ST. LOUIS — If there is a national women’s soccer team well-positioned to adapt to the loss of a premier player before a major tournament, it is the U.S. squad. Coach Vlatko Andonovski enjoys an embarrassment of attacking riches at his disposal for the World Cup this summer, and so the moment Mallory Swanson severely injured her left knee Saturday, the mechanism for such situations was enacted.
Most urgently, Trinity Rodman, a 20-year-old rising star, entered the match and veteran Lynn Williams, a career 15-goal scorer, was placed on alert for possible second-half duty.