Nathan Harriel and Paxten Aaronson lead the U.S. men’s Olympic soccer team’s 4-1 rout of New Zealand

With Union right back Nathan Harriel and Medford’s Paxten Aaronson leading the way, the U.S. men’s Olympic soccer team soared to a 4-1 victory over New Zealand on Saturday, setting a record for the most goals scored in a U.S. men’s Olympic team game.

Harriel set up the opener by winning a penalty kick that Djordje Mihailovic converted. Aaronson, who grew up with the Union before moving up to Germany’s Bundesliga, notched the finale. Walker Zimmerman and Gianluca Busio scored in between.

U.S. coach Marko Mitrović stuck with the same lineup that started Wednesday’s tournament-opening 3-0 loss to France, including Harriel and Aaronson.

That bet paid off fast. Mihailovic’s penalty kick in the eighth minute marked the first goal scored by a U.S. men’s Olympic soccer team since 2008 — a span of 5,823 days, to be precise.

Harriel won the no-doubter call when he was tripped in the box on a U.S. free kick play, and though Mihailovic had to wait a while, he thumped it right down the middle.

» READ MORE: Nathan Harriel’s years of hard work pay off with a place on the U.S. Olympic men’s soccer team

Zimmerman doubled the lead just four minutes later, off another free kick. Mihailovic took it from the right wing, Duncan McGuire knocked the ball on to Harriel, and his attempt got caught in traffic. Zimmerman pounced on the loose ball, pushed it home, and raced away to celebrate.

Busio notched the third in the 30th, when he got two chances to work a shot through New Zealand’s pack of defenders. When he did, the team gathered for a big celebration on the sideline, knowing it had stepped up with force after losing to France.

They might not have known it was the first time since 2000 that a U.S. men’s Olympic team had scored three goals in a game. Only the three overage players on the current squad were alive when Landon Donovan led the Americans to a historic fourth-place finish.

» READ MORE: Meet the players on the first U.S. men’s Olympic soccer team in 16 years

Unfortunately, Busio’s day didn’t last much longer. He pulled up on a run down the right wing in the 35th, grabbed his right hamstring, and sat down. That’s a universal sign of an injury in soccer, and Mitrović didn’t hesitate to sub Busio out for Union midfielder Jack McGlynn.

Busio was crestfallen after leaving the field. We’ll have to wait to see just how bad the injury is. Josh Atencio and Jake Davis are the alternate midfielders, and neither has Busio’s talent or pedigree.

Busio told reporters at the stadium that he had been dealing with a nagging hamstring issue “for a while,” but he didn’t think this instance was “anything too serious.”

Aaronson made it four in the 58th with a shot that was well-taken but helped by a deflection. It was a nice reward for his good work across the first two games, including some chances against France that he came up just short of converting.

» READ MORE: Medford’s Paxten Aaronson is excited to play in the Olympics, the biggest stage of his soccer career

Just before that, Mitrović made a double-substitution of his choosing: defender Max Dietz for forward McGuire and winger Griffin Yow for central playmaker Mihailovic. That put Aaronson in a central attacking role instead of the wide left spot where he’d started.

McGlynn had the ball in the net for a fifth in the 63rd, but he was offside when McGuire played him the ball, and the Union midfielder hit the crossbar in second-half stoppage time for good measure.

In the 69th, Harriel exited for midfielder Benjamin Cremaschi, and Kevin Paredes exited for Taylor Booth in a forward-for-forward swap.

New Zealand got its goal in the 78th from Jesse Randall. The Kiwis caught the U.S. on a break, and Randall nailed a pretty turn and smash to the top of the net.

» READ MORE: Medford’s Paxten Aaronson is excited to play in the Olympics, the biggest stage of his soccer career

The Americans’ win gives them a clear pathway to the quarterfinals. A win over Guinea in Tuesday’s group stage finale (1 p.m., USA Network, Telemundo 62, Peacock), would clinch a berth. So would a tie if France beats New Zealand in a game played at the same time (Universo, Peacock).

“I don’t do the calculation,” Mitrović said. “Today, we spoke before the game that every second on the field matters, that every action matters. And what we have to do is go and execute all those seconds and actions on the field, and let’s see where that’s going to take us.”

1. France, 6 points (2-0-0), +4 goal difference

2. United States, 4 (1-0-1), 0 GD

3. New Zealand, 4 (1-0-1), -2

4. Guinea, 0 (0-0-2), -2