As the referee's whistle blew a few feet from him to signal the end of Friday's Concacaf Under-20 qualifier between the United States and Costa Rica, Alex Mendez dropped to his knees in what was part prayer and part double fist pump.
The young midfielder had good reason to celebrate, having turned in his latest star performance to lead the U.S. Under-20s to a comfortable 4-0 rout of a Costa Rica side that looked overmatched for the better part of 90 minutes. The final score wasn't as lopsided as the handful of blowouts the United States recorded in the first group stage of the Concacaf U-20 Championship, but in many ways it was the American team's most impressive performance of the tournament.