USWNT vs. Canada: 3 things to know ahead of the match

The USWNT face Canada Thursday in the first of two friendlies. Here are three things to know ahead of the match.

The U.S. women’s national team renew their longstanding rivalry with Canada in what should be an exciting night at BC Place in Vancouver on Thursday, the first of two friendlies between the sides, with the second coming on Sunday.

The USWNT are 47-3-6 all-time against Canada, and will look to keep their six-game winning streak alive. Also worth noting, this is the first time Jill Ellis’ squad will return to the stadium since winning the 2015 World Cup.

Out of the 23-player roster named for the USWNT, 22 have just finished their National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) seasons. Canada head coach John Herdman has named 12 players to his squad that play in the NWSL as well. So as two familiar foes meet on Thursday, here are three things to know that go beyond the obvious: yes, Christine Sinclair is still very much representing Canada and also, yes, if Carli Lloyd bags a hat-trick on Thursday, she’ll reach the 100-goal mark.

Name drop Emily Sonnett

If you know anything about soccer, you should probably know who this Portland Thorns defender is, or at least her celebration face.

Sonnett helped Portland win the 2017 NWSL Championship by being an absolute anchor in the backline in front of Adrianna Franch. After wrapping up a record-setting season in Portland, the University of Virginia alum was soon called on by Ellis into training camp ahead of the Canada friendlies. This will be the first time Sonnett is back in the mix with the senior team since last playing for them on Oct. 19, 2016.

Next: Zack Steffen: USMNT Keeper of the Future?

Understand the magic of BC Place

How can you forget when Houston Dash’s Carli Lloyd led the USWNT to a historic 5-2 victory over Japan to win the 2015 World Cup? If scoring a hat-trick on that kind of stage wasn’t memorable enough, let’s just remember for a second that one of her goals was that jaw-dropping long-range stunner. It’s slightly ironic the game is on Thursday, because this is a total TBT (throw-back-Thursday) moment. BC Place has also been the stage for the USWNT on five different occasions in 2012 for the CONCACAF Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament. USA and Canada met for the final and drew the highest attendance for a women’s qualifying match.

The list of goalscorers keeps growing

There was a time when the only name you would associate with scoring in women’s soccer was Abby Wambach or Mia Hamm. Now, however, there aren’t just one or two names that come to mind, but several. Lloyd hasn’t made much of a splash on the scoring front recently, but her stats and grit have everyone thinking another 2012 hat-trick performance is boiling.

The captain has 97 goals with the senior team and if she notches three more she will join the short-list of national team players to reach 100-career goals. The last U.S. player to reach this mark was Wambach. Orlando Pride’s Alex Morgan has been on absolute fire. Morgan enters the game with 78 international goals and after a standout season with the Pride, even after only joining mid-way due to her overseas stint with Olympique Lyonnais, should find the net at least once over the two-game stretch.

https://twitter.com/ussoccer_wnt/status/927958833225523200

Julie Ertz is another name that comes to mind. Just a year ago, Ertz was seen as a shutdown defender, yet now the Chicago Red Stars midfielder has five goals on the year with the USWNT, tied for most on the team with Morgan.

While the list goes on and on for the USWNT, with 12 different goalscorers finding the back of the net this year, Canada will field the second greatest goalscorer of all time, at least at the international level. The one, the only, Christine Sinclair. Sinclair is Canada’s all-time leading scorer and has 168 international goals. Wambach still holds the prize for the all-time record with 184, but Sinclair is just 16 shy of that mark. Also expect to see