U.S. women draw with France in SheBelieves Cup

HARRISON, N.J. — When she replaced forward Mallory Pugh in the 73rd minute, Crystal Dunn could not have asked for a better spot to become the goal-scoring hero for the U.S. women’s national team in the SheBelieves Cup Sunday.

By the final whistle, the Rockville Centre native had different concerns — as a left back to make sure that France wasn’t going to tally the game-winner in what turned into an unsatisfying 1-1 draw at Red Bull Arena.

“Story of my life, right?” she said. “I just have to be prepared for whatever. I’ve been that type of player my whole career. It’s normal.”

Like it or not, Dunn has excelled on defense, midfield and forward, so that versatility can be considered a blessing or a curse.

“Curse is such a bad word,” she said. “It’s not a curse. Do I think it’s challenging? Yes, because I am one of the few players who has never had a set role for more than a couple of games in a row. I just have to stay true to myself.”

Dunn, who has 23 goals in 59 international appearances (including a U.S.-record tying five in one game), was on the field three minutes before defender Casey Short was stretchered off with a leg injury before 25,706.

“I’m not going to lie,” Dunn said. “I thought Shorty was going to be ok. It takes a couple of seconds to actually regroup, make sure you are set on all your roles defensively.”

Dunn had to fight her own attacking instincts. On one corner kick, she started to retreat a bit toward her goal though the Americans were trying to score.

“I went into this game not prepared to play outside back so I didn’t have any conversation about it,” she said. “But that’s how the game goes. You’ve got to think on the fly and communicate with your teammates and hopefully they’re giving you some good information.”

After performing with the Chelsea Ladies in England the past year, the 25-year-old Dunn decided it was time to return home and play in the National Women’s Soccer League again, with the North Carolina Courage.

“It felt right,” she said. “I wanted to start the NWSL from the beginning. I didn’t want to play catch-up. Also going from playing English football to play in the U.S., it’s going to take some transitioning. The style of play is definitely different.”

Pugh scored during a penalty-area scramble in the 35th minute before Eugenie Le Sommer equalized for France (0-1-1) three minutes later.

The United States (1-0-1) will meet England (1-0-1), which played Germany (0-1-1) to a 1-1 tie Sunday, in its final match in Orlando Wednesday.