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UA athletes also contribute to victories for the U.S. softball, baseball and women's volleyball teams.

By University Communications
August 17, 2008

Athletes with ties to The University of Arizona continue competing in the pool, on the field and on the court at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing.

The U.S. women’s volleyball team defeated Poland, 3-2, Sunday to finish the preliminary round with a 4-1 record. The UA’s Kim Glass tallied five points in the match to help the American cause. The U.S. will face Italy in the quarterfinals on Aug. 19.

Monica Abbott pitched a perfect game as the U.S. softball team downed the Netherlands, 8-0. The UA’s Lovieanne Jung was 1-for-2 with an RBI in the contest, while fellow Wildcat Caitlin Lowe was 0-for-3 with a run scored. The U.S. remains unbeaten in the competition.

Swimming came to a close Sunday with four Wildcats in the pool, all in the men’s 4x100-meter medley relay. Simon Burnett anchored the team from Great Britain to a sixth-place finish in a time of 3:33.69. Burnett’s split of 47.33 seconds in the freestyle leg was the third fastest of the race.

Former Wildcats also made up three-quarters of the South African team that finished seventh in a time of 3:33.70. Gerhard Zandberg, Lyndon Ferns and Darian Townsend set a new African record in the race.

The UA’s Abdi Abdirahman finished in 15th place in the finals of the men’s 10,000-meter run, with a time was 27:52.53.

Bernard Lagat, the reigning world champion in the men’s 1,500-meter run did not qualify for the finals after finishing sixth during the second semifinal. Lagat, who trains in Tucson under UA coach James Li, missed qualifying for the final by two one-hundredths of a second in an unusually close race.

Freestyle specialist Roland Schoeman, representing South Africa, finished seventh in the men’s 50-meter freestyle in a time of 21.67 seconds. The effort was an African record for the former UA All-American and 2004 Olympic gold medalist.

Jill Camarena posted a season best in qualifying for the finals of the women’s shot put with a throw of 18.24 meters (60 feet, 8.75 inches). Camarena, who trains in Tucson under UA throws coach Craig Carter, finished 12th in the finals with a throw of 18.24 meters (59 feet, 10 inches).

The U.S. baseball team earned a come-from-behind 5-4 victory over Canada. The U.S. squad plated two runs in the bottom of the seventh to claim the win and improve to 2-2 in the round-robin competition. Arizona’s Jason Donald went 1-for-3 in the game.

Lithuania tallied an 86-73 win over Croatia to improve to 4-0 in pool A. Robertas Javtokas posted seven points, three rebounds and an assist in the contest. He was 2-of-2 from the field and 3-of-4 from the free throw line.