Christian Pulisic believes the United States can take confidence from setting a record for away goals as they thumped Grenada.
In winning 7-1 on Friday in the CONCACAF Nations League, it was the first time they had scored seven goals in a match taking place outside the US.
It was USA's first competitive match since the World Cup, with Ricardo Pepi and Weston McKennie each scoring twice.
Chelsea star Pulisic also got on the scoresheet, and had a hand in four other goals too.
"We came out really strong with a lot of energy and just kind of put with them right away," Pulisic said.
"So I think they were kind of surprised by that. Took our goals well and just a great all-around performance. Definitely gives us confidence."
The game was also the first time USA played a competitive match without using a single MLS player since the league began in 1996.
Interim coach Anthony Hudson was impressed by what he saw from his team, but urged them to finish the job as they bid to reach the Nations League final four.
USA are top of their group ahead of hosting El Salvador on Monday at Exploria Stadium in Florida.
Hudson said: "With a [good] performance and a result like this, you don't want to get carried away.
"The importance for us is just to make sure that we do all the right things between now and the next game and we finish the job off.
"But the actual performance, I thought it was the result of just a really, really good week."
Jamaica Scorpions chasing a mammoth 459 for victory against Guyana Harpy Eagles were 176-1 at stumps, needing a further 282 to achieve an unlikely victory on Friday.
When play resumes on Saturday morning, Tevin Gilzene will carry on from 81 hoping for a big century as is Jermaine Blackwood, who was unbeaten on 66. The pair has so far put on 166 for the second wicket after losing opening batter Leroy Lugg for 10.
Earlier, Guyana picked up from their overnight score of 138-4 with Tagenarine Chanderpaul on 60 and Tevin Imlach on an even 50. The pair had extended their partnership to 175 when Chanderpaul was trapped lbw by Blackwood for 89.
Meanwhile, Imlach went to make an unbeaten 136 as Guyana declared at 294-7, 458 ahead of the Scorpions.
Mindley finished with the impressive figures of 6-54 after running through the Guyana middle order. Blackwood took 1-41.
Kavem Hodge scored his fourth first-class hundred but it was the Leeward Islands Hurricanes who ended day three of their fourth-round fixture against the Windward Islands Volcanoes with a 128-run second innings lead at the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba on Friday.
The Volcanoes started the day 206-2 with Alick Athanaze and Kavem Hodge at the crease on 105 and 85, respectively.
The pair, who came together with the Volcanoes 10-2, brought their third-wicket partnership up to 246 before Athanaze’s knock was brought to an end on 128.
It was quickly 256-4 when Sunil Ambris only lasted one ball.
During the innings Hodge brought up his fourth first-class hundred, reaching 125 by the time lunch came around.
His partner at lunch was Justin Greaves who was on four as the Windwards were 298-5 off 75 overs, trailing the Hurricanes by 84 runs.
After the break, The Windwards lost the wickets of Hodge for 137 and Tevyn Walcott for 17 to be 314-6 in the 81st over.
Justin Greaves had to leave the field when he was on eight after being struck on the helmet by a Jeremiah Louis bouncer. He would later return to the crease when the Windwards were 348-9.
On the stroke of tea, the Windwards innings ended on 353-9 off 95 overs, with them just 29 runs short of a first-innings lead, after Shermon Lewis retired hurt after apparently feeling ill on the field. Greaves was left stranded on 12.
Louis took 4-46 while Cornwall took 4-102 for the Hurricanes.
At stumps, the Hurricanes reached 99-5 off 39 overs. Montcin Hodge has, so far, faced 114 balls for his 45.
Earlier, Preston McSween removed Kieran Powell and Akeem Saunders for four and 11, respectively, to have figures of 2-26 off six overs so far.
A new era will start for both South Africa and West Indies when Aiden Markram and Rovman Powell lead the sides in the opening Twenty20 International match of the series on Saturday.
Markram this month replaced Temba Bavuma as captain, with the Test and one-day international skipper axed from the T20I squad.
The opener at SuperSport Park will also be the first T20I since Rob Walter took over as white-ball head coach and comes on the back of a 1-1 ODI series draw with the Windies.
