The USA came through a nail-biting Gold Cup quarterfinal against Costa Rica on Sunday night as they reached the last four after a dramatic penalty shootout.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side had Matt Freese to thank, with the goalkeeper making three saves in the shootout before Damion Downs scored to ensure the USMNT reached a 13th straight Gold Cup semifinal.
Sebastian Berhalter, the son of former USMNT coach Gregg Berhalter, was one of two Americans to miss from the spot.
Berhalter Sr and his family were watching from the stands in Minneapolis as Sebastian blazed his penalty over. John Tolkin was also denied as the shootout went to sudden death.
Costa Rica scored first in the match before the hosts took the lead via Diego Luna and Max Arfsten, with Alfonso Martinez later knotting the game at 2-2 in the 71st minute.
The match went straight from regulation to penalties, with Downs sparing his teammates’ blushes as he scored the winning penalty against Keylor Navas.
They Americans will face Guatemala in the semifinals.
More to follow