Wake Forest Athletics
Opara, U.S. U-20's Defeat Cameroon, 4-1
9/29/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Sept. 29, 2009
SUEZ, Egypt - The United States U-20 Men's National Team exploded for four goals, including three in the second half, and earned its first win in the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup, defeating Cameroon 4-1 on Tuesday.
With the victory, the U.S. improved to 1-1-0 at the U-20 World Cup and moved into second place in its group with one group game left to play. The top two teams from each group advance to the knockout stage of the tournament.
Wake Forest junior defender Ike Opara earned a starting nod as a central defender for the second consecutive game. Opara played the entire 90 minutes for the United States.
The U.S. grabbed the lead right before halftime as Bryan Arguez scored in stoppage time to put the United States up 1-0.
The lead became 3-0 on a pair of U.S. goals in the second half. Tony Taylor found the back of the net in the 47th minute, while Dilly Duka scored in the 67th minute.
Cameroon got its only goal of the game in the 75th minute on a converted penalty kick by Banana Yaya.
The United States closed out in stoppage time in the second half as Brian Ownby tallied the fourth goal of the day for the Americans.
In a game where both teams had several scoring opportunities, the U.S. held a slight advantage in shots at 15-14 and had an 8-6 edge in shots on goal.
The United States closes group play on Friday, October 2, at 12:45 p.m. (ET) against Korea. The match will be televised on ESPN2.
