NANTERRE, France (AP) — In a matter of days, the U.S. women’s water polo team had to abandon its pursuit of a historic gold medal and went home empty-handed.

That was quite a fall.

The United States blew another lead on Saturday, losing 11-10 to the Netherlands in the bronze medal match at the Paris Olympics. Sabrina van der Sloot scored a goal in the final seconds of the bronze medal match. The United States was the only team to win a medal in every women’s water polo tournament since the Olympics began in 2000.

“We talked about learning from our mistakes and wanting to get better,” said U.S. captain Maggie Steffens. “And I feel like we struggled today to consistently learn from our mistakes.”

The United States traveled to the Paris Games hoping to win an unprecedented fourth consecutive gold medal, but repeatedly downplayed the significance of that winning streak. Steffens was the only holdover from the 2012 team and one of six players to return from Tokyo.

No team – men’s or women’s – has won the water polo title at the Olympics four times in a row, and the poor finish in France only underscored how difficult it is for the team to stay at the top of the sport over the long term.

“Everyone on the outside has no idea what it’s like,” said U.S. coach Adam Krikorian. “And they have no idea how difficult it is, how hard it is to win. We made it look easy, but in these three Olympics it has been anything but easy.”

The first signs of trouble appeared during a 13-11 loss to Spain on July 29, when the U.S. struggled to contain Bea Ortiz in the third quarter. But the Americans responded with clear victories over Italy and France.

In 2021, the USA also lost in the group stage, but then won four games in a row with a total score of 63:26. This time, Steffens and Co. were unable to reach that level again.

The Americans needed 17 saves from Ashleigh Johnson to beat Hungary 5-4 in the quarterfinals. In the semifinal against Australia on Thursday, they led 5-2 at halftime and 8-6 at the start of the fourth quarter, but then lost 14-13 in the penalty shootout.

The same thing happened against the Netherlands, who were trailing 7-3 at halftime. The USA lost 5-1 in the fourth quarter.

“I just think we lost focus in some key moments,” Johnson said, “and that can jeopardize the whole game. That can give the other team a lot of momentum. And that’s what it did. … We let up a little bit, which is unfortunate.”

Krikorian’s future was one of the biggest questions for the U.S. program after the Paris Games. Jamie Davis will take over as CEO of USA Water Polo on October 1, so a decision on the coaching side will likely not be made for several months.

Krikorian nearly quit his post after the U.S. won gold in Tokyo, and after fourth place in Paris he openly wondered if it wasn’t time for a change.

“There are times when I feel like new leadership would be good,” he said. “I’ve been doing this for a long time, so sometimes your message seems a little stale.”

It also remains to be seen what Steffens, Johnson and the rest of the U.S. veterans decide. The 2028 Olympics will be held in Los Angeles – the epicenter of American water polo – and will automatically grant players a spot in the U.S. program, giving them more flexibility in scheduling their training.

But competing for the national team remains a daunting challenge, and some of America’s decorated stars may decide it’s a good time to move on with their lives.

“Now we have to be present. We have to be with our teammates,” said Steffens, who is the most successful goalscorer in the history of the Olympic Games with 64 goals. “We have to feel the emotions and then we will see how it goes.”

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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games