Pressure System Earns UNC Title Again
by Graham Hays (Result | ESPN - December 6)
Tar Heels blank Stanford to repeat as women's soccer champions more details | go to article

U.S. Women No Longer The Team To Beat
by Graham Hays (Analysis | ESPN - October 1)
If the lasting image for the United States at this Women's World Cup is Hope Solo staring into a camera, U.S. Soccer ought to save some money on airfare and cancel next year's return engagement in the Olympics. more details | go to article

Solo's Future With The U.S. Team Undetermined
by Graham Hays (Profile/Interview | ESPN - September 27)
Controversy is almost as foreign to the United States women's national team as losing, but coach Greg Ryan's team found both all too easily against Brazil on Thursday. more details | go to article

Brazil Overwhelms U.S. With Its Talent
by Graham Hays (Result | ESPN - September 27)
For all the drama and controversy over personnel moves coming out of the United States camp in the hours leading up to Thursday's semifinal, the moves Brazil made with the ball at its feet ultimately ushered the Americans out of the World Cup. more details | go to article

Obsorne-Boxx Midfield Combination The Key To The Win
by Graham Hays (Result | ESPN - September 22)
Something old and something new guided the United States through to the semifinals of a World Cup for the fifth time in five appearances. more details | go to article

Emerging English Team Represents A Tough Challenge
by Graham Hays (Preview | ESPN - September 19)
Once the United States finally escapes Shanghai, it will begin trying to earn its way back to the city that hosts the World Cup final on Sept. 30. more details | go to article

U.S. Aims To Come Out Strong Against Nigeria
by Graham Hays (Preview | ESPN - September 16)
The United States will head to Shanghai's Pudong Airport on Wednesday to catch a flight out of town. What Tuesday's game against Nigeria (8 a.m. ET, ESPN) will determine is whether it's on a quick round-trip ticket to Beijing or Wuhan, or a long one-way ticket back home across the Pacific. more details | go to article

Ellertson Arrives On The World Stage
by Graham Hays (Profile/Interview | ESPN - September 15)
The dream of playing in a World Cup usually goes hand in hand with the dream of representing your country. For American Tina Ellertson, pursuing either goal meant running the risk of placing the other permanently out of reach. more details | go to article

Lineup Changes By Ryan Pay Off For The U.S.
by Graham Hays (Result | ESPN - September 14)
On the eve of his team's opening game in the World Cup, Greg Ryan tried to say his job was already at an end. After two years of preparation, he explained, the start of the tournament meant turning the reins over to the players on the field. more details | go to article

U.S. Will Need To Contain Swedish Offense
by Graham Hays (Preview | ESPN - September 13)
After staring down one of the most harrowing offensive onslaughts it has seen in years en route to salvaging an important point in a 2-2 draw against North Korea, the United States faces Sweden, a team that averages more goals per game against the Americans than almost any side in the world. more details | go to article

Speed And Skill Of North Korea Will Pose Problems
by Graham Hays (Preview | ESPN - September 9)
As the United States prepares to face North Korea in its World Cup opener, the American team has seen more of the North Korean landscape than it has of the isolated nation's reclusive soccer team since the two sides last met four years ago. more details | go to article

Wambach Blazes A New Trail
by Graham Hays (Profile/Interview | ESPN - September 8)
Mia Hamm wasn't the first great women's soccer player, but no individual did more to broker a deal between a sport and a mass audience than she did as the face of the team that captivated a country and filled stadiums en route to winning the 1999 World Cup. more details | go to article

Osborne Provides Unparalleled Depth In Midfield
by Graham Hays (Profile/Interview | ESPN - September 7)
Leslie Osborne might be a new face on the United States women's national team, but there are old stories hidden behind a fresh smile. more details | go to article

The China Diaries
by Graham Hays (Commentary | ESPN - September 7)
Remember the stories about the original Dream Team turning hotels into virtual fiefdoms, stopping by Monte Carlo for a little hand-eye training at the roulette table and generally living the high life on their way to a gold medal in 1992? That's not exactly how the United States women's soccer team rolls in China. more details | go to article

U.S. Women Perfecting Set-Piece Routine
by Graham Hays (Analysis | ESPN - June 24)
The hash marks and yard lines that set the boundaries for the autumn residents of Giants Stadium were still faintly visible on the turf Saturday when the United States women's national team faced Brazil, making the field a fitting backdrop for the kind of precision plays that Giants fans bitterly complain are beyond Eli Manning's grasp. more details | go to article