The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • Page 200

D4 THURSDAY, JUNE 24, 1999 LOS ANGELES TIMES 2 Hats Off to Sun Wen in China Rout fit Norway Is Picture Perfect Soccer: Defending Cup champion gets two goals from Aarones in 7-1 victory over Canada. 1 La GROUP A GF GA Pts United States 1 0 0 3 0 3 LI Nigeria 1 0 0 2 1 3 North Korea 0 10 12 0 Denmark 0 1 0 0 3 0 At East Rutherford, June 19 United States 3, Denmark 0 At Rose Bowl, June 20 Nigeria 2, North Korea 1 Today at Chicago Nigeria at United States, 5:30 p.m. Today at Portland, Ore. North Korea vs. Denmark, 6 p.m.

Sunday at Landover, Md. Nigeria vs. Denmark, 1 p.m. Sunday at Foxboro, Mass. North Korea vs.

United States, 4 p.m. GROUP I GF GA Pts Brazil 1 0 0 7 1 3 Germany 0 0 1111 Italy 0 0 1111 Mexico 0 10 17 0 At East Rutherford, June 19 Brazil 7, Mexico 1 At Rose Bowl, June 20 Germany 1, Italy 1 Today at Chicago Brazil vs. Italy, 3 p.m. Today at Portland, Ore. Germany vs.

Mexico, 8:30 p.m. Sunday at Landover, Md. Germany vs. Brazil, 10:30 a.m. Sunday at Foxboro, Mass.

Mexico vs. Italy, 1:30 p.m. QUARTERFINALS Wednesday Quarterfinal 1 At San Jose Group winner vs. Group second, 5 p.m. Quarterfinal 2 At San Jose Group winner vs.

Group second, 7:30 p.m. July 1 Quarterfinal 3 At Landover, Md. Group A winner vs. Group second, 4 p.m. Quarterfinal 4 At Landover, Md.

Group winner vs. Group A second, 6:30 p.m. I ..4 Iff 71 Norway's Ann Kristin Aarones (9) skills in the air and the way she the Canadians, who yielded five more goals in the second half. One of them brought a memorable bit of showmanship from the irrepressible Linda Medalen. After throwing herself through the air to head in a Hege Riise corner kick, Medalen, a veteran of the 1991 and 1995 world championships, raced back toward the Norwegian bench, pulling her shirt up over her head, rnimicking a celebratory stunt often pulled by male players.

"I was joking with the girls her teammates about the shirt and that no women do that, only men," she said. "So of course I'm crazy enough and I had to do it." But it was Aarones who set the tone for the lopsided victory that sends a signal to challengers such as China, the United States and Brazil that Norway is not about to give up its title without a fight. "She's a very good tactical player," Norway Coach Per-Mathias Hogmo said of Aarones. I iJ By GRAHAME JONES TIMES STAFF WRITER LANDOVER, last time she was seen on a World Cup field, Ann Kristin Aarones was wearing a ludicrously floppy red hat and grinning from ear to ear. And for good reason.

She was surrounded by photographers intent on snapping a picture of the player who not only was holding the Women's World Championship trophy aloft, but also was the tournament's top goal scorer. That was four years ago in Sweden, where Norway defeated Germany in the rain in Stockholm to become world champion. Long after the other players had left the field, the 6-foot-l Aarones was still out there, enjoying the moment, posing in the funny hat that had been passed to her by a Norwegian fan and recalling all six of her Sweden '95 goals. Flash forward to Wednesday night. Aarones once again was on a World Cup field, making her USA '99 debut after missing Norway's opening victory over Russia, and once again the goals flowed.

The lanky forward with the white headband banged in two of them in the first half and assisted on one other in the second 45 minutes as Norway overwhelmed Canada, 7-1, in front of 16,448 at Jack Kent Cooke Stadium to become the first team to secure a place in the quarterfinals. It took Aarones, from the town of Aalesund on Norway's west coast, only eight minutes to put the world champions ahead, volleying in a pass from Monica Knudsen. After Canada's Charmaine Hooper tied the score in the 31st minute, Aarones restored Norway's lead five minutes later with a close-range header off a cross by Unni Lehn from the right corner. After that, it was all downhill for THOMAS KENT COOKE Allsport didn't score on this header, but her created goals impressed Canada. "She has phenomenal skills.

She can create goals and she can create chances and she's good in the air, so she and Marianne Pettersen play very well together." Her height makes Aarones appear slow, almost ungainly, but it is an illusion, Hogmo said. "Football is not only in the foot, it's also in the head, so she has both skill and intelligence," he said. "She's also faster than she looks. We are very happy for Ann Kristin because she had a tough time at home before we came here." Aarones had been laid low by a knee injury and a virus and almost didn't make Norway's roster. Hogmo delayed naming his team until it was certain she would be available.

