[Fox Sports]

A minute later the referee blew her whistle, and the game was over. While Japan celebrated advancing to the final—where they will take on the United States in a rematch of the 2011 final—the only thing the English players could do was futilely attempt to console Bassett:

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For 90 minutes, England stood toe-to-toe with Japan. The match was tied 1-1, with each team having scored a penalty kick, and as the clock ticked into extra time, it looked like we would need 30 more minutes to decide the tie. And then, English defender Laura Bassett made a touch that will haunt her for the rest of her life: