Hollywood Thrills: Picture-perfect turns from Trinity Rodman and Alyssa Thompson, clean sheet for Phallon Tullis-Joyce, and winners and losers as USWNT beat Brazil

Alyssa Thompson played like she was right at home, which - as a Los Angeles native - she was. Thompson showed no fear in any of one vs one opportuniies. In the first five minutes, Thompson received the ball on the left wing, dribbled centrally, leaving Brazil on their heels, she saw Trinity Rodman slip through and played a cheeky driven ball into Rodman's stride.

And just like that, the USWNT were on the board, with much thanks to Thompson's driving ability and vision to find the small gaps in Brazil's backline.

"I mean, I love playing in LA," Thompson said after the game. "Being here is amazing for club, and I've never played here [SoFi] or played in LA with the national team. So being able to just feel that comfort from my city and my family and friends, like I just felt like I could be more like me a- nd like I knew what I could do."

While that assist was a highlight, Thompson continued to impress throughout the game, tracking back defensively, taking players on down the wing, and driving centrally when it made sense, which confused the Brazil defenders.

In the 16th minute, Thompson had another highlight-worthy moment when she dribbled centrally and got her foot on the ball for a clean strike far post. Brazil goalkeeper Lorena bobbled it, displaying just how much pace Thompson was able to rocket her shot.

Lorena is rarely a loser and not even on this night, but the fact that the USWNT got two goals past such an elite goalkeeper puts her in this spot. She made some incredible saves against Thompson, and handled some dynamic runs and dangerous balls in the box.

However, the first goal Brazil gave up was a tough one for Lorena, who almost never gets beat off a simple touch central from a forward. Lorena has been a standout for Kansas City Current this season, and has been the secret to Brazil's defensive prowess since she was named to the senior national team in 2021.

Trinity Rodman made her return to the USWNT in absolute style, rocking the pink braids and notching a goal. Her presence has been clearly missed by the USWNT since the Olympics, and Hayes talked about her being back: "Just her whole aura, her whole being... just having her presence and just having Trin back just feels so good for the group."

Her goal was clinical; from the sneaky run that split past the Brazil center-backs to her touch inside to get Lorena to commit - and then use of her outside foot to tap the ball in. After she scored, Rodman continued to put in work, playing one twos on the right side and serving in some dangerous balls into the box.

"I think my main focus for this game, and even in the first five minutes, it was just kind of the timing of my run," she said. "And even a couple times I was offside, I was starting my run a little bit too early, so on that goal, I was waiting for the perfect moment to kind of make that run."

Rodman said she has been looking to get the ball more centrally, something she's also been focused on with the Washington Spirit in the NWSL.

Brazil had a tough start, especially letting Thompson break through and Rodman sneak in behind. While they held the USWNT strong on many chances, they were sloppy in key moments.

They struggled most defending one vs one, and couldn't seem to quite knock the U.S. off the ball. While their tracking was sound - and positioning as well - their individual battles fell short.

For the next game against the USWNT on Tuesday in San Jose, Brazil will likely look to fine tune some of the defensive tactics to stay closer.

It was a strong international debut for Phallon Tullis-Joyce. Not only did she earn the clean sheet but she also was great with her feet, found the gaps in the midfield during buildout, and covered her posts well.

Out of all of the goalkeepers who have stepped on the pitch for the USWNT since Alyssa Naeher's last game, Tullis-Joyce has shown the most promise. She has a calm, locked-in nature about her, scans the game constantly and stays off of her line - a sign of an involved keeper.

Tullis-Joyce made six saves, the most by a U.S. keeper since Naeher’s seven against Germany in the Olympic semifinals. And her teammates clearly felt comfortable with her back there as well, finding her as an outlet and responding well to her direction on transitions.

"Everyone in that backline was incredible," Tullis-Joyce said. "So I'm really lucky to have such an incredible team like the national team."

She couldn't stop smiling when asked about representing the USWNT and earning a shutout.

"Grateful, grateful, grateful..." Tullis-Joyce said. "Grateful that my family's in the crowd right now. Looking forward to seeing them. I just can't wait to give my mom a hug."