The Atlas Lionesses brought a lot of history back home to Morocco at the Women's World Cup on Thursday.
The Morocco women's national team defeated Colombia 1-0 to secure a spot in the Round of 16, becoming the only one of eight tournament newcomers to reach the feat. Additionally, the squad is the first Arab or North African nation to reach the knockout stage at the Women's World Cup.
Morocco's winning goal was earned during stoppage time of the first half when midfielder Anissa Lahmari put back a penalty-save rebound.
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Goalkeeper Khadija Er-Rmichi earned herself kudos in the win as she stopped a potential Colombian goal by Mayra Ramirez in the 63rd minute with the flick of her foot. She also saved another shot just 10 minutes later to keep the Atlas Lionesses afloat.
The win gave Morocco a second-place finish in Group H with six points, one spot behind Colombia, which finished first with six points. Las Chicas Superpoderosas qualified in the top spot since they had a higher goal differential in group play.
Germany and South Korea finished in the last two spots of the group, respectively, which comes as a major achievement for Morocco as the team fell to the No. 2 ranked Germany 6-0 in its debut game.
Morocco is set to face France in a historic appearance on Tuesday, Aug. 8, at 7 a.m. ET.
