RIO DE JANEIRO -- Even Germany and Sweden seem to be surprised they are in the womens Olympic soccer final.Most figured the World Cup champion U.S. national team would be cruising to its fourth straight gold medal. But the Americans were ousted by Sweden in the quarterfinals.With the United States out, many figured at host Brazil and national star Marta would be playing for gold. But Sweden knocked off the Brazilians, too, this time in the semifinals.Germany, meanwhile, avenged a loss to Canada earlier in the games, sending the Canadians to the bronze medal match for the second straight Olympics.So here they are: an all-European Olympic final for the first time. Germany faces Sweden on Friday at the iconic Maracana Stadium, with both making their debuts in the title match.This was our dream, Germany defender Annike Krahn said. It is so difficult to put in words what I am feeling, maybe when we get to Rio and Olympic Village for the first time in the Olympic Games we can celebrate a little bit. But, of course, always focused on the final match.Germany and host Brazil play in the mens Olympic final on Saturday at the Maracana, marking the first time that a nation has had both its mens and womens teams in the gold-medal match at the same games.Germany had yet to play in Rio after traveling throughout the country for earlier matches. The Olympic tournament was held in many of the same stadiums in the Brazil that were used in the 2014 mens World Cup, including the Amazonia Arena in Manaus.Germany has won the bronze medal three times, in Sydney, Athens and Beijing.This is amazing. It is the first time for Germany to reach the final and I am very proud about our performance, Germany coach Silvia Neid said. We improved match by match.With a win in the final, Neid could cap her career with a championship. The respected coach is stepping down after the Olympics and taking on a scouting role with the German team.Shes facing old friend Pia Sundhage, who has opted for a defensive stance in each of the last two matches -- and it has worked. The Swedes advanced on penalties after a 1-1 draw with the United States before a second penalty shootout following a scoreless draw against Brazil.Sundhage, who coached the Americans to gold medals at both the Beijing and London Games before returning to her native Sweden, seemed nonchalant following the match that relegated host Brazil to the bronze match.Yes, we are excited. There is crazy stuff going on in the dressing room, Sundhage said. The fact that we have done something the Swedish national team has never done before, playing for a medal. Its a big smile.Germany and Sweden have met three times at the Olympics, and the Germans have won all three -- the most recent was a 2-0 victory in extra time in the quarterfinals at the 2008 Beijing Games.Neither team made the medal round in London.The Germans defeated Sweden 2-1 on a golden goal in the 98th minute to win the 2003 Womens World Cup, which was held in the United States because of the SARS outbreak in China. Puma Scarpe In Offerta . Pierce was ejected in the third quarter of Indianas 103-86 win Monday. George Hill stole a bad pass and was going in for a layup, and Pierce hustled back and appeared to be trying to wrap him up. Puma Scontate Italia . The Barrie Colts defenceman, who impressed many with his play for Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championship, is the top-ranked skater in the February rankings. He has 19 goals and 24 assists for 43 points in 45 games with the Colts this season. http://www.pumascontate.it/ . During the athletes parade, the 23-strong Ukrainian team was represented by a lone flagbearer in an apparent protest at the presence of Russian troops in Ukraines Crimean peninsula. Scarpe Puma Scontate . A knee to the thigh might have stung him the most, but his sixth straight double-double made up for the brief burst of pain. Zalando Puma Scarpe .C. -- Glenn Howard needed an extra end to move into the Masters Grand Slam of Curling final. Batsman Shai Hope and allrounder Rovman Powell have been picked in West Indies squad for next months tri-series in Zimbabwe, after the selectors decided to drop Kieron Pollard and Denesh Ramdin. Pollard and Ramdins exclusions are the only changes to the squad that suffered a 3-0 defeat in the ODI series against Pakistan earlier this month. Both Pollard and Ramdin had poor returns in the limited-overs series in the UAE. Pollard managed 43 runs in the three T20s, and bowled two overs, going wicketless. In the three-match ODI series, Pollard scored 42 runs at an average of 14.00. He took one wicket in the 12 overs he bowled across the three matches. Ramdin, who was recalled to the ODI squad, compiled 79 runs at 26.33 in the three ODIs and did not feature in the T20s.Hope, who is a part of the Test side in the UAE, is uncapped in limited-ovvers internationals, but has played six Tests since May 2015 scoring 171 runs at an average of 15.dddddddddddd54. He scored 76 in the three-day tour match against the PCB Patrons XI, played under lights with the pink ball.Powell, uncapped in international cricket, had been named in the T20 squad for the UAE tour following a promising performance in CPL 2016. His only match on the tour was the practice T20 game against the Emirates Cricket Board XI where he scored 38 and bowled two overs for 14 runs.The Zimbabwe series will begin on November 14 with a match between the hosts and Sri Lanka. West Indies first match in the series will be against Sri Lanka on November 16. The final will be played on November 27. ' ' '