FIFA Women's World Cup: Abby Wambach leads U.S. to victory

Abby Wambach scored just before halftime on Tuesday as the United States defeated Nigeria 1-0 at the FIFA Women's World Cup in Vancouver.

The American captain flicked her boot at a Megan Rapinoe corner kick in the 45th minute, slicing the ball home to give the U.S. a deserved lead.

With the victory, the Americans won Group D — the so-called "Group of Death" because the U.S., Sweden and Australia are all ranked in the top-10 — with seven points and will play its match in the round of 16 on Monday in Edmonton.

The 35-year-old Wambach, who had blamed a lack of U.S. goals on the tournament's use of artificial turf, came off the bench as a substitute in her team's 0-0 draw with Sweden on Friday. She got nod the from the start in this one alongside fellow striker Alex Morgan, leading the charge for an American side that had a number of chances before the breakthrough.

Australia 2nd in Group D

Lisa De Vanna's early goal was enough for Australia to advance to the knockout stage of the Women's World Cup with a 1-1 draw against Sweden.

It's the third straight World Cup in which Australia (1-1-1) has advanced past the group stage. It is the second team behind the United States in Group D.

De Vanna put Australia up 1-0 in the fifth minute with a left-footed goal coming after a breakaway behind the Swedish defence.

Sweden (0-3-0) tied the game in the 15th minute on a left-footed strike from just outside the penalty box by Sofia Jakobsson. Caroline Seger had a shot on goal following a corner in the 25th minute for Sweden, but Australian goal keeper Lydia Williams made the save.

Cameroon to knockout round

Madeleine Ngono Mani came off the bench to score one of two second-half goals as Cameroon became only the second African team to advance to the knockout stage of the Women's World Cup with a 2-1 win over Switzerland.

Cameroon (2-0-1) advances as the second team from Group C, doing so in its first World Cup appearance.

Switzerland (1-0-2) led 1-0 after the first half behind a goal from Ana Maria Crnogorcevic in the 24th minute, and it controlled the action for much of the half.

However, Cameroon equalized on a powerful right-footed strike by Gabrielle Onguene in the 47th minute. Mani, who came off the bench in the 57th minute, followed with her 40th career goal five minutes later for the win.

The Swiss could yet advance with the four best third-place finishers of the tournament also qualifying for the round of 16.

Japan stays undefeated

Yuki Ogimi scored in the fifth minute and defending champion Japan beat Ecuador 1-0 on Tuesday to become the first team to win all three of its matches in the group stage of this year's Women's World Cup.

Japan won Group C and will play in the round of 16 on June 23 in Vancouver, British Columbia. Brazil, which plays Wednesday, is the only other team with a chance to go 3-0 in the group stage.

It was the 54th international goal for the 27-year-old Ogimi. Her shot from close range bounced in off the crossbar after the ball had been deflected toward an open net.

Ecuador, which was outscored 16-1 in losses to Cameroon and Switzerland, kept this one close until the end.