CONCACAF Media Release – FRISCO, Texas — Karla Villalobos and Raquel Rodriguez Cedeño struck for three goals each as Costa Rica kept its hopes alive of reaching the 2016 CONCACAF Women’s Olympic Qualifying Championship (CWOQ) semifinals with a 9-0 victory over Puerto Rico on Saturday at Toyota Stadium.

The Central Americans improved to 1W-0D-1L, while Puerto Rico was eliminated from Group A contention after its second loss in as many games.

Melissa Herrera, Diana Saenz and Shirley Cruz contributed a goal apiece for the winner, which had scored nine goals in its previous 13 CWOQ games.

Costa Rica rebounded from a 5-0 loss to the United States, seizing the early advantage with an eighth-minute goal by Villalobos. Midfielder Katherine Alvarado looped a free kick from the left flank to the opposite side of the penalty area, where Wendy Acosta headed the ball back towards the far post. Villalobos was on the doorstep for the easiest of tap-ins.

Rodriguez Cedeño doubled the lead in the 36th minute, when she right-footed home from four-yards out off Cristin Granados’ cross from the left wing.

The Costa Ricans gave themselves some breathing room early in the second half. Herrera fired a potential “goal of the tournament” effort into the left side of the net from 22-yards out in the 56th minute to make it 3-0.

A minute later, the 19-year-old forward then rolled a pass from the right side of the box to Villalobos, whose right-footed stroke found the back of the net from near the penalty spot for her second goal of the afternoon.

Villalobos completed her hat-trick on the hour mark, turning in Rodriguez Cedeño’s first-timed pass from just inside the six-yard box.

Five minutes later, Rodriguez Cedeño – once again operating from the right side of the box – sent a neat back-heel pass for defender Diana Saenz to knock a shot off goalkeeper Karly Gustafson and over the line.

The excellent Rodriguez Cedeno increased the lead to 7-0 in the 75th minute, before Cruz notched her first CWOQ goal in nearly 12 years by putting the rebound of a Rodriguez Cedeño free kick that Gustafson couldn’t corral.

The scoreline was punctuated in the third minute of stoppage time with Rodriguez Cedeño slotting the ball past Gustafson off a perfectly weighted pass into the box by Saenz.

Costa Rica will complete the group stage in match against Mexico here on Monday, while Puerto Rico meets the United States.