U.S. Women's Soccer

These days it could be easy for one to become disillusioned with big-time sports.

After all, with the NFL and NBA experiencing lockouts and Roger Clemens' perjury trial dominating headlines in baseball, folks are looking for something positive to cheer about.

That something lately has been U.S. Women's Soccer. The U.S. team punched a ticket to the Women's World Cup finals with exciting victories over Brazil in the quarterfinals and France in the semifinals this past week.

During Sunday's quarterfinal game with Brazil, the U.S. trailed 2-1 in overtime and a player short due to a penalty. As time ticked away, Abby Wambach headed a ball just past the goalkeeper to tie the game, 2-2. The U.S. then won the game on penalty kicks.

Wednesday against France it was Wambach again who played a pivotal role. In the 79th minute, Wambach broke the tie with a header and the U.S. team won 3-1 over France.

Sports often bring out strong emotions and a sense of patriotism, especially when the competition involves a U.S. team. That patriotism and coming together as a nation was felt on the field. "These wins, we can't do it alone. We know a whole nation is cheering us on," Wambach said. "We believe in ourselves, and we're in the final. I couldn't be happier."

Sunday the U.S. team matches up against Japan for the championship. The title game appearance is the first for the U.S. team since winning the 1999 World Cup title.

Congratulations to the women's team. We wish them all the best as they look to bring home a championship Sunday. And like many around the country, we look forward to joining in the chants: "U-S-A! U-S-A!"