The United States women’s national team came from a goal down to draw 1-1 with Brazil on Wednesday night in Seattle. The tie in the fifth match of its 10-game Victory Tour extended the American's home unbeaten streak to 101 games and was the sternest test the U.S. had faced since winning the World Cup in July.

Brazil scored in the third minute of the back-and-forth contest when Monica outleapt Becky Sauerbrunn on a corner kick. Both sides generated chances during the opening 45 minutes, but neither converted, and the visitors took the one-goal advantage into the locker room.

Late in the second stanza, the U.S. began to assert control, creating numerous opportunities before finally breaking through in the 85th minute. On the play, Meghan Klingenberg picked up a loose ball outside the area, drove to the endline, and sent a cross by the face of the Brazilian net where a sliding Carli Lloyd managed to get a foot on the ball and direct it into the goal.

Here are three things we learned.

KLINGENBERG AND MORGAN BRIAN EXCELLED

Heading into the summer's World Cup, Klingenberg faced more criticism from fans than arguably any other U.S. regular. Most thought she was too slow to play on the back line and would get exposed against the top international teams.

But in Canada, Klingenberg was a vital cog in the outstanding defense. On Wednesday, she proved once again how much she has improved over the past two years. Early in the match, she got forward well, combining with the midfield and forward Alex Morgan to generate chances. Late in the game, she earned the game-tying assist.

Defensively, Klingenberg made two outstanding plays. In the 20th minute, she recognized a Brazilian overlap to snuff out a dangerous attack. A minute later, she made arguably the most important defensive play of the game when she bodied off a Brazilian attacker on the back post as Marta fizzed a service across the face of the American goal. 

Brian was also excellent on Wednesday, although her performance was more subtle. For the entire game, Brian marshaled the U.S. midfield, coming back on defense to make important tackles and interceptions before starting the American attack with short, simple passes out of the back.

She got forward on a number of occasions to contribute more directly to the offense, putting her teammates in behind the Brazilian defense with some brilliant passes. With the retirement of Lauren Holiday this week, it was a good sign to see Brian willing to step up and take command of the U.S. midfield.

SHANNON BOXX IS DONE, WHAT’S NEXT?

Boxx played her final game for the U.S. women on Wednesday, earning her 195th career cap. The three-time Olympic gold medalist and World Cup champion is stepping down this week, along with Holiday and Lori Chalupny. 

The retirement of these three players—all more than capable defensive midfielders—leaves the U.S. with a gaping hole in its midfield. One of the keys to the U.S. success in the knockout rounds of the World Cup was the move to a 4-2-3-1. There's no obvious answer as to the third partner for Brian and Lloyd in the center of the park.

Honored to play in the midfield one last time with the legend @ShannonBoxx7 ! We will miss you so much on the field and off! ??

— Morgan Brian (@moeebrian) October 22, 2015

On Wednesday, head coach Jill Ellis subbed in Tobin Heath for Boxx, an experiment that the coach also tried in the U.S.'s last Victory Tour matches against Haiti in September. Against Brazil, Heath was quiet—in a good way—for 30 minutes in the center, before being moved out wide when Sam Mewis came in for Crystal Dunn in the 71st minute.

Perhaps Heath can be the replacement for Holiday, but will obviously need more time at the position to learn the ropes. Heath will also be more handcuffed at the position—as was Holiday, who often played as an attacking midfielder and forward prior to being moved into the No. 6 position. When Heath plays on the wing, she has the freedom to take more touches and go at defenders with her bag of tricks; in the center of the midfield, she needs to play a more simple, two-touch game.

Only time will tell if Heath can get the job done.

IS IT TIME FOR A NEW LOOK AT FORWARD?

Ellis has another difficult decision at forward. Alex Morgan, sidelined by injuries for much of the last two years, has yet to regain the form that made her such a deadly international striker in 2012. That year, she tallied 28 times in 31 games. By comparison, Morgan has 16 goals in 37 appearances between 2013 and 2015. 

Alex Morgan needs reps. Simply hasn't played enough over the past two years or so.

— Charles Boehm (@cboehm) October 22, 2015

On Wednesday, Morgan helped create numerous chances but was unable to provide the breakthrough. In the first half, she had two near misses, including a header in the 12th minute that went just wide and a one-time shot off a ball from Carli Lloyd that was nicely saved by Brazilian keeper Luciana. In the second half, Morgan found herself in behind Brazil’s high line repeatedly but was unable to take advantage of any of her chances.

Moving forward, Ellis can stick with Morgan and hope that she once again finds her goal-scoring form, or she can continue to use Morgan to keep a high line and be a threat to get in behind opposing defenses. This strategy also opens up space for the other American midfielders and allows Lloyd to contribute more directly to the attack.

The other option Ellis has is to give more time to her other forwards, including Christen Press and Amy Rodriguez, both of whom are coming off red-hot seasons in the NWSL.