unfortunately, sometimes you get a little bit unlucky and things don't bounce your way.''
The United States, who controlled vast expanses of action but couldn't find a way past Rottenberg, must settle for a third-place assignment against CONCACAF rival Canada on Saturday at the Home Depot Center.
It was a tense, exciting match — U.S. coach April Heinrichs called it, with some hyperbole, ''perhaps the greatest game ever played in women's soccer'' — that saw the Germans deftly handle Abby Wambach's physical dimensions and the Americans, especially in the second half, shut off Germany's midfield possession game.
Much of the action was played between the midfield stripe and the German box, but when the Americans penetrated, Rottenberg and her backline — especially right back Stegemann and center-right back Hingst — poked the ball away or cleared it from danger.
Rottenberg was sensational on crosses and in coming off her line to snuff challenges, and she also came out of her box to kick or head the ball from danger.
The Germans' technical superiority was obvious, but they hadn't been expected to match up physically with the Yanks, especially Wambach, who fought strongly all match without success.
Outnumbered in midfield, five players to three, for the first half and beyond, the Americans prospered after playmaker Aly Wagner, giving by far her best performance of the tournament, came on for Cindy Parlow seven minutes into the second half and the Americans switched to a 4-4-2 formation, which gave way to a 3-4-3 in the latter stages.
Wagner was able to find seams to the German box and locate teammates on both flanks, but — especially — Rottenberg, her defenders and holding midfielders Bettina Wiegmann and Renate Lingor repeatedly cut off access to their goal.
Foudy, positioned on the right but found all over the field, was the crux of the U.S. attack, and Mia Hamm was solid on the flank, tying up left back Stefanie Gottschlich and serving balls in. Hamm, however, rarely found her way into the box and was largely ineffective.
Kristine Lilly, suffering from horrid touch, did little with many chances, although a chipped shot in the 26th minute looked net-bound until a diving Rottenberg plucked it out of the air.
Eight minutes later, Wambach fed a fine throughball to Hamm, but Rottenberg came off her line and took the ball off Hamm's feet. In the 43rd, Cindy Parlow was presented an open shot on the left side of the box but fired directly at Rottenberg.
The Americans also were denied a penalty kick when Rottenberg took out Portland native Tiffeny Milbrett just inside the penalty area in the 70th minute, seconds after Milbrett replaced Bivens. Referee Sonia Denoncourt — selected to officiate although her home nation, Canada, could have met the winner in the final — waved play on as Milbrett and Foudy argued to no avail.
U.S. goalkeeper Briana Scurry made two outstanding saves in succession in the 53rd minute, stopping a Prinz header with her right knee and Wiegmann's header off the rebound with her right hand.
Scurry had no chance on any of the goals. The latter two were 1-on-1 situations, with Meinert firing inside the left post from about 17 yards and Prinz rounding Scurry and firing into an open net for her tournament-leading seventh goal.
The game's key moment arrived in the 15th minute. Kylie Bivens was slow to get back on defense, and Joy Fawcett — solid as always but occasionally beaten — roamed wide to force a corner kick. Wambach lost Garefrekes on the serve, and the German midfielder — at 6-foot the tallest player on the field — found a solitary spot at the left edge of the 6-yard box.
Lingor's serve was perfect and Garefrekes, with Foudy rushing in behind her, flicked the ball off the bottom of the crossbar and into the net. It was Garefrekes' fourth goal of the tournament.