Bountiful native Jake Gibb and partner Tri Bourne looked like they have been playing together for years, rather than two practices, in a two-set win over Italy’s Enrico Rossi and Adrian Ignacio Carambula Raurich. The scores were 21-18, 21-19.
Bourne replaced Trevor Crabb, Gibb’s partner for the last five years, after Crabb tested positive for COVID-19 after arriving in Tokyo. Gibb and Bourne hadn’t played together before and got in just two practices before their opening match. Still, the pair easily scored the first three points of the match and handled Carambula’s skyball serve, which vaulted up an estimated 55 feet in the air and came down spinning, with relative ease.
Bourn made 21 attack points and Gibb had two stuff blocks.
Gibb and Bourne next play Friday at 7 a.m. MDT against Qatar’s Cherif Younousse and Ahmed Tijan, the No. 2 ranked team in the world.
Softball: Chidester keys Team USA’s walk-off win over Australia in extra innings
Amanda Chidester was part of the winning offensive equation for Team USA for the second night in a row.
The new Draper resident roped a ground ball to outfield in the bottom of the eighth inning Saturday to drive in two runs and keep the Americans undefeated with a 2-1 victory over Australia.
The teams were tied 0-0 after seven innings and the international tiebreaker rule was implemented. Australia’s run scored in the top of the eighth was the first run Team USA has allowed in their four Olympic games. They have one remaining against Japan on Sunday at 7 p.m. MDT.
Swimming: BYU’s Josue Dominguez seventh in heat after spending week in quarantine
Josue Dominguez finished seventh of eight entries in his 100-meter breaststroke qualifying heat Friday night despite getting just three opportunities to train in the week before his race.
Dominguez, who swims for the Dominican Republic, entered quarantine protocol after someone near him on the plane bound for Tokyo tested positive for COVID-19. Despite numerous negative tests, he was kept isolated and given limited pool opportunities. He said he tried to just have fun on race day, and he finished in 1 minute, 1.86 seconds, about a second off his personal best.
Dominguez will also compete in the 200 breaststroke, scheduled for Tuesday at 4:35 a.m. MDT.
Swimming: Rhyan White no slouch in Olympic opener
In her Olympic debut, Herriman’s Rhyan White finished second in the 100-meter backstroke qualifiers in 59.02.
Regan Smith won the heat in 57.96, erasing the Olympic record set just a heat earlier by Canada’s Kylie Masse. The previous record was set in 2012.
White advances to the semifinals at 8:53 p.m. MDT. She will be in the first heat, where she will again be swimming alongside Smith.
Rowing: Kathleen Noble cruises into E final
Kathleen Noble of Salt Lake City finished second in her E/F semifinal heat Saturday at the Sea Forest Waterway to advance to the E final.
Noble’s time on the 2,000-meter course was 8:31.67. It was the second-fastest time between the two semifinal heats. Only the winner of Heat 1, Tala Abujbara of Qatar (8:24.24), was faster.
The E final is scheduled for 5:15 p.m. MDT Thursday. It was rescheduled because a tropical storm is expected to hit Tokyo on Tuesday and make water conditions unrowable.
(Frank Augstein | AP) Teammates join United States' Taylor Sander in an embrace during a men's volleyball preliminary round pool B match against France, at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Saturday, July 24, 2021, in Tokyo.
Men’s volleyball: USA dominates in opener vs. France
BYU alumnus Taylor Sander made 12 kills and two blocks and the USA men’s volleyball team swept France in its opening match, 25-18, 25-18, 25-22.
Sander’s kill tally was second for the Americans only to Matthew Anderson’s 13.
Team USA next plays the Russian Olympic Committee at 8:15 a.m. Sunday.
Shooting: Lexi Lagan top American in 10-meter pistol
Lexi Lagan, who got her start in competitive shooting at the University of Utah, finished as the top American in the 10-meter pistol event. Overall, she placed 38th out of 53 competitors.
“I learned a lot from my first ever Olympic match,” Lagan said. “I’m still feeling good and looking forward to the next match.”
Lagan will also compete in the 25-meter sport pistol event, which is scheduled for Wednesday through Friday.
(Fernando Vergara | AP) Honduras' Douglas Martinez, third from right, clears the ball against New Zealand during a men's soccer match at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Sunday, July 25, 2021, in Kashima, Japan.
Soccer: Douglas Martinez, Honduras get win over New Zealand
Real Salt Lake’s Douglas Martinez couldn’t connect on his shot on goal Sunday morning, but three of his teammates did, just enough for a 3-2 victory over New Zealand.
Tallies by Juan Obregon and Rigoberto Rivas added to a first-half score by Luis Palma for Honduras’ first win of the Olympic tournament. Now 1-1, they next play Korea on Wednesday at 2:30 a.m. MDT.
What to watch for Sunday/Monday
Here are three events Utahns will want to keep track of in the next 24 hours:
• Men’s volleyball: USA vs. Russian Olympic Committee, 6 p.m.
Taylor Sander and company will have their hands full with the Russian team that is positioned just above them at No. 3 in the FIVB international rankings.
• Softball: USA vs. Japan, 7 p.m.
Both teams bring their undefeated records into what will be a preview of the gold-medal game. Then, stay up for the Mexico vs. Australia game at 5 a.m. Sunday that could be a factor in what teams make the bronze-medal matchup.
• Skateboarding: women’s street, 5:30 p.m.
The men had their turn, now the women are taking over the street skateboarding course in Tokyo. Alexis Sablone, Alana Smith and Mariah Duran will compete for Team USA. After this event look for many of these athletes in Salt Lake City on Aug. 27-28 for the first Street League Skateboarding Championship qualifier.