Where is Alex Oprea? Surprised to not see him at u20s given he was on the World Cup roster for the senior team earlier this year. I assume he hasn’t aged out as he is class of 2028.
As far as I know he is injured. I think I heard he broke his foot.
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So after they put the beat down on Iran it looks like they will play Serbia next on Thursday. Should be a fun matchup although Serbia will have had 2 days rest.
After the first quarter against Serbia, defense is looking very weak. Serbia is piecing up the US zone while the US is using their centers to get good outside shots from Dodd and Brinkema. There also seems to be a potential for this game to get chippy.
US up 9-6 at half. Good to see some young lefties in the pipeline.
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Liethy (is that how you spell it?) looks very strong and has good chemistry with Dodd at ucla. Black is looking good as well in more limited minutes.
Great win for the us boys. Really showed some grit. Huge shoutout to Charlie Mills in cage. Came up clutch time after time. Should be a great game vs Hungary tomorrow
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The U.S have a great chance at Gold. You’ve gotta like their chances of avenging that Hungary loss tomorrow.
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I agree, lefty Ben Liechty has been really solid and clicks really well with Dodd. UCLA has a great young nucleus with those two, Brinkema, Castillo, etc.
It is a nice luxury for the US to have quite a bit of talent at that lefty position. Both Liechty and Black are exceptional all around players and were very effective today.
Can’t wait for their game against Hungary.
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No other team has the dynamic, multi-pronged inside game of the US team. Gives opposing defenses so much to worry about. Which only gives Ryder, possibly the most lethal scorer in the tournament, more room to flourish. Combine that with the high IQ and chemistry of the UCLA four, and the fact that multiple USA players are now shooting at a level of the top European players - this group is going to be a handful.
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Agree 100%. Seems like the overall shooting skills/abilities among the senior and U20 team have really improved in the past 2 years.
I also think our goalkeeping is stepping up tremendously as well: Weinberg (obviously), Herzer, Tempkin, Mills, Chelsom, etc… All guys with a much higher ceiling than past goalies.
Hope we can avenge the earlier loss to Hungary today! Last years U20 world champs bronze medal, Paris bronze medal, and making it to the final 4 here is a great sign for water polo in this country.
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American team seems to have forgotten how to play defense
But their offence showed up, big time!
Congratulations team USA
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Very true. Excited for the final vs Spain. No matter the result, this has been a very successful tournament for the US
Nice win for the US. Not the best game that they have played, but they found a way to pull it out. Hungary did a very good job at containing Dodd, but quite a few of his teammates stepped up and made plays.
It’s crazy that containing Dodd is letting him score 6 goals albeit 2 were 5meters
Love that this team moves without the ball. So much more fun to watch than just forcing the ball into 2m.
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I thought that he had 3 5-Meter goals. He also had an empty net goal at the end of the game.
I did not mean my comment as derogatory at all. Dodd totally changes how other teams are going to play the US. Pick your poison. Try and guard him one-on-one and he will light you up. Key on him and the US has enough talent to make yoiu pay. I like the options that this team has.
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Anyone have a perspective on the overall level of scoring? Seems higher this year than I remember. The new two meter rules have definitely made it easier to score/draw 5m. Weinberg said as much earlier this year on @WPWednesday. Either way, “feels” like scoring is up and these young men have risen to the challenge! 
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