Chilliwack’s Jordyn Huitema can now and forevermore say she is an Olympian.
The 20-year-old saw her first action of the 2021 Summer Olympics in Tokyo Tuesday. Coming off the reserve list for Canada’s national women’s soccer squad, Huitema entered the game against Great Britain in the 46th minute, taking off forward Janine Beckie.
The game was played at Ibaraki Kashima Stadium and Huitema played a role in Canada’s lone goal in a 1-1 draw.
In the 54th minute, Huitema executed a quick give-and-go with Abbotsford’s Sophie Schmidt in the midfield, and Schmidt sprang Ashley Lawrence for a run down the left wing. A Lawrence cross went past Huitema at the top of the goal area and found the left foot of Adriana Leon.
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She put a perfectly-placed shot into the top right corner.
Canada couldn’t hold the lead though as Great Britain tied in the 85th minute. Still, Huitema’s crew is through group play with a 1-0-2 record that included a 2-1 win over Chile and a 1-1 draw with Japan. The second place team in Group E, Canada faces a familiar rival in the quarter-final round. They’ll face Brazil, the second-place finisher of Group F, in a match played Friday, July 30.
“To go undefeated in the group stage is nothing to scoff at,” said Canadian head coach Bev Priestman. “I felt today was a much better Canadian performance getting us ready now for some great tier one opponents. Everyone who stepped in did an unbelievable job, and the strength of this group will be the depth, they can step in whenever needed so no matter what happens moving forward, we’re all ready to go.”
Canada has now reached the quarter-final stage in the last four Olympics, and reached the podium with bronze medals at London 2012 and Rio (Brazil) 2016.