Quad Rugby/Story - 2006 North American Cup, Final

UNITED STATES QUAD RUGBY ASSOCIATION

June 2006

USA Wins North American Cup Wheelchair Rugby Competition, Men's Basketball to Face Great Britain in Sunday Semifinal

BIRMINGHAM, Ala.-The U.S. Paralympics wheelchair rugby national team defeated Great Britain, 31-26, to win the 2006 North American Cup wheelchair rugby championship. The U.S. Paralympics men's wheelchair basketball team finished third in pool play and will face Great Britain in Sunday's semifinal.

Wheelchair Rugby
The U.S. had earned a spot in the title game by cruising past New Zealand, 34-28, in their early morning semifinal and Great Britain's 28-25 semifinal victory over Canada determined the U.S. opponent. After the U.S.'s nail biting, triple overtime victory over GB on Friday, the large crowd gathered at Lakeshore Foundation's U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Site was expecting an edge-of-your-seat match-up in this championship game. What they saw was a defensive display by the U.S. that never allowed Great Britain an opportunity to contend for the win.

The United States started out playing strong pressure defense that forced several Great Britain turnovers and led to a 13-9 halftime lead for the home team. Despite the large lead, the U.S. never let up on either end of the floor, continually pounding the ball across the goal line on offense and defensively forcing Great Britain to make mistakes. There was never a point that GB got closer than within 3 goals of the U.S., leading to the 31-26 victory.

"We learned that it's going to take more than 4 players to win in this day and age. We were glad to see our bench went 5, sometimes 6 deep," said U.S. rugby coach James Gumbert. "This was a good step for us to take toward our goal of winning World Championships, but we have a lot of work to do."

New Zealand was finally able to notch a win in this year's North American Cup, defeating Canada, 29-25, to win third place. This contest was close throughout, with New Zealand holding a slim 1-goal lead all the way through the third quarter. But, nearly halfway through the final quarter, 3 consecutive turnovers by the Canadians put the Kiwis up 27-22 and New Zealand went on to the 29-25 win.

"We got more out of the loss this morning in the semifinal than we did out of the 3 losses we suffered yesterday," said New Zealand head coach Grant Sharman. "What we have to do has become very clear, now it's just up to us to do it."

Wheelchair Basketball
The U.S. Paralympics men's wheelchair basketball team finished third in pool play after suffering two defeats on Saturday, losing to Great Britain, 64-59, and to Canada, 65-59.

The U.S. team opened against Great Britain on Saturday morning playing intense pressure defense and strong transition basketball, holding a 31-24 lead over the British at halftime. But, an inability to put the ball in the basket and an improved defensive effort by Great Britain in the third quarter saw the U.S. lose that lead and GB finish the third quarter with a 43-42 edge. This trend continued into the fourth quarter and halfway through the final frame, Great Britain had taken a 52-47 lead. With less than 2 minutes remaining, a huge 3-point basket from Paul Schulte put the U.S. within 1, 58-57, but the Americans were not able to get over the hump and grab the lead, with Great Britain going on to the 64-59 win.

The United States' second game against Canada saw a much-improved effort from Friday's game against the world number one. The U.S. held a 4-point lead more than 3 minutes into the fourth quarter, but then a 7-0 run by the Canadians saw that lead disappear and Canada leading 59-56 with just 4 minutes remaining in the game. The U.S. was unable to convert several baskets down the stretch and Canada ended with the 65-59 victory.

The U.S. team will play Great Britain in the semifinal on Sunday morning at 9:00am. The winner of that game will play Canada for the North American Cup wheelchair basketball championship at 12:00pm.

"In order for us to win on Sunday, we're going to have to play pressure defense and really rely on our transition game to create easy opportunities," said U.S. assistant coach Paul Jackson.

Susan Katz
Communications Coordinator
Lakeshore Foundation
(205) 313-7434
susank@lakeshore.org

Visit our website at www.lakeshore.org

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