Markram was given the honour of captaining his country in only his third ODI back in 2018, when Faf du Plessis was absent along with other senior players.
The batter felt that opportunity came too soon and believes the experience he has gained since then should stand him in good stead.
He said: "I was quite fresh back then. I was very hard on myself, and always wanted to do well and we know this sport, it doesn't always work out that way."
Markram added: "Being with the legendary team the Proteas had at the time, I paid attention to how Faf managed to marshal his troops.
"That is something I looked up to and strived for probably without him knowing, it was just through me observing from the side."
It will also be a special weekend for Powell in Centurion, where there will be a double-header before the series ends with a contest at JB Marks Oval Potchefstroom on Tuesday.
Powell was selected as the man to replace Nicholas Pooran, who stepped down after the T20 World Cup in Australia last November.
South Africa will be looking to take the momentum from a record-breaking series-levelling ODI win over the Windies in which Heinrich Klaasen was the star of the show.
Klaasen struck 119 off 61 balls as the Proteas chased down their victory target of 261 in just 29.3 overs in Potchefstroom, becoming the first team to score 250 or more to win in under 30 overs.
De Kock set to move level with De Villiers
Wicketkeeper-batter Quinton de Kock is set to go joint-third on the list of the highest appearance-makers for the Proteas in T20Is, as he is currently one behind AB de Villiers' tally of 78.
De Kock has enjoyed facing West Indies in the shortest format, scoring half-centuries in each of his past three knocks.
Windies away form must be addressed
West Indies have won only one of their past 15 T20Is on tour, that coming against Zimbabwe last October.
Facing South Africa could present a good opportunity to address that poor record, as the Proteas have lost four multi-game bilateral T20I series at home – that is their longest losing run in this format.
An early Maykel Reyes goal was enough for Cuba to get past Barbados 1-0 in a Concacaf Nations League B Group A contest on Thursday night at the Wildey Turf Stadium in Barbados.
Reyes, 30, was able to put one past Barbados goalkeeper Liam Brathwaite after latching on to a pass from midfielder Willian Pozo which deflected off forward Luis Paradela.
The job was made even tougher for the visitors when, in the 33rd minute, Barbados midfielder Omani Leacock picked the pocket of Cuba defender Yosel Piedra and was off and running the other way.
The centre back was forced to bring him down from behind, earning his second yellow card in three minutes meaning Cuba would defend its lead with 10 men for an hour.
The Tridents looked for an equalizing goal that would have earned them their first point of the Nations League, but weren’t able to beat Cuba goalkeeper Sandy Sanchez.
They got an opportunity in the 84th minute when a chipped ball over the top from the edge of the penalty area nearly got to Barbados forward Ryan Trottman but Sanchez was quick off his line to scoop up the ball and secure the clean sheet.
Cuba stays atop the group and will look to earn promotion to League A when it hosts Guadeloupe on Sunday, while Barbados closes out the tournament with a trip to face Antigua and Barbuda at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium.
Top seed Chris Binnie got off to a strong start at the Jamaica Squash Association's senior trials defeating the number-five seed Bruce Burrowes in straight sets 11-9, 11-9 and 11-8 at the Liguanea Club in Kingston on Thursday.
As the scores indicate, all three sets were competitive with Burrowes enjoying the lead over Binnie briefly in each set but was not able to convert any to a win.
"Good game. I think that shows, you come, you have to play and everyone is competitive and today he (Burrowes) took it to me and it was really close so I am happy to get a 3-0 win and I am looking forward to tomorrow (Friday)," said the nine-time Caribbean men’s singles champion.
"When you start playing events, you want to get that first win under your belt, you want to get that first match done with as well so little nerves to start getting used to the court. I am not based here so the courts I play on are a lot colder so getting used to all of that. I am super happy with how it ended. Hopefully tomorrow (Friday) I can be a little bit better and hopefully get another win."
Despite the loss, Burrowes was not unhappy with his play.
