MONTREAL — Celia Sasic picked a pretty bad time for Germany’s first missed penalty kick in the women’s World Cup.
The Germany forward shanked the ball to the left — even as U.S. goalkeeper Hope Solo dove the other way — on her penalty kick after a foul in the box in the 59th minute.
Carli Lloyd then converted a penalty kick in the 69th minute and assisted on Kelley O’Hara’s first international goal in the 84th minute. Goalkeeper Hope Solo recorded her fifth straight shutout before a crowd of about 54,000 at Montreal’s Olympic Stadium.
The Americans went on to defeat Germany 2-0 in the semifinal to advance to the final.
The top-ranked Germans had been 17 for 17 on World Cup penalty kicks, including all five in a tiebreaker to beat France in the quarterfinal.
Sasic is the leading scorer in the tournament, with six goals in Germany’s first five games. That’s why coach Silvia Neid picked her to take the shot after Julie Johnston pulled Alexandra Popp down from behind in the penalty box.
England and the defending Women’s World Cup champion Japan play Wednesday night for the right to play the Americans in Sunday’s championship in Vancouver.
