Aug. 5, 2012
Kelly Rulon had two goals, and Courtney Mathewson added another to lead the USA Women's Water Polo team to the a 9-6 victory over Italy in the quarterfinals. The U.S. advances to the semifinals and is assured of playing for a medal.
Women's Water Polo
Guided by former UCLA head coach Adam Krikorian, Team USA remained unbeaten, defeating 2012 European champion Italy, 9-6 in the quarterfinals on Sunday. Both Bruins scored goals against the Italians. Former UCLA standout Kelly Rulon scored the first goal for Team USA on a penalty shot to cut Italy's lead to 2-1 with 4:04 left in the first period. Rulon scored the eventual game-winning shot on another power play with 7:04 left in the fourth period, giving the Americans a 7-4 advantage. Rulon ended the match with two goals and an assist in 21 minutes. Another Bruin all-star, Courtney Mathewson, scored her only goal of the match on a power play with three seconds left in the opening period to tie the score at 3-3.
The U.S. advanced to the semifinals with the win and will face Australia on Tuesday, Aug. 7 at 7:20am PT. The winner will play in the gold medal match, while the loser will go for the bronze on Thursday, Aug. 9. Australia advanced to the semifinals with a 20-18 victory over China.
Women's Volleyball
The U.S. women's team finished group play with an undefeated 5-0 record following a three-set sweep of Turkey (27-25, 25-16, 25-19). UCLA Hall of Fame volleyball player Karch Kiraly is an assistant coach for Team USA.
London Log-In
UCLA Men's Volleyball Associate AD Mike Sondheimer explains his job duties as a statistician for NBC in Sunday's London Log-In.
News Links
Fiery Sydney Leroux adds spark for U.S. women's soccer - Arizona Republic
Karch Kiraly's role is smaller, but presence still felt - USA Today
Coming Up Monday
Track & Field - Discus qualification for UCLA's Julian Wruck in Group A begins at 2:00am PT. Watch online. Dawn Harper begins her quest to repeat at Olympic champion in the 100m hurdles with preliminary competition beginning at 2:05am PT. Harper is racing in Heat 4 in lane 2. Watch online here. Track and field coverage will be on NBC throughout the day, including 9-9:30am, 12:15-12:45pm and 3:30-4:00pm PT.
Men's Water Polo - The U.S. (Adam Wright, Chay Lapin) wraps up group play against defending Olympic champion Hungary at 7:30am PT. Watch live online at NBCOlympics.com or delayed on NBC at 9:30am.
Women's Soccer - The U.S. (Lauren Cheney, Sydney Leroux) faces Canada (Chelsea Stewart) in the semifinals at 11:45am PT. The game will be televised live on NBC Sports Network and streamed online at NBCOlympics.com.
Men's Volleyball - Team USA (coaches John Speraw and Michael Sealy) plays Tunisia in its final group play match at Noon PT. Watch online at NBCOlympics.com.
Men's Basketball - Team USA (Kevin Love, Russell Westbrook) plays Argentina at 2:15pm PT. Live broadcasts are available on NBC Sports Network and online.