Olivia Moultrie scored twice in her first start with the national team, and the United States defeated the Dominican Republic 5-0 on Tuesday night in Carson, California, during the inaugural Concacaf Women's Gold Cup tournament.
Moultrie, 18, making only his third appearance for the national team, scored his first goal in the seventh minute when he stretched to hit the ball across the goal line.
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Lynn Williams added a goal off a pass from Midge Purce in the 30th minute to make it 2-0 in the American team's first game of the year.
Purce also fed Moultrie for her second goal in the 59th minute. Moultrie, who plays for the Portland Thorns in the National Women's Soccer League, is the third-youngest player to score multiple goals in a game for the United States.
“I'm pretty elated right now. I was so happy to be on the field tonight. To have the opportunity to start is amazing,” Moultrie said.
Jenna Nighswonger scored her first goal for the United States on a penalty in the 86th minute to make it 4-0.
Alex Morgan, who joined the team earlier Tuesday, came on as a second-half substitute. Morgan replaced Mia Fishel on the roster, who tore a ligament in her right knee in practice the previous day.
Morgan, who normally wears number 13, wore Fishel's number 7 due to Concacaf rules.
Morgan converted a penalty kick in stoppage time to close the scoring. It was his 122nd international goal.
It was the United States' sixth victory under interim coach Twila Kilgore, who took over when coach Vlatko Andonovski left the team following the Americans' disappointing finish at the Women's World Cup last summer.
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Kilgore will coach the United States until May, when current Chelsea coach Emma Hayes takes over.
Purce said Kilgore did a good job making sure everyone was on the same page.
“I think we're playing against a low block, so it gives us a chance to have a lot of creativity,” Purce said. “And we have a lot of creative players on the front line. So it was a lot of fun. It was a fun day.”
Korbin Albert, who plays for Paris Saint-Germain, also made his first start for the Americans.
Veteran defender Becky Sauerbrunn, the United States captain in the match, was also a late addition to the squad because Alana Cook suffered a minor knee injury. It was Sauerbrunn's 216th international match.
The Dominican Republic secured a place in Group A with a 1-0 victory over Guyana on Saturday. Kathrynn González scored the only goal early in the second half.
Gonzalez, a Pennsylvania native, came on as a second-half substitute against the United States.
Earlier Tuesday at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, home of Major League Soccer's LA Galaxy, Argentina and Mexico played to a goalless draw to open Group A.
There are three groups of four teams in the tournament, with games in Carson, San Diego and Houston.
The United States will play Argentina on Friday night in Carson.
