Adu’s penalty kick lifts U.S., 1-0

TAMPA, Fla. -- Freddy Adu scored on a penalty kick in the 41st minute to help the United States’ under-23 soccer team beat Panama, 1-0, on Thursday night in the second round of Group A pool play in CONCACAF Olympic qualifying.

The Americans, coming off a 1-1 tie against Cuba on Tuesday, improved to 1-0-1, while Panama dropped to 0-2. The top two teams in the group will advance to the March 20 semifinals in Nashville, along with the top two from Group B. The finalists will earn spots in the Beijing Olympics.

The U.S. will finish group play Saturday against Honduras (2-0), which defeated Cuba, 2-0, on Thursday. Panama, which was eliminated, will play Cuba (0-1-1) on Saturday. If Cuba loses or ties, the U.S. automatically advances. Honduras already has clinched a spot in the semifinals.

“I’m really pleased with the effort,” U.S. Coach Peter Nowak said. “I think our team played with a lot of heart tonight and we got the result after a very hard fight on the field.”

Adu scored after Panama goalkeeper Jose Calderon received a yellow card for tripping Jozy Altidore.