Pitt Panthers WSOC Representing Nigeria at Paris Olympics

PITTSBURGH — The Pitt Panthers will characterize Nigeria ladies’s soccer, as they put together for the Olympics in Paris this summer time.

Pitt ladies’s soccer head coach Randy Waldrum can be the pinnacle coach of Nigeria and introduced his squad for the Olympics, which begin on the finish of July. Among the many 22-squad members is midfielder Deborah Abiodun, who’s coming into her sophomore season at Pitt.

Abiodun joined Pitt forward of the 2023 season as a freshman and had a stellar marketing campaign. She began 19 of twenty-two video games, scoring six targets and including three assists, serving to Pitt to make the Elite Eight for the primary time in program historical past.

She scored two targets within the 6-1 win over Duquesne within the Metropolis Recreation on Aug. 31, a recreation tying purpose towards then ranked No. 10 Notre Dame on Sept. 24 and assists in wins over Boston School on Sept. 30 and Wake Forest on Oct. 8.

She additionally scored twice within the NCAA Event, with a purpose in a 6-0 drubbing of Ohio State within the First Spherical after which one other purpose towards Memphis in a 3-0 victory within the Candy 16 to make it to the Elite Eight.

Waldrum can be heading into his second stint with Nigeria, as he took over in 2020 and served till his contract led to 2023. He re-signed for the positon in February.

He led Nigeria into the 2023 World Cup in Australia & New Zealand with Abiodun part of the squad earlier than she performed for Pitt.

Abiodun began the primary recreation towards 2020 Olympics Champions Canada, however picked up a late yellow card for a foul on Canada’s Ashley Lawrence. The video assistant referee (VAR) confirmed the pinnacle referee the replay of the foul, which noticed Abiodun are available in late on the problem and stomp on Lawrence’s decrease left leg.

The referee then gave Abidoun a crimson card and despatched her off from the sector, placing Nigeria right down to 10 males. She obtained a three-match ban for the foul, regular for violent conduct, and would miss the remainder of the World Cup for Nigeria.

Nigeria did have efficiency on the World Cup, defeating Australia 3-2 within the second recreation and utilizing a scoreless draw towards the Republic of Eire within the last group stage match to take second place and make it to the knockout levels.

They took on eventual runner-ups England, who they held scoreless via 90 minutes after which two 15 minute intervals of extra-time, earlier than falling 4-2 on penalties.

Nigeria will make their first look on the Olympics since 2008 in Beijing. They confronted rival South Africa over two legs to qualify for the Olympics, defeating them 1-0 at dwelling on April 5 after which settling for a scoreless draw on April 9 to win 1-0 on mixture.

They’ll function one among 12 ladies’s groups on the Paris Olympics, which can characteristic first crew squad members, in contrast to the lads’s groups who’re U-23 gamers.

Nigeria faces Brazil on Thursday, July 25, World Cup winners Spain on Sunday, July 28 after which Japan on Wednesday, July 31.

They will not play any of those video games in Paris, with the Brazil recreation at Nouveau Stade de Bordeaux in Bordeaux and each the Spain and Japan matches at Stade de la Beaujoire in Nantes.

The highest two groups within the three teams of 4, plus the highest two third-placed groups will qualify for the Quarterfinals. The Quarterfinals happen on Saturday, Aug. 3, the Semifinals on Tuesday, Aug. 6, with the losers enjoying within the Broze medal match on Friday, Aug. 9 and the winners enjoying within the Gold medal match on Saturday, Aug. 10.

The Pitt ladies’s soccer season would not have their first match till Thursday, Aug. 15 on the street towards Georgia. If Nigeria make all of it the best way to the Gold medal match, Waldrum and Abiodun will nonetheless have time to return again for the Georgia match.

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