MARSEILLE — To be in the mixed zone at Stade de Marseille following an Olympic soccer match is to witness an impromptu tap show. As each player enters the small maze of ropes to meet their tournament obligations, their cleats create a chaotic rhythm punctuated by their laughs or sighs, depending on which side of the result they’re on.

For the U.S. women’s national team on Sunday night, fresh off a dominant 4-1 win over Germany, the good vibes kept rolling on. Center-back Naomi Girma giggled as she took baby steps through the press area, as her fellow defender Jenna Nighswonger offered to help keep her balance. Some simply stopped, untied their cleats and opted for socks. No matter what method they used, everyone shared the same buoyant, if still determined, mood.

After all, while the USWNT may be sitting in control of Group B with six points through their two games so far and guaranteed a quarterfinal spot at the 2024 Olympics, this is still just the beginning. A win or a draw against Australia assures first place in the group and a trip to Paris later this week to begin the knockout rounds.

“We’re playing with more structure and discipline, and then I think we’re having fun too,” midfielder Rose Lavelle said when assessing the difference in the start between these games and last summer’s World Cup. “We have a lot of really special players and we’re finally starting to connect. But we know we still have another level in us.”

At the World Cup last year, the U.S. scored four goals through three group stage matches before getting bounced from the tournament by Sweden on penalties during the round of 16. During this summer’s Olympics, the U.S. already has seven goals through two games, including four against Germany alone.

And on those special players — with the starting forward line of Sophia Smith, Mal Swanson and Trinity Rodman all now having scored, with Smith getting her turn in the spotlight on Sunday thanks to a brace — there was a theme in the mixed zone:

“That’s classic Mal.”

“Soph being Soph.”

“Give Trinity the ball and let her do her thing.”

The way the players talk about their teammates is more than just a casual acceptance of the talent level at play and an assumption that it will make itself known, but a reminder of the depth of trust that they have in one another to produce in the biggest moments, as well as a level of selflessness.

“Any way I can contribute to this team, I’m going to do it,” Swanson said. “It doesn’t matter who’s scoring, as long as we’re getting the results that we need. That’s what matters. What’s going on in the training ground is paying off, and you’re seeing that.”

There are bigger tests that await. It’s clear the USWNT feels ready for them, despite still thinking they have not yet reached their full potential.

“This is probably only game six or seven of us playing up front together,” Smith said after the game. “We’re clicking really well, really fast. I think this is only like 70 percent of what we can do.”

Compared to last summer, when the USWNT had strong defensive performances, including a breakout World Cup from Girma in the center-back position and goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher doing her best to carry the team, and compared to the lackluster send-off games, the team has found its offensive firepower and found it early at these Games.

“You’re seeing a collective effort from top to bottom,” Naeher said Sunday. “You know the defensive mentality from the group, then four goals on top of that is huge for us, to be able to find the back of the net, especially early on; set the tone right from the beginning.”

The early leads have been important but it might have been Lynn Williams’ second-half goal that felt the most like a breakthrough for the U.S. on Sunday, her team finally showing a necessary ruthlessness through the entirety of the game via that late finish.

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Emma Hayes was particularly pleased with that one, especially after the U.S. failed to produce a second-half goal against Zambia.

“That was just validation: one of the importance of the squad and the importance of finishers coming onto the pitch,” Hayes said. “You’ve got to take chances when they come. This is top level.”

But, just like the players, Hayes went beyond the goal from a result point-of-view, speaking about Williams the person in addition to Williams the player.

“A player who epitomizes everything you want in a squad, someone who cares, someone who trains with great intensity, someone who’s intentional, and everything she does is deserving of what she got tonight,” Hayes said. “She doesn’t give up on herself but most importantly, she’s the best teammate you could possibly have.”

Williams was originally an alternate on the USWNT roster (Getty Images)

Maybe that was best illustrated by the fact that Williams, when asked how she felt about her goal, immediately replied that she was more excited about the win.

“There were times where we had to weather a storm, especially in that second half,” the U.S. defender said. “I think that’s what’s really cool about this team and what’s great is that nobody looks frightened in those moments. Every single person is doing their role defensively, offensively. I don’t know if it’s another gear — it’s just more of a belief that no matter what somebody throws at us, we’re going to get the job done.”

Hayes said she learned things about the team on Sunday, things she had wanted to see in terms of character and resilience: conceding a goal to Germany, then an immediate answer, and big stops from Naeher but defensive contributions across the board.

She saw lapses too, of course. Lavelle said the team were their own harshest critics, so she’ll have company there, but Hayes saw the USWNT out of its comfort zone thanks to the ‘top-level opponent’ Germany provided in Marseille, and she saw the team from all sides. She’s ready to work with that.