There was no floppy hat for Aarones to parade around in Wednesday, but goals by teammates Lehn, Riise, Pettersen and Solveig Gulbrandsen made sure she might still be able to do so in the Rose Bowl on July 10. Brazil vs. Italy Sweden Capitalizes on Errors Time 3 p.m. PDT. TV-ESPN2.

Site Soldier Field, Chicago. Update Having slammed seven goals past Mexico, the Brazilians suddenly are being seen as a possible World Cup '99 winner. This game will be a better measure of their strength. The Italians, who held Germany to a 1-1 tie, need only achieve a similar stalemate to virtually assure themselves a place in the quarterfinals and the Olympic 2000 berth that goes with It. But Italy's defense will be sorely tested by Pretinha, Sissi and company.

And if Brazil scores, can Italy do the same? Once, maybe. Twice, who knows? Prediction Brazil by one goal. By HELENE ELLIOTT TIMES STAFF WRITER PORTLAND, the sun set, Sun Wen rose to the occasion. China's top player scored twice in the first half and completed a hat trick with a left-footed shot in the 54th minute as China overpowered Ghana, 7-0, in first-round World Cup play Wednesday at Civic Stadium. China, the top-seeded team, in Group improved to 2-0 and clinched a berth in the quarterfinals with a performance that awed the many young soccer players in the crowd of 17,668 at Wednesday's doubleheader.

Ghana (0-1-1) had managed a tie in its tournament opener, but was thoroughly outplayed by China. The yellow-clad Ghanaians are known for their aggressiveness, but that lapped over into roughness and earned them three yellow cards and one red card. Ghana was a player short for most of the second half, after Regina Ansah was ejected for an especially nasty tackle in the 52nd minute. China, which defeated Sweden, 2-1, last Saturday, looked every bit the offensive machine that out-scored its opponents, 37-1, in winning the Asian Cup. Jin Yan contributed a goal and an assist, substitute forward Zhang Ouying scored in the 82nd minute and goalkeeper Gao Hong had an easy evening while she watched her teammates dominate every facet.

"This showed the performance of the China team, but we really missed lots of other chances," said China's coach, Ma Yuanan. He added he told his players to be careful against Ghana's rugged tactics. "I want them to play quick and to control their feelings." The fans showed no favorites, enjoying the occasion as a chance to be entertained on a warm, and breezy summer evening. "In my wildest dreams, I couldn't have imagined what a great atmosphere we'd have at these games," said Maria Messing, president and chief executive of the 1999 Women's World Cup Organizing Committee and a spectator at Civic Stadium Wednesday. Advertisement TO BE SOLS PLUS LICENSE Toyota of Cerritos has announced its plans to nave an Dollar usea iar Slash-It Sales Event this Sunday, June 1W.

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Vehicles subject to prior sale. 11 listed vehicles are not available comparable will De sola ior same ainouni. AS (0)0 GROUP GF GA Pts Norway 2 0 0 9 2 6 Russia 1 1 0 6 2 3 Japan 0 1116 1 Canada 0 112 8 1 At San Jose, June 19 Canada 1, Japan 1 At Foxboro, June 20 Norway 2, Russia 1 At Landover, June 23 Noiway 7, Canada 1 At Portland, June 23 Russia 5, Japan 0 Saturday at East Rutherford, J. Canada vs. Russia, 9 a.m.

Saturday at Chicago Norway vs. Japan, 4:30 p.m. GROUP GF GA Pts China 2 0 0 9 1 6 Sweden 1 1 0 4 3 3 Australia 0 112 4 1 Ghana 0 0 2 1 8 1 At San Jose, June 19 China 2, Sweden 1 At Foxboro, June 20 Ghana 1, Australia 1 At Landover, June 23 Sweden 3, Australia 1 At Portland, June 23 China 7, Ghana 0 Saturday at East Rutherford, J. China vs. Australia, 11:30 a.m.

Saturday at Chicago Ghana vs. Sweden, 2 p.m. Qualified for second round SEMIFINALS July 4 At Palo Alto Quarterfinal 3 winner vs. quarterfinal 4 winner, 1:30 p.m. At Foxboro, Mass.

Quarterfinal 1 winner vs. quarterfinal 2 winner, 4:30 p.m. THIRD PLACE July 10 At Rose Bowl Semifinal losers, 10:30 a.m. CHAMPIONSHIP July 10 Semifinal winners, 1 p.m. i Red cards None.

Referee Hunt, United States. Uneswomen Batista, Brazil; 8ishop, Trinidad Tobago. Attendance 17,668. Australia Sweden .1 0-1 .2 13 First-half scoring 1. Swe, Tomqvist (Anders-son), 9th minute.

2. Swe, Ljungberg (Bengtsson), 21st. 3. Aus, Murray, 32th. SeconrHiarf scoring 4.

Swe, Ljungberg (Svens-son). 69th. Shots Australia 7, Sweden 16. Shots on goal Australia 3, Sweden 8. Offsides Australia 2, Sweden 0.

