Tillman scored in the 16th and 41st minutes for his first two international goals, both following giveaways by Alvin Jones, and Patrick Agyemang scored his fourth international goal in the 44th. Matthew Freese was in goal in place Matt Turner, who had started 14 consecutive competitive matches for the U.S. and 23 of 24 dating to the 2022 World Cup. The lone exception was a Gold Cup group stage game against St. Kitts and Nevis in 2023. That was the second fewest for the Americans in a Gold Cup opener behind 9.8 against Bermuda in 2009, according to Opta. Defender Tim Ream started, extending his Gold Cup span for the U.S. to 14 years and surpassing DaMarcus Beasley (2002-15) for the American high.