Jordan Burroughs (Sicklerville, N.J.) capped an impressive 2, 4-1, to win gold at the 2011 Senior Wrestling World Championships on pound wrestler is the first U.S. world champion in freestyle since Bill Zadick in 2006.
EAGLES SOAR PAST RUSSIA
The U.S. defeated Russia, 13-6, in Plymouth, New Zealand, on Sept. 15 to record its first win at the 2011 Rugby World Cup. It took a team performance from the Eagles in very wet conditions led by a Mike Petri (Brooklyn, N.Y.) try and the boot of Chris Wyles (Samford, Conn.), giving the U.S. its third win in RWC history.
BOBSLED & SKELETON
Luke Schulz (Davenport, N.D.) and Megan Henry (Roxbury, Conn.) claimed the 2011 U.S. National Skeleton Push Championship titles in Lake Placid, N.Y., on Sept. 17. The two-heat push contest was the first competition for the skeleton team since nationals last March.
FENCING
Fifteen-year-old Eli Dershwitz (Sherborn, Mass.) won two cadet titles at European tournaments in 2010 and began this season on the same note, as he earned his third career international gold at the Konin European Cadet Saber Cup in Konin, Poland, on Sept. 17.
FIELD HOCKEY
The U.S. Men's National Field Hockey Team split the first two games of a four- game series with the Australia A team. In the first game on Sept. 17, the U.S. came up with a 2-1 victory, before falling by a 7-2 score the following day in Chula Vista, Calif.
MODERN PENTATHLON
Sam Sacksen (Somerset, Pa.), en route to a fourth-place finish in the mixed relay with teammate Margaux Isaksen (Fayetteville, Ark.), broke the world shooting record for five shots in 9.03 seconds. The duo narrowly missed the medal stand during the Sept. 19 event.
VOLLEYBALL
The U.S. Women's National Volleyball Team captured its sixth NORCECA Women's Continental Championship with a 25-15, 25-23, 25-18 victory over defending champions Dominican Republic on Sept. 17 in Caguas, Puerto Rico. In the process, the world's second-ranked U.S. squad, which didn't lose a single set in its five tournament matches, officially earned NORCECA's entry into the FIVB World Cup, the first 2012 Olympic Games qualifying event.
The U.S. women's beach volleyball team of Kelly Schumacher (Miami Beach, Fla.) and Angela Bryan (Covina, Calif.) and the men's team of Andy McGuire (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) and Avery Drost (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) both won bronze at the NORCECA Beach Circuit event on Rosarita Beach in Baja, Mexico, on Sept. 18.
The women's beach volleyball duo of Lauren Fendrick (Carlsbad, Calif.) and Brooke Hanson (Woodland Hills, Calif.) and the men's team of John Hyden (Sherman Oaks, Calif.) and Sean Scott (Redondo Beach, Calif.) both were victorious on Sept. 18 at the Miami Beach Open, part of the Jose Cuervo Pro Beach Volleyball Series in Miami, Fla.
WATER POLO
The U.S. Women's Junior National Team closed out the FINA Junior World Championships with an 11-9 loss to the Netherlands to take eighth place. Colleen O'Donnell (Palos Verdes, Calif.) scored three goals, while Kate Baldoni (Newport Beach, Calif.) tallied 10 saves in net.
WATER SKI
The U.S. Under-17 and Under-13 water ski teams both won titles at the 2011 Can Am Challenge, which ran from Sept. 17-18 at the Lake of Dreams in Jerseyville, Ill. The two-day event featured team competition between Canada and the United States. A six-member Under-17 team and a six-member Under-13 team represented both countries.
Two of three U.S. water ski racing teams and five U.S. athletes earned medals at the 2011 Water Ski Racing World Championships from Sept. 6-18, in Queensland, Australia. The U.S. Elite Water Ski Racing Team, the U.S. Formula 2 Water Ski Racing Team and the U.S. Junior Water Ski Racing Team participated in the four-race biennial event that included four rounds of competition.
WRESTLING
At the 2011 Senior Wrestling World Championships, Tervel Dlagnev (Columbus, Ohio) won bronze at 120 kg/264.5 lbs, his second world bronze since 2009. Also capturing bronze at 96 kg/211.5 lbs. was Jake Varner (Bakersfield, Calif.), whose mentor and close friend, 2004 Olympic champion Cael Sanderson (Salt Lake City, Utah), placed fifth at 84 kg/185 lbs. On the women's side, Elena Pirozhkova (Colorado Springs, Colo.) and Helen Maroulis (Rockville, Md.) both finished fifth. Team USA finished 19th in Greco, where Justin Lester's (Colorado Springs, Colo.) fifth-place effort at 66 kg/145.5 lbs. was the top U.S. individual result.
UPCOMING EVENTS
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER
19-25 - Cycling Copenhagen, Denmark UCI Road World Championships
19-26 - Gymnastics Montpellier, France World Championships
20-21 - Field Hockey Moorpark, Calif. USA Men vs. Australia Development
21-24 - Figure Skating Oberstdorf, Germany Nebelhorn Trophy
21-25 - Figure Skating Brasov, Romania Junior Grand Prix Romania
22-10 - Boxing Baku, Azerbaijan AIBA Senior World Championships
22-2 - Shooting Kerrville, Texas Shotgun Fall Selection Match-- first leg of Olympic Trials
22 - Soccer Portland, Ore. U.S. WNT vs. Canada
23-2 - Baseball Cartagena, Columbia 18U National Team - COPABE Pan Am 'AAA'/18U Championships
23-25 - Water Skiing West Palm Beach, Fla. 2011 Big Dawg Slalom Series Championships
24-25 - Cycling Beech Mountain, N.C. USA Cycling Gravity Mountain Bike National Championships
24- 1 - Roller Skating San Juan, Argentina 2011 FIRS "A" Rink Hockey World Championships
24 - Track & Field Bend, Ore. USA 50 km Trail Championships
24 - Triathlon Gijon, Spain ITU Duathlon World Championship
24 - Triathlon Ogden, Utah USA Triathlon Off-Road National Championship
24 - Triathlon Buffalo, N.Y. USA Triathlon Elite National Championship
24-25 - Volleyball Hermosa Beach, Calif. Jose Cuervo Pro Beach Series Championship