"Chris is a top notch player; Caribbean national player, Caribbean top player, top national player. He is definitely of a different level than the local boys that I am able to train with here but I was able to hold my own against him in the game with points 11-9, 11-9, 11-8,” he said.
“That's not bad even though it’s a 3-0 loss. (I) just have to move on to the next match. Wish Chris all the best in the rest of his matches and just hope that Jamaica can put together our strongest team of these trials."
The trials opened with number-four seed Dane Schwier defeating the number-six seed Stephan Morrison in straight sets.
Meanwhile, reigning national champion and number-two seed Julian Morrison beat the U19 champion and number-seven seed Tobias Levy 3-0.
The four-day trials to select Jamaica's team to the upcoming PanAm Games in June and the Senior Caribbean Squash Championship in August, continue on Friday with matches starting at 6:00 pm at the Liguanea Club.
St Kitts and Nevis defeated St Martin 3-1 in their Concacaf Nations League Group B encounter at the Raymond E. Guishard Technical Centre in Anguilla on Thursday.
St Kitts, playing a 4-3-3 formation started with Julanni Archibald in goal with Lois Maynard at left back Raheem Hanley and Andre Burley at centre back while Gerard Williams marshalled the right side.
Romaine Sawyers, Omari Sterling James and Yohannes Mitchum played in the middle of the park while Tyrese Shade, Keithroy Freeman and the SKNFA Premier League’s leading scorer Tiquanny Williams in the attacking positions front.
St Martin, meanwhile, playing 3-5-2, started with Jordan Etienne in goal with Mickael Clio, Stephan Varsovie and Donovan Fils Aime protecting the goal.
Across midfield were from left to right Belony Dumas, Kevin Zonzon, Ismael Petchy, Emmanuel Richardson and Randy Gentes.
Pierre Bertrand Arne and Jeremy Peterson were the starting forwards.
Williams gave the Sugar Boyz the lead in the 26th minute. However, the lead did not last long as St Martin pulled level five minutes later through Pierre-Bertrand Arne.
Sawyers sent St Kitts and Nevis into the break with a 2-1 lead when he scored in the 35th minute.
That score-line would hold until Harry Panayiotou, who came on as a substitute for James in the 77th minute, secured all three points scoring the game winner a minute from full-time.
The win takes St Kitts and Nevis to the top of Group B with seven points from their three games to date.
Aruba lie second with four points while St Martin have two points from four games played.
St Kitts return home to face Aruba on Monday.
Opener Zachary McCaskie fell eight runs shy of a maiden first-class hundred as the Barbados Pride hold a 37-run lead over the Trinidad & Tobago Red Force after day two of their fourth-round fixture at the Queen’s Park Oval
At lunch, the Pride were 108-3 off 40 overs. Zachary McCaskie and Shane Dowrich were the batsmen at the crease on 71 and two, respectively.
McCaskie carried on after lunch and looked set for his maiden first-class ton before he fell for 92.
At tea, the Pride were 222-6 off 72 overs. Roshon Primus and Akeem Jordan were the batsmen at the crease on 38 and 22, respectively.
Shortly after tea, Primus brought up his fifty before being dismissed for a 71-ball 53.
Eventually, the Pride were bowled out for 271 in 85 overs, a first innings lead of 68 runs.
The Red Force were 31-2 in their second innings at stumps, trailing by 37 runs with Darren Bravo (20) and Brian Charles (5) at the crease.
Opener Tagenarine Chanderpaul and wicket-keeper/batsman Tevin Imlach notched late half-centuries as the Guyana Harpy Eagles ended day two of their fourth-round fixture against the Jamaica Scorpions with a 301-run second innings lead at Providence.
The hosts began the day 268-9 off 86.3 overs.
Harpy Eagles captain Leon Johnson carried on from his overnight 142 to finish 150* as Guyana were bowled out for 278 off 88.1 overs.
Marquino Mindley ended with 3-34 while Ojay Shields and Derval Green both ended with two wickets.
The Scorpions endured a horrendous start to their reply losing half of the team for just 24 runs inside six overs and three balls.
