Notre Dame Graduate Lee Keifer takes home hold in Fencing for the second straight Olympics On Day 2 Of the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris France Notre Dame Graduate Lee Keifer won the Gold Medal of the Women’s Foil in Fencing Sunday. Keifer beat her American Teammate Lauren Scruggs 15-6 in the Final and Alice Volpi of Italy in the Semifinals. beat Martyna Jelilniska of Poland 15-13, Huang Qianqian of China 15-9 and Flora Pasztor of Hungary 15-4 to Advance to the Semifinals of the Fencing Women’s Foil Event. The 30-Year-old who grew up in Lexington Kentucky won her second gold medal after winning the same event at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Keifer is in her fourth Olympics and competed at Notre Dame from 2012-17. The United States has the most total medals with 12 while Japan and Australia are tied for the lead with 4 Gold Medals.
In Women’s Swimming Evansville Indiana Native and IU Grad Lilly King finished 3rd overall in the Women’s 100 Meter Breaststroke Semifinals to advance to the final with a time of 1:05.64 and Indiana Swim Club Teammate Kotryna Teterevkova of Lithuania finished 16th with a time 1:07:48 and will not advance to the final. King finished 5th overall with a time of 1:06.10 in the Prelims and Teterevkova finished 15th overall with a time of 1:06.76 to qualify for the Semifinals. In Men’s Swimming IU’s Rafael Miroslaw finished 15th overall for Germany in the Semifinals of the Men’s 200 Meter Freestyle with a time of 1:47.34 and will not advance to the finals. Miroslaw finished 13th overall for Germany in the Men’s 200 Meter Freestyle Prelims with a time of 1:46.81 advancing to the Semifinals. Notre Dame Senior to be Chris Giuliano finished 19th overall with a time of 1:47.60 and did not advance. Kai van Westering of the Netherlands tied for 21st overall with a time of 54:21 in the Prelims of the Men’s 100 Meter Backstroke and did not advance. University of Indianapolis Senior to be Cedric Bussing of Germany Finished 8th in the 400 Men’s 400 Meter Freestyle Final. Bussing tied for 6th with 2 other swimmers in the Prelims of the Men’s 400 Meter Individual Medley to qualify for the final.
In Men’s Basketball the United States beat Serbia 110-84 as Indiana Pacers player Tyrese Haliburton did not play for the Team USA. South Sudan beat Puerto Rico 90-79 as Former Indiana Pacer Davon Reed pulled down 5 rebounds, dished out two assists along with a steal and a block in 17 minutes of action off the bench for Puerto Rico. Reed played with the Pacers in 2018-19. In Rowing Molly Bruggeman of Notre Dame finished 4th in the first heat of the Women’s Fours with a time of 6:49.600 which was the 6th best time out of 9 teams.
In Women’s Soccer the United States beat Germany 4-1 as Korbin Albert who played two seasons at Norte Dame did not play in this match. Albert played 45 Minutes after replacing Rose LaVelle at halftime in a 3-0 win over Zambia and had 2 shots on goal. Albert scored 28 goals in 44 games for the Irish from 2021-22 before turning pro and giving up her final two seasons. Former Indiana Hoosier Gabi Rennie came on as a substitute in the 78th minute for her Native New Zealand as the Lost to Colombia 2-0, Committed a foul and conceded a corner kick. Rennie came on a substitute the 87th minute in a 2-1 loss to Canada and had 1 shot on goal. Rennie who turned 23 Years old on July 7th played 2 seasons for the Hoosiers from 2020-21 scoring 1 goal in 21 games. Rennie went to Arizona State and scored 3 goals in 28 games from 2022-23. This is her second Olympics after competing in Tokyo in 2020 and has scored twice for New Zealand in her career including a goal against Australia at the 2020 Olympics.
Indiana shines bright on Day 1 of Paris Olympics
The 2024 Summer Olympics are Underway in Paris France after the Opening Ceremony down the Siene River Friday Night. Competition got underway Saturday and Two Indiana natives took home medals for the United States and Two more that compete for Indiana Colleges won Gold. The United States won a Gold, 2 Slivers and 2 Bronzes for 5 total Medals and along with Australia who won 3 Gold and 2 Silver Medals are tied for lead with the Most Medals. China took home three Gold Medals on Saturday as they along Australia have the most Gold Medals after day 1 of Competition.
