The 2023 Parapan American Games take place in Santiago, Chile November 17-26. While Team USA will face stiff competition from the top teams in the Americas, a gold medal in Santiago will secure the team a spot at next year’s Paralympic Games in Paris, France. Continue to visit this page for scores and match highlights, and watch livestreamed games at https://www.panamsportschannel.org/.
Day 6 Recap:
USA Wheelchair Rugby punched their ticket to Paris with the 57-51 win over Canada in today’s gold medal final at the Parapan American Games Santiago 2023.
As always, Canada USA did not disappoint, with smart tactical play and aggressive offense by both nations. With a Paralympic qualification spot to the victor, much was on the line for both countries. Early in the first, USA was able to capitalize on a Canadian turnover to go up by 1. Strong defense from the USA prevented Canada from picking up a try at the end of the first allowing the U.S. to be up 14-12. Turnovers again marred the second period for Canada, and the U.S. went up 27-24 at the half. While Canada seemed to switch to a zone defense in the third, they were not able to deter the offensive duo of Chuck Aoki (Minneapolis, MN) who had 28 trys and Sarah Adam (Naperville, IL) with 17, tonight’s top scorers who ran the court and helped dictate the pace of the game. As the fourth period stretched on, so too did the American lead up by six for the final 57-51.
“We executed authentically today and played really well,” said USA co-captain Chuck Aoki. “We know our strength is our offense and throughout the tournament we’ve frankly been a little sloppy, but today, we put together four complete quarters, probably the best we’ve played. Few turnovers, solid defense, a great game!”
Coach Joe Delagrave, capturing the first Parapan American gold of his coaching career was understandably proud of the team and their work this week. “It’s pretty special to go into a game like today and have one turnover at this level,” said Delagrave. “We talked so much about taking care of the ball and that was as excellent as it gets. So many different athletes stepped up, and those that didn’t play today just cheered like crazy on the sidelines. It is really cool and special to see this group come together. The vision is to get an entire team developed and understanding the system. I think that played out this week for us and we really needed it. Players we’ve built and believed in and trusted came through and they all believed and trusted in each other. Seeing the vision of the tournament or seeing the vision of the Paris quad and not just seeing a game at a time is important, and they did that this week. Now we are excited to get back to work. Paris is a long ways out, but we will be ready. But today, what a day!”
Aoki, who has been on three Parapan American Games squads talked too about the difference in today’s victory. “This is on the sweetest victories I’ve had. We’ve gone through so much adversity as a team. It’s been a heck of a few months, but our goal way back in January was to qualify for Paris and here we are in November, and we did it. I am so proud of the team. Thank you to my family, you have all been so amazing, now we will see everyone in Paris!”
Day 5 Recap:
The United States will advance to tomorrow’s gold medal final after their 52-45 semifinal victory over Colombia at the Parapan American Games Santiago 2023.
Today’s semi-final brought out fiery play from both nations, with a back and forth that kept the score to within 1 at the end of the first, the U.S. up 12-11. Forced turnovers and steals plagued the Americans in the second but despite Colombia being up by 2 at the midpoint of the second, the U.S. was able to push back, and the score was tied at 24 a piece going into the half.
The U.S. seemed to spark in the third forcing turnovers that saw the U.S. pull ahead 38-33. Coupled with an offensive show from veteran Chuck Aoki (Minneapolis, MN), the impressive U.S. defense would help push the U.S. across the finish for the 52-45 final score. That solid U.S. defense was characterized by USA’s #15 Josh O’Neill (Colorado Springs, CO) as a strength of several American players.
“This has been a new role that I’ve jumped into,“ said O’Neill. We’ve got a lot of good defensive players on this team. I pride myself on my defense. I like to go in there and get after it!”
Top scorer for the U.S. was Chuck Aoki with 24. Sarah Adam (Naperville, Il), Eric Newby(Nashville, IL) and Clay Brackett (Birmingham, Al) each contributed 6.
Today’s victory did not come easy, but Head Coach Joe Delagrave was not surprised the team rallied and played in sync particularly in the later minutes of the game.
“I am really proud of our team. There isn’t a lot of ‘me’ going on. It’s a lot of ‘we,’ and when your number is called you are going to play,” said Delagrave. “We’ve talked about belief, trust, stepping up and that was it today. It says a lot about developing our entire group. To be able to play in the system and to show individual heart like that, it was really great to see.”
The U.S. will face Canada tomorrow at 4 p.m. CT. On the line in tomorrow’s final is the coveted qualification spot for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games for the winner.
For updates on all of the action from Santiago visit https://www.panamsportschannel.org
Day 4 Recap:
Day four of the Parapan American Games brought the much-anticipated matchup between the United States and Canada. This rivals meeting resulted in a win for the Canadians, 46-41.
Both nations came into to today’s final day of pool play undefeated with healthy margins of victory against their opponents. The first period was a classic Canada U.S. back and forth. A last second full court inbound to Chuck Aoki (Minneapolis, MN) allowed the U.S. to go up 12-11 to finish the first. Canada was able to force some U.S. turnovers in the second, but the Americans kept it close once again rallying to attempt a last second full court in bound. This time they were not able to convert, leaving the U.S. now down 22-23 at the half. Coming out of halftime, the Americans struggled with further turnovers allowing Canada to maintain their lead. Solid play brought the U.S. back to within 1 but aggressive defense from Canada kept the U.S. from scoring in the last possession of the third. While the U.S. put forth a strong defense, the fourth was marked by additional U.S. turnovers allowing Canada to ultimately stretch its lead to the final five-point margin winning 46-41.