Eventually, they found themselves 64-9 in the 18th over before a39-run 10th wicket partnership between Derval Green and Nicholson Gordon meant they entered the lunch break 103-9 off 27 overs.
The pair added 12 more runs after lunch before Green fell for a top score 42 as the Scorpions were dismissed for 115 in 35.5 overs.
Nial Smith ended with 5-39 while Veerasammy Permaul and Ronsford Beaton took 3-22 and 2-22, respectively.
Mindley then led a Scorpions fightback before tea as he grabbed four quick wickets, including that of Leon Johnson, within the first 12 overs of the Harpy Eagles second innings.
The score at tea was 37-4 with Tagenarine Chanderpaul on 14 and Tevin Imlach yet to get off the mark.
After tea, Chanderpaul and Imlach continued on to leave the Harpy Eagles 138-4 at stumps, a lead of 301 runs with Chanderpaul on 60 and Imlach on 50.
Windward Islands Volcanoes captain Alick Athanaze and Leeward Islands Hurricanes all-rounder Kofi James both got centuries on day two of their fourth-round fixture at the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba on Thursday.
The Hurricanes began the day 271-6 off 90 overs with Karima Gore on 87 and James on 61.
Gore went on to make 93 off 198 balls including 13 fours and a six.
At lunch, they reached 338-7 off 116 overs with James on 96 and Jeremiah Louis on 18.
After the break, James carried on to bring up his maiden first-class ton before he was the second-to-last man to be dismissed, falling for 107 off 248 balls. Jeremiah Louis also made a valuable contribution with 45 as the Leewards declared their innings on 382-9 off 121.5 overs.
Shermon Lewis took 3-76 for the Volcanoes while new ball partner Preston McSween provided good support with 2-68.
At tea, the Windwards were 65-2 off 15 overs with in-form batsmen Kavem Hodge and captain Alick Athanaze at the crease on 33 and 21, respectively.
Athanaze and Hodge continued after tea, with the former bringing up his second hundred of the season, bringing his overall tally past 500 for the season. Hodge also brought up his third fifty of the season.
At Stumps, the Volcanoes were 206-2, trailing the Hurricanes by 176 runs with Athanaze and Hodge on 105 and 85, respectively.
Bruce Arena is satisfied with New England Revolution's start to the season, though warned the opening four games of a campaign cannot be used to judge how his team will go on to perform.
The Revolution won MLS' Supporters' Shield in 2021 yet struggled last season, finishing 10th in the Eastern Conference.
New England have started this season strongly, however, winning three of their opening four games, albeit their sole defeat came in a 4-0 thrashing at the hands of reigning MLS Cup champions Los Angeles FC.
A 1-0 win over Nashville SC saw New England return to winning ways last week, and though Arena was not entirely happy with the performance, he cannot complain over his team's start to 2023.
"In the last 10 minutes we didn't do a good job defending the lead, we were a bit too negative, but after four games, to have three wins – it's a pretty good start to the season," he told reporters.
"For the most part we've improved this year. We played well [against Nashville]. In the first half we played very well. For 75 minutes it was really good. I didn't like the last 10-15 minutes but overall it was a good performance against a good team."
Arena, though, did bluntly add: "The first four games of the season means absolutely nothing."
Next up for New England are Wayne Rooney's D.C. United, who lost 3-2 at New York City FC last time out.
D.C. United signed midfielder Lewis O'Brien on loan from Nottingham Forest this week, with Rooney saying: "Lewis has been one of the best players in the Championship over the last few seasons.
"He reads the game well and creates goalscoring opportunities. Bringing him in on loan from Nottingham Forest was a great bit of business for us and he will be a brilliant addition to our midfield."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
D.C. United – Christian Benteke
Christian Benteke has netted twice in MLS this season, including D.C. United’s first goal in their loss in New York City. Benteke scored with his only attempt on target, with the striker hitting a further two off target and also creating one chance.
New England Revolution – Gustavo Bou
Bou scored the lone goal in New England's 1-0 win over Nashville on Saturday. He has scored 41 goals in the regular season and play-offs since debuting for New England in mid-2019, 10 more than any other Revs player under Arena.
