July 30, 2012
Wake Forest Olympians Home
By Nick Sebesta, Wake Forest Media Relations (@SIDeacons)
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - The 2012 London Olympics got underway this weekend with six former Wake Forest student-athletes competing in the first weekend of events.
Men's Basketball
Al-Farouq Aminu helped Nigeria to its first win over Tunisia in the country's Olympic basketball debut. He registered 10 points and nine rebounds, complimenting his brother Alade's team-leading 15 points in the 60-56 victory. Al-Farouq, who started the game, also had four steals and a blocked shot.
Darius Songaila played nearly 15 minutes for Lithuania yesterday in a 102-79 loss to Argentina. He went 4-of-5 from the floor and 3-for-3 from the free throw line for 11 points. Songaila also snagged four rebounds in the game.
Chris Paul started the game for the United States, putting up five points, two assists and two steals. The U.S. cruised to a 98-71 win over France in the opening round.
Women's Field Hockey
All three former field hockey Deacs saw significant playing time for the U.S. yesterday in a 2-1 loss to Germany. Team captain Lauren Crandall scored the lone goal for the United States at 55:04, yet Germany held on for the narrow victory. Both Michelle Kasold and Claire Laubach played in a large portion of the game.
Upcoming Events
Aminu and Songaila go head-to-head on Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. (EST) when Nigeria and Lithuania face off in the preliminary round. The U.S. men's basketball takes on Tunisia on Tuesday as well at 5:15 p.m. (EST) on NBC Sports Network.
USA Field Hockey faces Argentina in the next game on Tuesday at 2 p.m. on MSNBC.
Along with basketball and field hockey preliminary rounds this week, Brent LaRue will compete in the first round of the 400m hurdles for Slovenia on Friday at 6:30 a.m. (EST).
