On Tuesday night, tears flowed once again at the Chinese-donated National Stadium in La Sabana Metropolitan Park as the U-17 Women’s National Team of Costa Rica fell to their superior counterparts from Italy. The 0-1 loss marks the end of the line for the young players, who will not be able to advance to the second round of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.

For the second game in a row, the Ticas lacked ability to play as a team and relied too heavily on the talent and plethora of skills possessed by 14-year old star Gloriana Villalobos, whose performance during the World Cup has been closely followed by sports journalists and fans. Alas, Miss Villalobos is only one of 11 in the U-17 Women’s National Team of Costa Rica.

The highlight of the game, aside from the dazzling display of football moxie by Miss Villalobos, was the ebullient crowd at the National Stadium. Hosting the World Cup has accomplished a lot with relation of promoting awareness of women’s football in Costa Rica. For many fans, the World Cup games against Venezuela and Italy have been a surprising introduction to the world of football as it is played by females.

The Italian team scored the only goal of the game at the 19-minute mark. Striker Gloria Marinelli was well positioned to receive a corner kick and release a powerful volley that goalkeeper Yuliana Salas was not able to block. The Forza Azzurri dominated the entire game and essentially prevented the Ticas from getting close to their goalposts. During the second half, the Italians adopted a defensive posture and essentially coasted through.

Costa Rica has one more chance to please their new fans this Saturday at 8:00 p.m. as they match up against their rivals from Ghana, who are going to the second round along with Italy and Venezuela. The Ticas have not yet scored a goal or earned a single point in the World Cup, and thus they are now under pressure to deliver one or the other.