MATCH PREDICTION – DRAW
With nine points through four matches (W3 L1), the Revolution are off to their second-best start in club history (10 points in 2005).
D.C., meanwhile, are unbeaten in their first two home matches this season, picking up a win over Toronto FC and a draw against Columbus Crew. They have not gone three straight home matches without defeat since a five-match run in August-September 2021 (W4 D1).
New England won the last MLS meeting between the teams, emerging victorious 1-0 at Gillette Stadium last season. Carles Gil scored for the Revs, though the playmaker did not feature against Nashville due to injury.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
D.C. United – 34.6 per cent
New England Revolution – 36.7 per cent
Draw – 28.7 per cent
Julien Alfred, Ackera Nugent and Lamara Distin are among ten women named to the watch list for the 2023 Bowerman Award after standout performances at the 2023 NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships in Albuquerque, New Mexico from March 10-11.
The Bowerman is an award given to the year’s best student-athlete in American collegiate track & field.
There was also a pre-NCAA Indoor Championships list revealed earlier in March that included Alfred and Distin.
St. Lucian Texas senior Alfred capped off a spectacular indoor season with a personal best and collegiate record 6.94 to defend her NCAA Indoor title. Her time made her the fastest Caribbean woman ever in the event and put her joint-second all-time behind Irina Privalova’s 6.92.
The 21-year-old also won gold in the 200m in 22.01, another collegiate record and the second fastest time ever behind Jamaican Merlene Ottey’s 21.87 done 30 years ago in Lille.
Arkansas sophomore Nugent, who was absent from the list released before the championships, earned her way on to the new one when she won gold in the 60m hurdles in 7.73.
On day one of the meet, Nugent, 20, set a new collegiate and Jamaican national record when she ran 7.72 in the prelims. That time puts her fourth on the all-time list for the event.
23-year-old Texas A&M senior Distin completed another unbeaten indoor season with a 1.91m clearance to win the high jump. In February, Distin cleared 1.97m to equal her own Jamaican record.
The other seven athletes on the watch list are Florida’s Jasmine Moore and Talitha Diggs, Kentucky’s Masai Russell, NC State’s Kaetlyn Tuohy, Oregon’s Jorinde Van Klinken, Stanford’s Roisin Willis and Arkansas’s Britton Wilson.
Chaim Holder’s five-wicket haul has put Barbados Pride in control at stumps on day one of their fourth-round West Indies Championship match at Queens Park Oval on Wednesday.
Holder was the spearhead of the Barbados attack taking 5-71 as the Red Force were bundled out for 203 in 75-3 overs. At the close, Barbados were 40-0.
Jason Mohammed spared the Red Force blushes with his score of 55 but other than Tion Webster, who contributed 46 and Joshua Da Silva 32, the other batters failed to show. Darren Bravo who has two hundreds and a 95 in the competition so far managed only seven as Trinidad crawled to 76-3 from the first 33 overs.
Jair McAllister also got in on the wickets taking 3-31 as the hosts struggled to find runs.
At the close, Barbados trail by 163 runs with all wickets intact.
Zachary McCaskie is at the crease on 21 while Sheyne Moseley is unbeaten on 19 at the other end.
Half-centuries from Kieran Powell, Karima Gore and Kofi James steered Leeward Islands Hurricanes to 271-6 at stumps in their fourth-round West Indies Championship match against Windward Islands Volcanoes at Toruba on Wednesday.
Powell scored 75 and shared in a fourth-wicket stand of 42 with Jahmar Hamilton that helped rescue Hurricanes from 51-3 after Monctin Hodge (6), Akeem Saunders (0) and Devon Thomas were all back in the hutch within 17 overs.
The Leewards slipped again from 93-3 to 121 -6 as Hamilton (12), Powell and Rahkeem Cornwall 14 fell in relatively quick succession before Gore and James came together mounting an unbroken stand of 150 that took the Hurricanes to close of play.
Gore, an American, will resume on Thursday on 87 while James will pick up from 61.
Preston McSween 2-42 and Kenneth Dember 2-66 were the primary wicket takers for the Windwards.
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