24 in 24: Rodriguez nets in another USWNT debut

United States coach Emma Hayes handed out two more first caps on Sunday in a 4-0 win over Ireland at TQL Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio, bringing the total to 24 international debuts in her 24 games in charge.

Defender Izzy Rodriguez and midfielder Sam Meza were the two latest players to wear the USWNT shirt in a match for the first time under Hayes and Rodriguez scored.

"It's so surreal," Rodriguez told the TNT broadcast at halftime. "I think this team has been everything, and they've really welcomed me into this group, and it made me want to cry. I was so emotional on the field, so I'm really happy I got to embrace it with all of them."

Forwards Lynn Biyendolo, Yazmeen Ryan and Alyssa Thompson each added goals in Sunday's victory. Biyendolo scored the opening goal 11 minutes into the match when she buried a volley into the top corner on a cross from Emma Sears.

Ryan scored in the 66th minute to tally her first international goal. Thompson scored the fourth USWNT goal in the 87th minute -- seven minutes after entering the match -- to get on the scoresheet for the second straight game.

Hayes officially took over the USWNT just over a year ago and won an Olympic gold medal in her 10th game in charge in August. Since then, she has promised to deepen the player pool on the road to the 2027 World Cup.

"I feel like everybody is not just trusting the process but they're carrying out all the things we've asked them to do," Hayes said after the match. "Everybody's showed themselves so, so well. I thought Sam Meza was outstanding in the pivot position. I thought Izzy grew into the game, showed her quality deliveries."

On Sunday, Hayes changed the entire starting XI from the squad that defeated Ireland 4-0 three days earlier. It marked only the seventh time in the USWNT's history -- and second this year -- that the entire lineup changed from one game to the next.

Ten players in the starting lineup had 10 caps or fewer to their name. The lone exception was veteran forward Biyendolo, who captained the team for the first time on Sunday.

"It's not easy to go and chance the [entire starting lineup]and perform and raise the bar," Hayes said. "The players did that. I'm extremely proud of them."

According to U.S. Soccer, Meza and Rodriguez became the 13th and 14th players of Hispanic descent to play for the USWNT. Rodriguez is a standout fullback for the NWSL-leading Kansas City Current. Meza plays for Seattle Reign FC.

Rodriguez played the entire match, and Meza played 87 minutes before being replaced by Rose Lavelle, who entered the match shortly after an audible, "We Want Rose!" chant from her hometown crowd.

"As the game built, I thought we got better at smothering, suffocating, making it difficult for Ireland to gain any momentum," Hayes added. "We dealt with the first and second balls in a better way [in the] second half. And if we're a bit more decisive -- if we're honest with ourselves -- the scoreline could have been bigger."

According to U.S. Soccer, Sunday's victory was the 600th in the program's 40-year history.

The USWNT will play rival Canada on Wednesday in Washington, D.C., to close out the international window. Hayes said she will narrow down the core of her roster in the next international window in October.