Sophia Smith scores first USWNT hat-trick as Howell & Sanchez score first goals in 9-1 win vs Uzbekistan

Sophia Smith scored her first hat-trick at international level on a day of firsts as the USWNT enjoyed a resounding 9-1 win over Uzbekistan.
The game in Columbus, Ohio was widely expected to see Vlatko Andonovski's side score plenty of goals and that's what transpired after a slightly slow start.
By full-time, the USWNT were one goal shy of hitting double figures and, in addition to Smith's personal milestone, Jaelin Howell and Ashley Sanchez scored their first goals for the national team.
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What happened?
The USWNT took the lead on 26 minutes and, within 15 seconds of Uzbekistan kicking off, the hosts were 2-0 in front thanks to Mallory Pugh's goal.
The next two goals also arrived in double-quick time as Smith scored her first of the game on 33 minutes and added another two minutes later to make it 4-0 at the interval.
hat's off for @sophsssmith 🎩🎩🎩 pic.twitter.com/CfZk81hn9W
— U.S. Soccer WNT (@USWNT) April 9, 2022
Catarina Macario was quick out of the blocks to score inside the first minute of the second half and then Smith scored her hat-trick goal on 56 minutes.
Substitute Howell then scored her first international goal on 64 minutes before Uzbekistan caused a slight surprise by scoring themselves to make it 7-1.
In the closing five minutes, there was time for Ashley Hatch to score and then substitute Sanchez scored her first USWNT goal in the last minute.