The game against the US was expected to be an uphill battle for Slovakia – and it was. Team USA scored three goals on powerplay, once shorthanded, and went on to win the game 9-1. 

Haley Box and Evelyn Doyle had three-point games, and Morgan Stickney made 13 saves for the USA. Nela Loposanova scored her tournament-leading ninth point.  
 
"I think we settled in after the first period, there were a little bit nerves, and then we hit our stride towards the third. We stayed in it, and our special teams worked," Team USA coach Liz Keady Norton said. 
 
"I'm happy with our performance, we played solid hockey for at least thirty minutes. We had our chances on powerplay but couldn't score," said Slovakia coach Michal Kobezda. 

Nine seconds. That’s all it took for the US to score against Slovakia. Evelyn Doyle pickpocketed a Slovak defender just inside the Slovak zone, accelerated towards the net and sent a saucer right to the Haley Box’s take, and she one-timed it past Sumegova for 1-0. 
 
But a hockey game famously lasts 60 minutes, not nine seconds, and Slovakia tied the game on powerplay at 3.01 when Ema Tothova’s point shot found its way to the back of the net through some traffic. Nela Lopusanova’s assist was her ninth point in the tournament. 
 
It also marked the end of Morgan Stickney’s shutout streak. The new under-18 Women’s World’s shutout record is now 183.01. 
 
But Team USA didn’t let up and when they got a powerplay opportunity six and a half minutes into the period, they got to work. Megan Healy fired from the point and Doyle was at the doorstep, ready for a rebound. Sumegova made the initial save, and she stopped Doyle’s first attempt, but not the second one which hit the roof of the net. 
 
Just 2.07 into the third, Alaina Dunn’s stretch pass sent Kylie Amelkovich on a breakaway, and she didn’t miss, netting her third goal of the tournament, for 3-1. Bella Fanale picked up an assist, her sixth point in the tournament. 
 
Six minutes later, the US powerplay got another chance to increase their lead. In a familiar play, Mary Derrenbacher fired from the point, and Doyle was the first to the rebound and she slammed it in for 4-1 at 9.09 into the period, for her second of the game. 
 
There was a glimmer of hope for Slovakia when they got to play on a long two-player advantage for over a minute, but the US penalty kill was flawless. 
 
Six minutes into the third period, the US scored again, on powerplay. They passed the puck around the zone, found Sloane Hartmetz on the point, and her wrister was deflected in off a Slovak defender. Jane Daley and Amelkovich picked up assists. 
 
90 seconds later, Haley Box entered the Slovak zone with a lot of time and space. She cut to the middle and fired a shot that beat Zuzana Tomeckova in Slovakia’s goal high on the blocker side. 

With 8.09 remaining in the game, it was time for another powerplay. And they scored, two seconds after the penalty ended. Chyna Taylor fired from the point, the puck hit Daley in front of the net and landed Infront of Annabelle Lovell who had an easy job to slam it in, the first of the tournament for the 15-year-old. 

"The team was excited for her, and being in front paid off for her," Keady Norton said.

The American captain Fanale made it 8-1with two minutes remaining, with a coast-to-coast shorthanded goal. She picked up a rebound in the US zone, skated between two Slovak defenders, deked Tomeckova, and fired the puck topshelf. Stickney picked up the assist. 

"The kid's a real deal, she's dialed in, and someone I rely on. She showed her speed at the end of a long shift, her hands, and her determination. If anyone's wondering what Bella Fanale is about, they should watch those twelve seconds and have no more questions," Keady Norton said. 

Derrenbacher sealed the final score, 9-1, at the doorstep off a gorgeous feed from Box with 24 seconds remaining. 

"Our girls put their hearts into the game. We still have one more game, an important one, but if we can keep this intensity level, we'll be fine," Kobezda said.