The United States wins Wheelchair Rugby Mixed Open gold medal

Will Groulx (L) of the United States battles with Ryley Batt of Australia.

The United States beat Australia 53-44 in the Wheelchair Rugby Mixed Open gold medal match during the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing on September 16, 2008.

Bryan Kirkland (L) of the United States defends the ball against Cameron Carr of Australia. 

Will Groulx (L) of the United States contests with Bryce Alman (R) of Australia.

Player of the United States celebrate.

Wheelchair Rugby Day 5 Review: US claims gold, Canada takes bronze

(BEIJING, September 16) -- The United States of America outscored Australia 53-44 in the gold medal match to go back to the top of the podium, and Canada defeated Great Britain to win the bronze, in the last day of Wheelchair Rugby played at the USTB Gymnasium on Tuesday, September 16.

Also on Tuesday, New Zealand beat Germany to place fifth, while Japan overwhelmed China in the classification match for seventh place.

United States defeats Australia 53-44 (Gold medal match)

Bryan Kirkland and Will Groulx combined for 29 goals and 15 assists, while Andy Cohn chipped in 10 more goals to lead the new Paralympic champion's offensive. Australia kept close until the third quarter, when the US team's defense forced the Aussies to cough up five balls in the last five minutes of the period. Nick Springer and Joel Wilmoth of the United States took shifts to aggressively defend Australia's Ryley Batt, who managed to score 23 goals and give 12 assists.

Great Britain beats Canada 41-47 (Bronze medal match)

Athens silver medal team Canada embarked on a 3-0 run at the end of the first period for an 11-8 lead after five and a half minutes. Great Britain stayed close in the score until the end of the third quarter, when two turnovers helped Canada enlarge its lead to 35-29. Mike Whitehead scored 14 goals to lead Canada in scoring, while Fabien Lavoie joined him with 11 goals. Ian Chan added eight goals and six assists.

New Zealand beats Germany 28-25 (Fifth place match)

The Wheel Blacks entered the second quarter of the game determined to win a consolation prize as the team embarked on a 4-1 scoring run to take a 14-11 halftime lead. After this the outcome was never in doubt. No player's goal tally reached double figures. David Klinkhamer scored a team-high seven goals, while Geremy Tinker and Daniel Buckingham chipped in with six and five goals respectively. Germany, led Wolfgang Mayer with a game-high nine goals, bettered its Athens 2004 position of seventh.

Japan defeats China 58-32 (Seventh place match)

Japan was fast in offense and the match was effectively won after the team scored 17 goals in the first quarter for a six point lead. Shimakawa Shinichi had a game high 15 goals, while Tamura Manabu and Fujishima Shingo added 12 and nine respectively. On the China side, Chen Jun, Cheng Shuangmiao and Han Guifei combined for 32 of China's goals. They also added 18 assists.

Wheelchair Rugby Day 4 Review: US, Australia advance to gold medal match

(BEIJING, September 15) -- The United States outscored Great Britain, and Australia upset Canada to win their semifinals on Monday, September 15 and advance to the Wheelchair Rugby final.

Germany beats Japan 39-38 (Playoff fifth-eighth place)

Captain Joerg Holzem scored a goal with four seconds left in overtime to give Germany its first win of the Wheelchair Rugby tournament. The European team didn't depend on any one player. Oliver Johannes Picht, Nacer Menezla and Maik Baumann led scoring with eight goals apiece, while Wolfgang Mayer chipped in with seven.

"It was a big victory, we won our first game in this competition," said Menezla. "The coaches spoke to our team and said come back and play the game, and do this for your country, family and for yourself."

New Zealand beats China 47-34 (Playoff fifth-eighth place)

Defending champion New Zealand established a five-goal lead at the end of the second quarter, and even though China played its best game of the tournament, the outcome was never in doubt. Daniel Buckingham had a team-high 15 goals and Curtis Palmer added 12 goals for the Wheel Blacks, prompting China to commit 18 turnovers in the process.

"We're still pretty heartbroken [about not going to the final] but we went out there today to have a bit of fun," said New Zealand captain Buckingham. "We're already making plans, we're hoping that Australia will win the gold so that we can take the No. 1 spot off them when we play them in the next Oceania Cup."

United States beats Great Britain 35-32 (Semifinal)

Will Groulx scored 13 goals to lead his US team, which dominated in defense, led by Joel Wilmoth, Bryan Kirkland and Nick Springer. The United States also showed an impressive control of the ball, only giving up two balls in the entire game -- four less than the British team - and having 16 assists out of their 35 goals.

