BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) \u2014 A packed house in northwest Bakersfield came unglued Friday as the U.S. men’s national soccer team beat Australia 2-0 in Seattle, marking the first time in program history the team has advanced to the knockout round with a game still to play.<\/p>\n
Hundreds of fans gathered at Legends Event Center and Lounge to watch the historic victory unfold.<\/p>\n
For Elyse Gregorio, the watch party was a change of scenery from the week before, when she watched the U.S. take down Paraguay.<\/p>\n
“It was such a fun game. The outcome, 4-1? Amazing. It was wow,” Gregorio said.<\/p>\n
Before Friday’s match, fans predicted the U.S. would come away with a win \u2014 and they were right.<\/p>\n
Steven Cervantes said the performance has given him new confidence in this year’s squad.<\/p>\n
“I think we could go pretty far in this tournament. I’ve never seen a US team like this before. They play aggressively. We used to always defend this different US team, a young US team,” Cervantes said.<\/p>\n
Michael Harville was equally enthusiastic after the final whistle.<\/p>\n
“This is amazing, we are in. This is the best we’ve ever done,” Harville said.<\/p>\n
The U.S. men’s team will take on Turkey next week in the knockout round.<\/p>\n
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