Villa leads US to gold medal game in water polo

BEIJING (AP) Brenda Villa was one of the youngsters when she made her Olympic debut in Sydney in 2000, not knowing where to go, what to do or how to act.

She just followed the crowd.

Eight years, three Summer Games and countless international matches later, Villa is leading the way for the U.S women's water polo team.

Villa scored three goals, including the game-winner with a minute remaining, and the Americans advanced to the gold medal match with a 9-8 victory against Australia on Tuesday.

"There's a lot of great memories that I have about her," U.S. coach Guy Baker said. "We've still got one more to make. We still have one more game to go together. We'll see how that goes down."

The United States will face the Netherlands in the gold medal match Thursday. The Dutch upset Hungary 8-7 in the other semifinal, getting three goals apiece from Marieke van der Ham and Iefke van Belkum.

The Americans will go for the gold without Lauren Wenger, who broke her right hand against the Australians. It will be a big loss for the world's No. 1 team, but one Baker believes his team can overcome.

"She does a lot of things for us, especially offensively," he said. "We've got time to sit down and figure it out. We've got a couple days to kind of make some adjustments and do what we're going to need to do."

It likely will mean one of the team's youngsters stepping up - much like Villa did in 2000, when she scored with 13.1 seconds left to tie the Australians 3-3 in the gold medal game. The Aussies came right back and won 4-3 on a disputed goal, and Villa has been waiting for a chance to get back to the final game.

Now she has it.

And she played a big part in making it happen.

The United States went more than 8 minutes without scoring and watched a three-goal lead evaporate into an 8-8 tie.

But Villa, a stocky, 28-year-old who somewhat reluctantly accepted a leadership role, put her team ahead for good when she caught a pass from Heather Petri and skipped it by goalkeeper Alicia McCormack.

"Brenda's a fantastic player," Australian coach Greg McFadden said. "In crucial games, she steps up, she'll take the shots, she reads the play well. She doesn't look like much of a water polo player, but she's got the brain and she's got the skills and she'd have to be rated as one of the best players in the world. She not afraid to have a go. That's what's good about her."

Villa also gave the Americans a 3-2 lead in the second quarter with a goal and put them up 7-4 in the third.

Her last one, though, is the one she'll remember.

"I knew we needed to turn it around," she said. "I saw the opening and I took it. I was relieved, I must admit."

The Americans let their defense do the rest, forcing a turnover with 41 seconds to play and then blocking a shot with 12 seconds left to seal it.

Lenny Kravitz's "American Woman" echoed through Yingdong Natatorium as Villa and her teammates celebrated the victory. Fans followed with chants of "U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!" as the team exited the pool deck.

Villa soaked it all in.

After winning silver in 2000 and bronze in 2004, Villa wants nothing more than to complete her collection in Beijing. It would be the perfect ending for Villa, who begrudgingly took on a leadership role despite struggling to be the positive force her young teammates needed.

"I'm definitely someone that's not by nature nurturing," Villa said. "I get in the water and handle my business and try to lead the team with guidance. But out of the water, it's not my road. We've got a great group of younger players that I've seen develop and grow.

"I was a really young girl in Sydney. It's kind of a way to pay back. So now, I don't mind the road. But it definitely was a struggle at the beginning."