Amid maelstrom of controversy, Hope Solo maintains a championship focus

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Outside the cocoon of these mammoth stadiums and turf-covered fields, everything is cacophonous. Hope Solo's name alone brings intense feelings of anger, confusion and resentment. Some soccer fans don't want her on the United States women's national team because of what she was accused of doing last year. Others feel she is a victim of misconception and even misogyny.

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Clint Dempsey ripping up a referee's book in a U.S. Open Cup game on Tuesday night has nothing to do with her, but whether U.S. Soccer should punish him is yet another referendum on the Solo situation. Inside the bubble, though, it's calm.

Solo smiles easily and often. She was shown on the massive video boards here at B.C. Place on Tuesday night, happily talking to teammate and roommate Carli Lloyd at halftime. After the U.S.'s 1-0 win over Nigeria and another shutout, Solo walked through the mixed zone with a coffee cup and a serene look on her face while being escorted by one of the team PR officials and not stopping to talk to the press. It was a slow, victorious stroll – not at all pompous or coy, just pleased. Her husband, Jerramy Stevens, seemed content, too, as he walked into the stadium wearing a red, white and blue fuzzy top hat and a No. 1 jersey with "J Steve" on the back.

Solo is a lightning rod for what she may have done last year, but she also is a soothing influence for what she does on the field now.

"We all trust Hope," said defender Julie Johnston, who is in her first World Cup and constantly buoyed by Solo's support and instructions. The play of the match on Tuesday came when a Nigerian forward burst toward the U.S. goal and Johnston chose the wrong angle. She hurried back and made a brilliant diving stab to deflect the shot, but there was Solo anyway, inches away, leaping into the line of fire. She only had to make two saves, yet that would have surely been a third.

It is going to be very difficult for any team to beat the Americans as long as Solo is in goal. That's not new information, but it rings ever more true after the group stage. Her decision making has been flawless and she covers an inordinate amount of the net with her size and agility.

As if that's not daunting enough, she shows no hesitation during the game. As questionable as her decisions off the field have been, her decisions on the field have been above reproach. She is better than ever as a goalkeeper, which is saying something considering she won an Olympic gold medal seven years ago in Beijing and another at London 2012. On Monday, when the U.S. enters the knockout round in Edmonton against Colombia, Solo will make her 174th international start, passing Briana Scurry as the all-time leader among U.S. goalkeepers.

Solo's continued greatness has a magnified effect during these games, as every forward in the world knows who she is and what she's done. Opponents are aware she will likely make a correct decision, stick to it and force them to decide quickly. She can read everything, from the play to the angle of the foot when it strikes the ball. It seems as if she knows where it's going before the shooter does.

"I think finishers overthink it," said Amy Griffin, Solo's former position coach at Washington, "because Hope Solo is in goal."

Meanwhile, Solo's teammates need to do less thinking. Lots of goalkeepers talk, but Solo's instructions come often and clearly. "Check your shoulder!" is one that Johnston hears a lot. It has certainly helped Johnston, who is one of the biggest surprises on the team after barely making the roster.

Johnston, only 23, and Meghan Klingenberg have been able to move up the field a little more as the tournament has gone on, in part because there isn't a dire need to babysit Solo. The goalie herself is often hustling far out of the goal, whether to get a better look at the play, shout instructions or simply be ready.

The conflict between the inside world of the team and the outside world of controversy doesn't much intersect. Solo was on the dais at a press conference in New York during the team's pre-tournament media tour, but gave no one-on-one interviews and little insight into how she's doing amid a maelstrom of controversy. That has continued during the World Cup, as one post-game question in Winnipeg about keeping her focus was met with a U.S. Soccer instruction to keep queries to on-the-field topics.

It's Lloyd who knows her best, but she greeted a question about the back-and-forth between U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati and U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal by dismissing Hope Solo news as "old news." She went on to say that she and Solo laugh about it, which wasn't the intended meaning, but gives an insight into how Solo and her teammates are remaining unaffected. Head coach Jill Ellis said that the USA team has "moved on" from last year's drama, and Solo's demeanor (and play) adds evidence to that.

"The 99 percent of Hope I see has been unreal; she's been nothing but a positive influence," Griffin said. "The one percent is the 100 percent the public sees. It's been hard for me to put her in that category.

"I'm disappointed in some of the choices she's made, but I'm sure she would say the same thing. I've been around her and her family enough to know it's been a long road for Hope."

In a People magazine story this week, Solo spoke about the feeling of being hit with a ball in the face. "It doesn't hurt as much as you'd think," she said. "Not if you're strong and keep your face in it. It only hurts if you pull away."

Solo is every bit as fearless as that quote suggests, and it's contagious. There is the chaos of her life off the field, and the complete order on it. As difficult as it is to see what the future will bring for the person, it's becoming clearer how she will finish her World Cup career as a goalkeeper – with a last, best chance to get the trophy that has eluded her twice now.

She gives her teammates something she doesn't have: The luxury of always being able to look forward, and not worrying so much about what's behind.