10/26/2026 10:49:00โฏAM | Women's Soccer
ATLANTA - Former UConnย women's soccer player Annie Wickett (2014-15) scored the game-winning goal against Australia to lead theย U.S. Women's Cerebral Palsy (CP) National Team to a 3-2 victory in theย 2026 IFCPF World Cup Final at Arthur Blank Soccer National Training Center in Fayetteville, Ga.ย
Wickett scored the championship winning goal in the 52nd minute to lead the United States to its second IFCPF World Cup championship. She also contributed five goals in the United States victory against Ireland in the semifinals.ย
Wickett played with the Huskies for two seasons in 2014 and 2015 including playing in all 23 matches as a part of dual American Athletic Conferenceย Champion team that won both the regular season and tournament titles and reached the NCAA Tournament Third Round. Wickett scored her first career goal in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament against Siena.ย
The full recap from US Soccer of the game is below.ย
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The U.S. Women's Cerebral Palsy (CP) National Team earned a hard-fought come back 3-2 win against Australia to become 2026 IFCPF World Cup Champions at the Arthur M. Blank U.S. Soccer National Training Center in Fayetteville, Ga.
The contest was a rematch of the 2024 IFCPF World Cup final, where Australia won the title.
Catarina Guimaraes, Jesslyn Kuhnel and Annie Wickett led the USA's comeback effort with timely second half goals and overcame a first half 2-0 deficit.
Australia set the tone early in the match and pressured the American defense with a flurry of shots on goal that were handled well by the home side. The visitors eventually broke through in the seventh minute when Annmarie De Uriarte fired a shot just outside the box and into the back of the net.
The U.S. responded well to the first goal, played with urgency, generated 16 quality shots and increased pressure in the attacking third.
Australia defended the attack well with multiple key saves and last second interventions by their defenders to keep the home team scoreless. With the U.S. attack playing a higher line, Australia's Georgia Beikoff hit a lofted shot from midfield that was placed perfectly between the crossbar and the outstretched hands of the American's goalkeeper Catarina Guimaraes which doubled Australia's lead.
The U.S. attack continued looking for a goal and created space through the formidable Australian defense but were unable to score in the first half and went into the break down 2-0.
In the second half, American Michelle Cross played a corner kick short and found Guimaraes at the top of the box. Guimaraes received the ball and hit a low driven shot that the Australian goalkeeper was able to get a hand on, but the ball had already crossed the line. The strike gave the U.S. their first goal of the World Cup final in the 28th minute.
Five minutes later, Guimaraes sent a perfectly accurate curved shot to the far corner where Kuhnel was positioned and guided the ball in with her upper body for the second U.S. goal.
With the game tied 2-2, the Americans kept chasing the third goal and had multiple shots that went wide or were stopped by the defense.
Already in stoppage time, Wickett won the ball in midfield and carved through the Australian defense. She evaded a tackle at midfield and drove up the right side. Wickett sped past another Australian defender and dribbled into the box, patiently set up her shot and delivered a powerful right-footed shot that deflected off a defender and past the goalkeeper to give the Americans their first lead of the match.
Two of Australia's last-ditch efforts were saved expertly in goal by second half substitute Gabriella Scotto, who punched one clear with her left hand and made a kick save on another just before the final whistle. Putting Scotto into goal and moving Guimaraes into the field was part of the second-half tactical gambit by head coach Chris Maravalli that helped enable the Americans incredible comeback.
U-S-A chants erupted throughout the crowd from the hundreds in attendance that witnessed the heroic efforts of Wickett and her teammates as they withstood multiple shots on goal from Australia in the closing minutes and delivered the Americans the 2026 IFCPF World Cup trophy.
