Note: All times/dates given are the times/dates these games aired in America, to try and cut down on some of the cross-time zone confusion.
US Women’s Water Polo
If you’ve never watched water polo before, the US team’s game against China Monday morning might have turned you into a new lifelong fan—I know it did me. We’re rooting for this team since the whole group lives in Long Beach, but we’re especially pulling for Wilson grad Lauren Wenger, who scored the game-winning goal to give Long Beach—I mean, USA Water Polo, a 12-11 victory. The Chinese resistance was surprising, since USA went into the tournament ranked number one in the world. Wednesday morning, the team was played to a draw by a strong Italian team, giving them a 1-0-1 record, and tying America with Italy at the top of their pools. China’s defeat of Russia (USA’s next opponent) guarantees the team a spot in the next round, giving us at least a few more games to root on the Long Beach locals.
US Women’s Volleyball
After suffering a disappointingly lopsided loss to Cuba (in straight sets), Team USA and its two LBSU grads came back strong against Venezuela, winning in four sets and dominating the net. Long Beach State alumTayyiba Haneef-Park led the team with 17 points, with 14 kills and three crucial blocks. Danielle Scott-Arruda led the team for the second consecutive game in the loss to Cuba. The team is now 2-1, and will next play against China. A win there would guarantee them a spot in the next round.
Beach Volleyball
LBSU grad Misty May and Kerri Walsh put Cuba to bed in straight sets, and looked very business-like and focused. It was their 103rd straight match victory, and both sounded eager to get some more in their post-game interviews. This win clinches them a spot in the next round, by they’ll have on more match play game against Norway tonight. Misty May had 21 kills, and continues to play absolutely out of her mind. So far the duo is 2-0, and have never even lost a set in Olympic play.
US Men’s Volleyball
Still missing head coach Hugh Mccutcheon, the USA team improved to 2-0 by taking care of Italy in four sets on Tuesday. David Lee of LBSU had ten points and a team-high five blocks. Fellow LBSU grads Tom Hoffand Scott Touzinsky contributed off the bench. “I thought we started the match waiting to see Italy’s strategy,” Hoff said. “After the first and second sets, our block was very efficient.” After that our offense got going and felt comfortable knowing the block was going well.”
US Men’s Water Polo
The US men, which have a handful of graduates from local high schools beat international power Italy by a score of 12-11 on Tuesday. Head Coach Terry Schroeder had to have been relieved to see more of a team effort this time, with less reliance on Wilson grad Tony Azevedo, who led the team in scoring in its first match. This time Azevedo only had to put in two goals, as nine players put the ball in the net, including Long Beach high school grads Adam Wright and Ryan Bailey. This was a crucial win to put the team at 2-0, since their next opponent is Serbia, who recently smashed the American team in international play. Coach Schroeder calls Serbia “the most talented team out there.”
The Stats:
Long Beach’s Win-Loss Record (or the record of teams featuring LB players): 9-1-1
Games where Long Beachians led their team in scoring: 3
Game-winning scores by Long Beachians: 1