US Exits World Cup

The US women's national soccer team fell short in their bid for a third straight World Cup title, losing to Sweden on penalty kicks yesterday morning. It was the first loss for the US squad in the World Cup since 2011, who entered the tournament as the world's No. 1-ranked team.

The deciding point came when Swedish forward Lisa Hurtig drilled a penalty kick that US goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher appeared to save (watch here)—but when replayed showed it went just over the line. The US had a number of chances to either score or close the game out, missing two shots in the first penalty round while putting 22 shots on goal compared to nine from Sweden during regular time. The final shot was confirmed by new ball-tracking technology, implemented in the women's World Cup for the first time this year.

Sweden moves on to face Japan, who is riding a four-game winning streak after beating Norway 3-1 in the first stage of the knockout round.