'She's a connector' – Magnetic Mallory Swanson proves to be catalyst for USWNT as they seek first Olympic gold since 2012
Getty/GOALRecovered and rising again after missing 2023 World Cup with injury, Swanson integral to the USWNT attack in Paris Games
It's become the topic of debate in women's soccer at the 2024 Olympics: the nickname for the U.S. women's national team's front three. Plenty of suggestions have been tossed out during the USWNT's run to the Gold Medal match in the Paris Games, but there hasn't been one that's quite landed. Some have suggested "Trident" or "The Triple Crown." Others lean toward "Triple Trouble" or even "The Holy Trinity." The good news, for those in the nicknaming business?
There's plenty of time to figure it out. These three aren't going anywhere.
When this attack gets going, it's magic on green grass. Trinity Rodman, Sophia Smith and Mallory Swanson can all dazzle. They can all score and they can all pass. There are so many ways they can create havoc for opponents, and, on any given day, each one of them can. Or any two. Or all three, really.
That's what makes this reinvented USWNT so good, too. You never know where the winning goal is coming from. Against Japan, it was Rodman with a curler in extra time.. Against Germany, it was Smith with a tidy finish, also in extra time. And, as the USWNT prepares to face Brazil with Olympic gold on the line – the first Olympic final for the U.S. since the 2012 London Games – it's worth wondering: is this Swanson's time?
It would be fitting, wouldn't it? A year and a half after missing out on the World Cup due to injury, Swanson has emerged as a missing piece for this team. With Swanson in the XI, this is a different USWNT and, more importantly, this is a better, more effective, more dangerous USWNT.
As the U.S. heads into Saturday's 11 am. ET Olympic final against Brazil at Parc des Princes in Paris, Swanson remains clearly in focus. Can she make the difference? Can she have a magical moment of her own? Can the third member of this unnamed trio make this group golden?