Fouls Australia 11, Sweden 11 Yellow cards Australia 2, Sweden 1. Red cards None. Referee Fatou Gave, Senegal. Uneswomen Hisae Yoshizawa, Japan; Ana Perez Assante, Peru. Attendance 16.448 China Ghana 47 0-0 Rnt-tialf scoring-l.

China, Sun (Wang). 9th minute. 2. China, Jin, 1601. 3.

China, Sun (Jin), 2 1st Second-half acarlng-4. China, Sun, 54th. 5. China, Zhang. 82nd 6.

China. Zhang (Zhao), 90th. 7. China. Zhao (Sun), 91SL 3 United States vs.

Nigeria Time 5:30 p.m. PDT. TV-ESPN. Site Soldier Held, Chicago. Update This shapes up as a fascinating contrast of styles.

The U.S. team is well-organized, disciplined, moves the ball around quickly, retains possession, has a moreor-less solid defense and a multiple-threat strike force. Nigeria is a loosely organized, undisciplined, attack-at-all-costs team with plenty of athletic talent. Its players also appear to genuinely enjoy the game, but can be a tad physical in their enthusiasm. The key will be whether the U.S.

can avoid becoming flustered and at the same time take advantage of Nigeria's tactical naivete. U.S. starting defender Kate Sobrero is questionable after spraining her right ankle Wednesday during practice. Prediction United States by two goals. it into net from five yards.

Lesson No. 2: If you're going to go for the ball, make sure you get it, Australia might have overcome these mistakes. Certainly, it battled gamely despite being two goals down and even managed to halve the deficit when Julie Murray scored in the 32nd minute after a scramble in front of the Swedish net. But the third error was the coup de grace. Goalkeeper Kitching and defender Sarah Cooper both went for a loose ball at the same time in the penalty area, both hesitated and Ljungberg stuck a foot in between them and poked it into the empty net in the 69th minute for her second goal.

Lesson No. 3: If there's no communication, there's no hope. "We're obviously disappointed," Brown said. "And especially on their first goal. We knew their set plays.

We knew how they were going to take their corners, we worked on it, we discussed it. We put players in position to deal with it, but obviously they didn't do that." Australia can still make it into the quarterfinals, but needs to defeat Russia to have a chance of doing so. Sweden, meanwhile, has an easier task. A victory over Ghana secures its place in the final eight. "We had to win this game and we were quite nervous before the game, of course, because if we had lost we would have been gone," said Sweden Coach Marika Domanski Lyfors.

"So I'm very happy now. I think we played a quite good game." Sweden's next match may be without Tomqvist, who came out of the game late in the second half after catching an elbow in the face. The blow opened a gash across her nose and forehead that required six stitches, Soccer: The 3-1 victory comes courtesy of three Australian miscues. By GRAHAME L. JONES TIMES STAFF WRITER LANDOVER, Md.

Three moments of indecision. That's all it took. When Greg Brown, Australia's coach, reviews the game tapes if indeed he wants to inflict that punishment on himself and his players he will point to that trio of miscues and know they are the reason the Matildas are all but out of the Women's World Cup. It need not have been that way. Australia fought toe to toe with Sweden in front of a crowd of 16,448 at Jack Kent Cooke Stadium on Wednesday night, but at the final whistle the score still read: Sweden 3, Australia 1.

Three little mistakes. The first came in the ninth minute. It was a rudimentary error, schoolyard stuff. Sweden was awarded a corner kick on the left. Malin Andersson sent the ball to the far post, where defender Jane Tomqvist, by far Sweden's most stylish player, found herself completely unmarked and headed the ball powerfully into the back of the net.

Lesson No. 1: Guard the back post. The second miscue occurred in the 21st minute. This time it was Australian goalkeeper Belinda Kitching who was at fault. Swedish midfielder Kristin Bengtsson pushed a pass across the face of the goalmouth.

Kitching came out of the net to either gather the ball or punch it away. Either way, she failed, the ball deflecting off her fingertips and falling to Hanna Ljungberg, who steered North Korea vs. Denmark Time 6 p.m. TV ESPN2 (delayed at 7:30 p.m.) i Site Civic Stadium, Portland, Ore. 1 Update Whichever team loses this Group A encounter can pack its bags be-1 cause it will be all but mathematically eliminated from advancing.

The Danes were shut out, 3-0, by the U.S., which means the Koreans, 2-1 losers to Nigeria, are 'ahead if not on points then at least on goals. But that doesn't mean much. Both teams have to win to survive, and experience will be the difference. Denmark -desperately wants to compete in the Sydney Olympics, but North Korea will not go "quietly into the night. i Prediction Denmark by one goal.

