TORONTO -- Sherifatu Sumaila scored the game's lone goal as Ghana defeated Canada 1-0 on Tuesday in the opening game of the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup.

The 17-year-old Sumaila capitalized on a cross from Edem Atovor to score in the 22nd minute, pouncing on a rebound after Canada's 'keeper Kailen Sheridan had pushed a shot away.

The loss was a disappointing beginning for a Canadian host team hoping to go deep into this tournament.

Canada dominated much of the possession against the bigger and faster Ghanaians, and had several decent scoring opportunities at Toronto's National Soccer Stadium -- normally home to Major League Soccer's Toronto FC.

Emma Fletcher banged a shot off the post late in the first half, while Nichelle Prince beat two defenders to get off a left-footed shot while falling down, but it went straight into the hands of Ghana's goalkeeper Victoria Agyei.

Kadeisha Buchanan, who's become a regular on John Herdman's Canadian senior side, was solid on the backline, and almost scored in injury time, poking at a loose ball during a scramble in front of the net. The shot went over the crossbar.

The Ghana players on the bench rushed onto the field to embrace their teammates after the victory.

The Canadians' best showing at this tournament came in 2002 when they lost to the United States in the gold-medal game in Edmonton -- the beginning of international careers for the likes of Christine Sinclair and Kara Lang, who would go on to become household names in Canada.

Both Canada and Ghana were knocked out in group phase two years ago in Japan. The Canadian team is predominantly all new faces from that 2012 squad, and is mostly made up of players attending U.S. colleges.

Ghana has a few returnees from its U20 team two years ago, plus several players who were part of its third-place team at the U17 World Cup in 2012. They come from Ghana club teams such as Fabulous Ladies, Blessed Ladies, and Police Ladies.

The predominantly red and white-clad crowd of 14,834 was dotted with numerous Ghana flags, and a large pocket of Ghana fans, who all game long, were singing and banging drums.

Canada next plays Finland on Friday in Toronto, then heads to Montreal to face North Korea on Tuesday.

The Canadians need to finish top two in Group A to advance to the quarter-finals. The Group A winners will play the quarter-final in Toronto, while second place in the group will head to Edmonton for the quarters. The tournament semifinals are in Montreal and Moncton, N.B., while Montreal hosts the gold-medal game.

North Korea beat Finland 2-1 in the earlier Group A game Tuesday.