"We have done our part to get us into the final," said Groulx. "So now we just have to take it [the final]as it comes, do what we do best and play to win."

Australia beats Canada 41-40 (Semifinal)

Ryley Batt scored the last of his 23 goals with 7.7 seconds left in the overtime and Australia, fifth in the world ranking, will play on Tuesday its second gold medal match in Wheelchair Rugby history against the United States, same opponent to beat them in the Sydney Paralympic Games final. Australian player Bryce Alman became the unexpected hero when he stole the ball from Canadian player Mike Whitehead's hands with 45 seconds to play in the overtime. The ball went to Batt, Australia's leader, who avoided three Canadians in front of the goal line before he scored.

"I'm speechless," Batt commented after the match. "I don't think I've ever been this happy in my whole life. It was such a team effort and we were so positive throughout the entire match. It was a great steal at the end and I still can't believe it."

Wheelchair Rugby Day 3 Review: US, Australia top their preliminary groups

(BEIJING, September 13) -- Australia beat its traditional Trans-Tasman rivals New Zealand and Great Britain outscored Germany on their way to the semifinals on Day Two of the Wheelchair Rugby competition at the USTB Gymnasium on Saturday.

Canada thrashes China 57-25

Athens 2004 Paralympic Games silver medalists Canada wasted no time and went on a 5-1 run in the first few minutes to post a 13-5 first-quarter lead. China was not able to reduce the eight-goal margin and failed to score two consecutive goals throughout the match. Canadian captain David Willsie notched a game-high 11 goals, while Erika Schmutz of Canada was the first female in the tournament to score, adding three goals for her side in 15 minutes.

United States defeats Japan 44-37

The outcome of this match was never in doubt, even though Japan rallied at the end of the third quarter and the beginning of the fourth to get within two goals. Will Groulx was the United States' best player, notching 10 goals and four steals in 27 minutes. Bryan Kirkland joined him with 11 goals and four assists.

Australia beats NZ, 39-38

Ryley Batt of Australia scored the last of his 27 goals on the buzzer to give Australia a last-second victory over their Trans-Tasman rivals New Zealand. Batt received the ball with 5.9 seconds left on the clock and was fast enough to avoid three New Zealand defenders before he crossed the goal line. New Zealand had the ball after Australia tied the game 38-38 but a turnover by Geremy Tinker of New Zealand gave Australia the chance to win the game.

Great Britain wins 39-35 against Germany

Troye Collins and Alan Ash combined for 31 goals to lead Great Britain, while the aggression of Jason Roberts forced many of Germany's 12 turnovers (five more than Great Britain). Germany was unable to break their opponent's defense and stop its top scorers.

(BEIJING, September 14) -- The United States beat Canada and Australia passed Great Britain to top their respective pools as Day Three of Wheelchair Rugby took place at the USTB Gymnasium on Sunday, September 14.

Japan defeats China 55-38

Japan started strongly and the match was effectively over when the Japanese jumped to a quick 6-1 and closed the first quarter 16-8. Shimakawa Shinichi and Shingo Fujishima led their side, scoring 13 and 14 goals respectively. They also combined for four assists and two steals.

United States beats Canada 37-32

The United States showed an impressive defensive game, alternating full-court pressure with key defense (three players in the 10m key and the fourth trying to steal the ball). The beginning of the third quarter was the summary of the game. With Team USA leading the score 24-21, Canada took four and a half minutes to score their 22nd goal, while the winning team recovered the ball and lasted seven seconds to score their 25th.

Australia beats Great Britain 43-37

Ryley Batt's 22 goals against Great Britain were his lowest scoring in the tournament, after posting 24 goals in Friday's win over Germany and 27 goals in Saturday's victory over New Zealand. Great Britain went with a double or triple-defense on Batt that worked during the first half to keep his score to only eight goals as the match was tied 19-19. Yet Batt was too fast for his opponents, especially in the fourth quarter, when he forced three consecutive turnovers, scored twice and gave an assist for a 3-0 run taking Australia into the lead 31-27.

New Zealand defeats Germany 40-31

Germany kept close until the end of the second quarter, when New Zealand went on a 4-1 run to take its first win of the competition. New Zealand used smothering defense to force 12 turnovers and only had two players excluded during the whole match - five less than Germany. David Klinkhamer and Daniel Buckingham combined for 22 goals, the latter adding eight assists. Palmer Curtis joined them with 10 assists.

Wheelchair Rugby Day 2 Review: Australia and Great Britain advance to the semifinals

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