Both the United States men’s and women’s teams topped their respective groups in Thursday’s pool play ahead of Friday’s knock out stages of the Pan American Olympic Festival in Toluca, Mexico.
Team USA’s men, [3/4] seeds, and women, [1] seeds, each recorded two victories in pool play Thursday ensuring first round byes in Friday’s knock out stages.
The U.S. men began their team campaign in emphatic fashion with a perfect performance against Venezuela including three, 3-0 victories with the longest match lasting only eighteen minutes.
An evening match against Trinidad and Tobago proved no different with Todd Harrity swapping in for Gilly Lane as the U.S. men again swept the southern Caribbean nation with three, 3-0 wins. The men now await their quarterfinal opponent: the winner of Friday morning’s Ecuador vs. Trinidad and Tobago match.
Seeded first in the women’s draw, the U.S. faced a challenging first opponent in Colombia Thursday afternoon. Strong performances from Sabrina Sobhy and Olivia Blatchford ensured victory, despite Colombia claiming the No. 3 match. The ensuing evening match saw the U.S. swiftly defeat Argentina with three, 3-0 wins setting up Team USA to top the knock-out draw. The U.S. women will face the winner of Friday’s Chile vs. Brazil match in the semifinals.
Visit the Team USA Pan American Olympic Festival page for draws, player bios, blog posts, and follow the Team USA Squash Twitter account and Team USA Blog for updates throughout the rest of the tournament.
[jbutton color=”blue” size=”large” link=”https://www.ussquash.com/teamusa/2014-pan-ams/” ]Team USA Pan American Olympic Festival Page[/jbutton]Men’s Team Group D, September 11:
[3/4] United States bt [7/12] Venezuela 3-0:[1] Chris Gordon (USA) bt Wilfredo Arcia (VEN) 11-2, 11-1, 11-1 (12m)
[2] Gilly Lane (USA) bt Ricardo Teran (VEN) 11-7, 11-5, 11-2 (18m)
[3] Chris Hanson (USA) bt Miguel Vallenilla (VEN) 11-6, 11-1, 11-1 (10m)
[3/4] United States bt Trinidad and Tobago 3-0:
[1] Chris Gordon (USA) bt Kale Wilson (TRI) 11-3, 11-3, 11-2 (12m)
[2] Todd Harrity (USA) bt Nku Patrick (TRI) 11-4, 11-5, 11-5 (20m)
[3] Chris Hanson (USA) bt Chayse Mc Quan (TRI) 13-11, 11-8, 11-3 (25m)
Men’s Quarterfinals, September 12:
[3/4] United States vs. [7/12] Ecuador/Trinidad and Tobago
Women’s Team Group A, September 11:
[1] United States bt [4/6] Colombia 2-1:
[1] Sabrina Sobhy (USA) bt Catalina Pelaez (COL) 11-4, 11-2, 11-7 (16m)
[2] Olivia Blatchford (USA) bt Laura Tovar (COL) 11-8, 11-9, 12-10 (26m)
[3] Ana Gabriela Porras (COL) bt Maria Elena Ubina (USA) 11-8, 8-11, 11-4, 11-6 (26m)
[1] United States bt [7/9] Argentina 3-0:
[1] Sabrina Sobhy (USA) bt Fernanda Rocha (ARG) 11-1, 11-4, 11-8 (23m)
[2] Olivia Blatchford (USA) bt Pilar Etchechoury (ARG) 11-4, 11-2, 11-4 (17m)
[3] Cece Cortes (USA) bt Micaela Urdinez (ARG) 11-5, 11-4, 11-4 (16m)
Women’s Team Semifinals, September 12:
[1] United States vs. [4/6] Chile/[4/6] Brazil
