Olympics Update: August 2
8/2/2021 4:30:00 PM | Athletics
HANOVER, N.H. — The 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympic Games will continue through Sunday, but for the four Dartmouth alumni and one current Big Green athlete, the games have come to an end.
The United States women's rugby team and Dartmouth senior Ariana Ramsey had a strong showing in Tokyo, winning all three of their matches in pool play — 28-14 over China, 17-7 over Japan and 14-12 over Australia. Ramsey started against the host country and scored a try for the Americans in the victory. But the U.S. fell to Great Britain in the quarterfinals, 21-12, then cruised to a 33-14 triumph in a rematch with China, though Ramsey suffered an injury during the match. Australia managed to avenge its earlier defeat, however, 17-7, leaving Ramsey and the Americans in sixth place.
"It was an honor representing Team USA in the Olympics," Ramsey told Bill Platt of Dartmouth Communications. "I've finally accomplished my biggest dream at the age of 21 and my next goal is conquering Dartmouth College. I won't be playing at Dartmouth this year due to injury but I'll be back next year!"
The final sport in which a Dartmouth athlete competed happened this morning at 8 a.m. (all dates and times referenced will pertain to the Eastern Time Zone) as Isalys Quiñones '19 and the Puerto Rican women's basketball team tipped off against Australia in the final preliminary contest. Puerto Rico held a 24-22 lead at the end of the first quarter, but succumbed in the end, 96-69. Quiñones started and played 34 minutes, scoring three points, grabbing five rebounds and dishing out two assists.
The loss came on the heels of an 87-52 loss against Belgium late on July 29. Quiñones had three points in that game as well in 31 minutes of action to go with four rebounds, an assist and a pair of steals. With the 97-55 loss to China at the start of preliminary play, Puerto Rico finished up 0-3, ending its run in Tokyo as the team did not qualify for the quarterfinals. Quiñones started all three games, played 88 minutes and scored 16 points with a trio of 3-pointers while hauling in 14 rebounds.
As reported earlier in the games:
- The U.S. men's rugby sevens team — led by captain Madison Hughes '15 — finished in sixth place like the women after them. Hughes led the Americans with 30 points over the six matches.
- Molly Reckford '15 finished fifth in the lightweight women's double sculls as she and her partner, Michelle Sechser, raced in the Grand Final after battling back through the repechage. The duo also broke the Olympic and World record time in the semifinals (as did Italy which finished 0.18 seconds ahead of them).
- In dressage action, Dong Seon Kim '12 placed eighth in his qualifying group and did not advance to the Individual Grand Prix Freestyle.
"I am grateful to Dartmouth and Dartmouth Rowing for helping me, in ways big and small, achieve this longshot dream," she continued. "The USA women's rowing team had a representative from each Ivy League school on it — for the first time ever — and I could not have been more proud to be Dartmouth's alumna in the group."
