SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (March 12, 2022) – The U.S. Under-20 Women’s Youth National Team defeated Mexico 2-0 in the championship game of the Concacaf Women’s U-20 Championship to earn a record seventh Concacaf title for this age group.

A goal early in the game from forward Michelle Cooper and late in first half from midfielder Talia DellaPeruta staked the USA to a 2-0 halftime lead that it would not relinquish.

“I am just so grateful, we all sacrificed so much to be here,” said Cooper after the match. “It’s been years in the making due to COVID-19, so I’m just really proud of all my teammates and we’re all just really excited to come out of here with gold.”

Coming into the match, the USA and Mexico had already secured berths to the 2022 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup through semifinal victories, but regional bragging rights were on the line and the USA continued the attacking dominance it has showed throughout the tournament despite a game effort from a tough Mexican side.

The USA gave an early indication how this match would play out, scoring in just the third minute as Cooper hustled to block a clearance from Mexico goalkeeper Celeste Espino and then finished into the open net. The goal gave Cooper eight for the tournament and made her the winner of the Golden Boot as the tournament’s top goal scorer. The 19-year-old was also named the Golden Ball winner as the tournament’s best player.

Amazingly, Cooper’s goal was just the third-fastest the USA has scored from the opening whistle in this tournament. The USA scored in the first minute in the opening game vs. Nicaragua and in the second minute in the Round of 16 match vs. Suriname.

The USA also put the ball into the net after great defensive play in the sixth minute as forward Alyssa Thompson stripped Mexico defender Samantha Lopez in the back, but after a VAR replay, it was determined that the ball had hit Thompson’s arm as she rounded Espino, who got a…