Rarmanv W- RussiaFinds Firmer Footing, 5-0 vs. Mexico Time 8:30 p.m. TV ESPN2 (delayed at 9:30 p.m.) Site Civic Stadium, Portland, Ore. Update What can Coach Leonardo Cuellar possibly tell his shellshocked team? Thrashed, 7-1, by Brazil, Mexico faces another country with a tremendous soccer pedigree. Germany was runner-up to Norway in the 1995 world championship and knows it has to score as many goals as possible to keep pace with Brazil's output in the event of a tiebreaker.

It all adds up to another long night for the Mexicans, who might do better if their federation voiced more support for the team. Prediction Germany by four goals. GRAHAME L. JONES our team is gaining momentum, and this was our number one goal, fielding this team, to qualify for the quarterfinals." Forward Larissa Savina scored Russia's first goal, in the 29th minute, on a counterattack. Grigorieva, a former field hockey player who was transformed into a soccer midfielder 10 years ago, set up the goal with a beautiful through ball to Savina, who booted it into the lower-right corner of the net.

That was merely a hint of what was to come. "I think the inspiration was the first goal," said Letuchkova, who made it 2-0 in the 52nd minute by side-footing a pass from Grigorieva by the right post. "We were ready to play in the second half." Natalia Karasseva stole the ball from Japan's Mito Saka and rocketed a shot that was deflected by goalkeeper Nozomi Yamago but found the back of the net, in the 58th minute, essentially sealing the Japanese team's fate. Substitute Natalia Barbachina scored in the 80th minute, completing a deft passing play with Letuchkova, and Grigorieva passed up an empty net to pass to Letuchkova for an easy tap-in for the final goal. "Japan was not playing as much of a pressing game as Norway, for example," said Grigorieva, who is a stocky 5 feet 4 and stands out on a team that boasts 10 players taller than 5-8.

"That made our life sort of easier." Said Japan Coach Satoshi Miyauchi: "It appeared Russia was a little stronger. It's something the Japanese team will definitely have to work on." Russia can advance to the next round with a victory over Canada Saturday. But first, Bystritzkii wanted to savor Wednesday's achievement. "This will stay in the annals, this result," he said. Soccer: Victory over Japan is nation's first in World Cup competition.

By HELENE ELLIOTT TIMES STAFF WRITER PORTLAND, Ore. After succumbing to jitters in their World Cup debut Sunday, the members of the Russian women's World Cup team rediscovered their composure Wednesday against Japan and made history, scoring four times in the second half for a 5-0 rout at Civic Stadium and the country's first tournament triumph. "The opening match was against Norway, the reigning champion. We were kind of tense," said Russian captain Irina Grigorieva, who had three clever and unselfish assists Wednesday and could easily have scored as many times. "But that was just the opening match.

We managed to overcome that, especially in the second half today, when we managed to play some attacking football." Olga Letuchkova scored in the 52nd and 90th minutes as Russia (1-1) moved into good position to advance to the quarterfinals out of Group C. Russia had lost its tournament debut, 2-1, but Coach Yurii Bystritzkii called it "an honorable result." His team's effort Wednesday was honorable and entertaining for the lively Civic Stadium crowd of 17,668, a performance that grew stronger from about the 30-minute mark after Japan (0-1-1) began to wilt under the force of Russia's physical play. "This was a good experience for us," Bystritzkii said. "This is a young team and people were not informed about this team, especially in the American press. But Norway 2 5 7 Canada 1 01 vFlrtt-hal! scoring 1.

Nor, Aarones (Knudsen), 8th minute. 2. Can, Hooper (Neil), 31st. 3. Nor, Aarones 36th.

Second-half scoring 4. Nor, Lehn (Aarones), 49th. S. Nor, Riise, 54th. 6.

Nor, Medalen (Riise), 62nd. 7. Nor, Pettersen, 76th. 8. Nor, Gulbrandsen, 87th.

Shots Norway 28, Canada 7. Shots on goat Norway 4, Canada 5. Offsides Norway 4, Canada 5. Fouls Norway 10, Canada 12. Yellow cards Norway 1, Canada 0.

cards None. Tammy Ogston, Australia. Uneswom- 'en Song Ok Ri, North Korea. Lu Lijuan, China. Japan Rusela .0 0-0 .1 48 first-half scoring 1.

Rus, Savina (Gngoneva), 29th minute. Second-half scoring 2. Rus. Letuchova (Grigo-rieva), 52nd. 3.

Rus. Karasseva. 58th. 4. Rus, Bar-bachina (Letuchova), 81st.

5. Rus, Letuchova (Grigo-rieva). 89th. Shots Japan 13, Russia 17. Shots on goal Japan 7.

Russia 11. Offsides Japan 4, Russia 3. Fouls Japan 11, Russia 4. Yellow cards Japan 1, Russia 0..