Dempsey leads rout by the U.S.
BALTIMORE - Clint Dempsey walked away with the game ball for one of the few times in his career. With his first international hat trick, he boosted the United States to a 6-0 rout over Cuba on Saturday and into its eighth straight CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal.
BALTIMORE - Clint Dempsey walked away with the game ball for one of the few times in his career. With his first international hat trick, he boosted the United States to a 6-0 rout over Cuba on Saturday and into its eighth straight CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal.
Dempsey put the Americans ahead with a fourth-minute header, converted a penalty kick in the 64th, and finished the hat trick in the 78th minute.
"Habits carry over: scoring goals, getting a clean sheet, people getting assists," Dempsey said. "That confidence, definitely it grows in the team. And as the tournament goes on, people are getting stronger as a group."
Dempsey has scored a tournament-high six times, and his 57 international goals rank second behind Landon Donovan.
Gyasi Zardes (15th minute), Aron Johannsson (32d), and Omar Gonzalez (45th) also scored as the Americans built a 4-0 halftime lead against a Cuban team depleted by five absent players who may have defected.
The United States outshot the Cubans, 24-7.
Jamaica advances
Houston Dynamo forward Giles Barnes scored in the seventh minute, and Jamaica beat Haiti, 1-0, to reach its first CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal since 1998.
Trying to advance to the championship game for the first time, the Reggae Boyz will play the defending champion United States in Atlanta on Wednesday.