High scorers for the U.S. were Sarah Adam (Naperville, Il) with 20 and Aoki with 14. Adam, who played over 24 minutes in the game (only Aoi who played a full 32 had more time on the court) reflected on the game and the days ahead. “We came in with a really good game plan for Canada,” said Adam. We’ve played them a couple of times recently. The first half today looked really really good. I’ve got some things to clean up from the second half. I think we are going to learn a lot from this game and come out stronger the next time we see them.”
Next up for the U.S. is Wednesday’s semifinal against Colombia at 12 noon CT.
The winner of the 2023 Parapan American Games punches their ticket to Paris. For updates on all of the action from Santiago visit https://www.panamsportschannel.org
Day 3 Recap:
Day three of the Parapan American Games featured the U.S. bringing home win number four with a 54-36 win over Brazil. The physical matchup between the two nations allowed Brazil to keep it close for the early minutes of the first, but the Americans pulled away to maintain a double-digit margin for the remainder of the match. Top scorers for today’s match were Chuck Aoki (Minneapolis, MN) with 19 and Sarah Adam (Naperville, IL) with 12.
As in the earlier matches this week, USA’s youngest athlete Zion Redington (Birmingham, AL) got some valuable time on the court “I really prepared to have a learning mindset here. I know I’m 17 years old and this is only my second international tournament. I know I’m not going to get everything right; I know I have my teammates to coach me up on the court and Coach (Delagrave) to help me learn.”
Next up for the United States is Canada. Both nations come into this game undefeated, with big margins of victory in every match. “We know them well and they know us well,” said USA Coach Joe Delagrave. “An advantage for us is that we have some new athletes and some new line ups, will be a good game tomorrow. We look good, team has come together well, we are ready.”
Tuesday’s match with Canada is set for 12 noon CT.
The winner of the 2023 Parapan American Games punches their ticket to Paris. For updates on all of the action from Santiago visit https://www.panamsportschannel.org
Day 2 Recap: Team USA kept up its winning ways picking up a third win at the Parapan American Games today with a win over Colombia, 57-42 . The Americans continued to utilize a broad cross section of talent on the court running different line ups throughout the four periods. “Today was another great team effort,” said USA’s Lee Fredette (East Moriches, NY). “I am trying to be a bit of a leader for the younger guys, step up where I need to. I love running different lines. It’s been great. The team has a lot of good chemistry and work well as a unit. To be able to get everyone out there, its super helpful to all of us. A deep bench is key to winning.” Top scorers for the U.S. were Chuck Aoki (Minneapolis, MN) with 19 and Sarah Adam (Naperville, IL) with 15. Next up for the United States is Brazil set for 10 a.m. CT on Monday. Day 1 Recap:
USA Wheelchair Rugby opened the 2023 Parapan American Games with strong wins over Chile (62-27) and Argentina (55-31).
In the early game the U.S. took a commanding 17-4 lead after the first and never looked back. The packed stadium offered a fantastic atmosphere for the opening wheelchair rugby match of these Games, but the fan support was not enough for Chile to match the dominate U.S. squad. Top scorer for USA in the opener was Zion Redington (Birmingham, AL) with 26. “It was a good first game today. It was a fun crowd, “ said Head Coach Joe Delagrave. “We have eight guys that this is their first Parapan American Games and some of them their first international Games ever, so it was great to get them on the court. Guys like Zion (Redington) and Chris Fleace, Travis Baker, and Brad (Hudspeth) who played a little in Paris, but this helped get his feet wet again. Overall great to see those guys play hard and it allows those that usually play a lot of minutes to flip roles and be good cheerleaders.”
The Americans took to the court again for last match of the day facing Argentina. While the Argentinians managed to keep it close in the opening minutes the U.S. would again pull away stretching their lead throughout the match. Top scorer in Game 2 was again newcomer Zion Redington with 16. As in Game 1, the U.S. had the opportunity to get several first time Parapan American athletes on the court including U.S. military Veteran, Chris Fleace (Tucson, AZ) “This has been a great experience so far, better than I could have imagined;” said Fleace. As someone who has served my nation previously, getting to work together again with other men and women for a common cause has given me a real fulfillment. It is life changing and rewarding.”
Next up for the United States is Colombia set for 1:30 p.m. CT on Sunday.
The winner of the 2023 Parapan American Games punches their ticket to Paris. For updates on all of the action from Santiago visit https://www.panamsportschannel.org
Roster
| Sarah Adam | Naperville, IL |
| Chuck Aoki (co-captain) | Minneapolis, MN |
| Travis Baker | Hamilton, OH |
| Clayton Brackett | Birmingham, AL |
| Jeff Butler | Ft. Wayne, IN |
| Brad Hudspeth | Stillwell, KS |
| Lee Fredette | East Moriches, NY |
| Eric Newby (co-captain) | Nashville, IL |
| Josh O’Neill | Denver, CO |
| Zion Redington | Birmingham, AL |
| Mason Symons | Hershey, PA |
| Talon Teague | Kansas City, KS |
Schedule
| Saturday, November 18 | |
| 8 a.m. CT | Chile vs. USA |
| 3:30 p.m. CT | USA vs. Argentina |
| Sunday, November 19 | |
| 1:30 p.m. CT | Colombia vs. USA |
| Monday, November 20 | |
| 10 a.m. CT | USA vs. Brazil |
| Tuesday, November 21 | |
| 12 p.m. CT | USA vs. Canada |