“The front three, in general, were dynamic as hell, really fun to watch. Most importantly, they enjoyed themselves,” Hayes began, before offering up an apology for what came next. All they did on Sunday was secure three points.

“We’re not here to wow everyone for a game and not do it again. We have to build the momentum,” she said. “First of all, recovering from this type of game — you can imagine the adrenaline — that’s probably my biggest concern now.

“You get so high, the comedown is like any hangover. We have a day and a half to recover before we go on the training pitch. We have to analyze the things that are within our control and we have to win against Australia. Simple as that.”

The players will have a rest day on Monday without any travel but a rest day doesn’t necessarily mean a full 24 hours off. Not in a tournament like the Olympics.

“We’re gonna be happy tonight,” Lavelle promised, “then we have another game in two days.”

(Top photo: Getty Images)

Silver Medalists, Kate Douglass, Gretchen Walsh, Torri Huske and Simone Manuel of Team United States pose with their medals following the Medal Ceremony after the Women’s 4x100m Freestyle Relay Final on day one of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Paris La Defense Arena on July 27, 2024 in Nanterre, France. (Al Bello/Getty Images)

PARIS — It took Nyjah Huston all of three seconds to fall on his first run at these 2024 Summer Olympics. Scrambling to his feet, he landed a couple of tricks, then fell again. The look on his face said it all.

No. Not again.

As one of the iconic figures in competitive skateboarding, the six-time world champion had faltered at the Tokyo Games three years ago, missing the same trick over and over to finish seventh.

Nearing 30 and no longer the best skater on the U.S. team — that honor arguably goes to Jagger Eaton — Huston came to Paris looking for some measure of redemption in the men’s street competition.

But after that shaky start in the preliminary round, it looked like Tokyo all over again.

“Of course thoughts like that come through my mind,” he said. “All you can do is try to pick yourself up and land the next one.”

There would be no Hollywood ending for Huston, no golden moment at the Place de la Concorde. But the way he kept glancing at the bronze medal around his neck, rubbing it between his fingers, suggested he was fine with the way things ended.

There were a few highlight-reel moments, no massive fails, on the way to the podium. It helped that, by all accounts, Monday’s competition ranked among the greatest in the sport’s history.

The defending Olympic champion, Yuto Horigome of Japan, needed a massive 270 nollie bluntside on his final attempt to leapfrog over Huston and silver medalist Eaton.

American Nyjah Huston completes a trick during the preliminaries of the men’s street skateboard competition on Monday in Paris.

(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

“Nyjah and Jagger were keeping such good scores,” Horigome said through a translator. “I stopped focusing on the medal and just tried the best trick I could.”

Both Americans led at some point during the competition and had one more shot at gold, but they missed on their last attempts. Eaton, who upgraded from bronze three years ago, was asked about the roller-coaster final.

“The roller coaster was that I thought I won,” he said. “Then I got off the ride.”

Huston had similarly mixed emotions about surrendering an early lead but, given the challenges he faced this time around, it was hard to be too upset.

His rise to stardom began more than two decades ago. Growing up at his family’s skate park in Davis, Calif., Huston signed his first endorsement contract at age 7 and won his first big amateur contest a few years later.

His pro career took off with the debut of Street League Skateboarding in 2010. He won the inaugural season, paving the way to those world championships and a record 23 overall skating medals at the X Games.

Prize money and endorsements allowed him to start his own skateboard company and made him a millionaire several times over. But when the Olympics added skateboarding for the Tokyo Games, his failure to add that accolade to his resume rankled him.

“I’m sorry,” he said after the competition. “I know I definitely let some people down.”

There was no need for apologies on Monday.

After his early stumble, Huston seemed to gain confidence with each attempt, pumping his fists and smiling broadly.

At the start of the finals, which consisted of two runs and five individual tricks, Huston stood first with Eaton close behind and Horigome in fourth. His lead grew as the evening wore on, but he was hardly feeling cocky.

“Being in that first-place spot and seeing everyone have a couple more tries,” he said, “it’s like nerves.”

Eaton jumped into first with a score of 95.25 on his fourth trick. Horigome needed every bit of a 97.08 in the final round to win by a tenth of a point.

American Nyjah Huston reacts after landing a jump during the finals of the men’s street skateboard competition on Monday in Paris.

(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

For his final try, Huston summoned one of his toughest concoctions: A switch heel crooked grind.

“It’s a trick I’ve been working on for a long time now,” he said. “I’ve landed it in a couple other contests on smaller obstacles.”

This time, he did not.

But talking to reporters afterward, Huston couldn’t seem to let go of that medal. He seemed at ease, so different from three years ago in Tokyo. It seemed as if he got what he wanted.

“A little bit of redemption,” he said, “you know?”