(Greg Sullivan, The Tennessean, 03.23.12)

NASHVILLE — There were no real signs of first-game jitters for the Americans.

There were no issues playing up to their status as the favorite either.

Rather, the U.S. team jumped ahead early, dictated play and got a hat trick from midfielder Joe Corona to rout Cuba 6-0 in its Olympic qualifying opener on Thursday on a soggy LP Field.

“That’s my first hat trick with a national team. My first three goals, actually,” said Corona, who scored his third goal in the 88th minute with a kick to the left corner. “We have a lot of confidence. We feel like we’re at home.”

The soggy weather early in the day might have kept attendance low at LP Field. Fewer than 1,000 people were in the stands for the start of the game between El Salvador and Canada. The crowd filled in somewhat for the U.S. game, with an announced attendance of 4,269.

If there was any question how the U.S. would look under new coach Caleb Porter, Corona’s goals helped provide an answer.

“I have a lot of freedom (in Porter’s system),” Corona said. “That’s one of the things he expresses to me a lot. He gives me the liberty to move around.”

Corona scored the Americans’ first goal 11 minutes into the game and added another later in the second half.

The Americans also got goals from Juan Agudelo and Freddy Adu. The U.S. went up 4-0 just before halftime on an own goal.

“We’ve had Joe in every camp, so I’ve seen him every day in training,” Porter said. “Really for me when the light bulb went on when we were in Costa Rica (for friendlies) … for me it just felt good, felt right.”

The U.S. faces Canada at 6 p.m. Saturday, also at LP Field, in the second of three qualifying matches in the tournament.

Cuba’s Dairo Macias left the game with a red card in the first half after hitting a U.S. player with an elbow.