Indianapolis Native Sarah Bacon and her Partner Kassidy Cook won the First Medal for the United States with a Sliver in the Women’s Diving Synchronized Three Meter Springboard event. Bacon graduated from Cardinal Ritter High School in Indianapolis in 2016 and competed for the University of Minnesota from 2016-2022. The pair finished with a score of 314.64. China won the Gold and Great Britian won the Bronze. The 27-Year-old is in her first Olympics and Cook who is 29is in her second Olympics after finished 13th in the 3 Meter Springboard at the 2016 Olympics Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Brownsburg Indiana Native Chloe Dygert won the Bronze Medal in the Women’s Road Cycling Individual Time Trial Event. It’s the Third Medal for Dygert after a Sliver at the 2016 Rio De Janeiro Games and a Bronze at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics both in the Team Pursuit Event. Dygert who crashed during the event bounced back to make it to the Medal Stand with a time of 41:10:70. Australia won the Gold and Great Britian the Sliver.
Norte Dame Swimmer Chris Guliano swam the second leg of the Men’s 4X100 Meter Freestyle Relay to lead the United States to the Gold Medal with a time of 3:09.28. Guliano who will be a Senior this Fall for the Irish was joined by Jack Alexy, Hunter Armstrong and Caeleb Dressell. IU Swimmer Rafael Miroslaw who competes for Germany swam the Second Leg as the Germans finished 7th with a time of 3:12.29. Matthew King who is transferring to Indiana University in the Fall Swam the second leg for the United States in the Prelims as the Americans finished 4th overall with a time of 3:12.61 and even though he did not swim in the final he will get a gold medal. Miroslaw swam the second leg of the Men’s 4X 100 Freestyle relay for Germany to qualify for the Final Spot in the Final with a time 3:13:15. Purdue University Graduate Nikola Acin of Serbia swam the second leg of the relay and finished 11th overall with a time of 3:14:68. Acin swam for the Boilermakers from 2019-22. IU Swimmer Tomer Frankel swam the first leg leading Israel to a 14th place finish with a time of 3:15:41. Carmel Indiana Native Aaron Shackell finished 8th in the final of the Men’s 400 Meter Freestyle Finals with a time of 3:47.00 and 6th in the Prelims with a time of 3:45.45. Zalan Sarkany of Hungary who is transferring to Indiana University this fall finished 14th with 3:47.33
The United States beat Argentina 3-0 in Men’s Volleyball as the Stars and Stripes won 25-20, 25-19 and 25-16. Matt Anderson who lives in Zionsville Indiana scored 7 total points with 6 attacks and 1 block. He is competing in his second Olympics after winning a Bronze Medal in the 2016 Games in Rio De Janeiro. In Men’s Basketball Germany beat Japan 97-77 Former Indiana Pacer Daniel Thies scored 18 points and pulled down 7 rebounds and a steal in 20 minutes of action for Germany. Thies who started for Germany is a center who played with the Pacers in the 2022-23 season and went a perfect 7-7 from the field 2-2 from three-point range and 2-2 from the Free Throw line. Keisei Tominaga who played at the University of Nebraska and signed a offseason contract with the Pacers played 1 minute off the bench and got a rebound. Canada bet Greece 86-79 as Current Indiana Pacer Andrew Nembhard scored 2 points and had a rebound and an assist in 14 minutes for Canada off the Bench. Trey Lyles who grew up in Indianapolis but was Born in Canada and was named 2014 Indiana Mr. Basketball and won a State Championship at Indianapolis Tech had 3 rebounds and 1 assist in 14 minutes off the bench.
Indiana University Women’s Basketball elevates Isaiah Specks to Director of Player Development and Scouting
Indiana Women’s Basketball Head Coach Teri Moren has elevated Isaiah Specks to Director of Player Development/Scouting with the program. He served one season as a graduate manager with the program in 2023-24, where the Hoosiers won 26 games and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen. In his new role, the Houston, Texas native will help assist with on court individual skill development and additional scouting film responsibilities.
Specks spent two years (2020-22) at Houghton College as assistant coach on the men’s side while also serving as the NCAA Ethnic Minorities & Women’s Intern. He has spent this past year as the Director of Business Development for Shoot360 Houston. He also served a one-year stint at Trinity University where he served as an assistant coach for the nationally ranked women’s basketball program. With the Tigers, he was responsible for individual player development, defensive statistics, and player efficiencies. Specks helped to guide the team to a Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament Championship appearance before receiving an at-large bid for the NCAA Division III Championship tournament.
On the court, Specks made 98 career appearances at Trinity (2015-19) with 16 starts. As a forward, he had 817 total points and pulled down 286 rebounds. Specks also tallied 124 assists and 55 steals throughout his career. The Pearland, Texas native graduated from Trinity with a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology with a minor in Spanish and is pursuing a master’s degree in Higher Education and Student Affairs at Indiana.
Indiana University Baseball lands Indiana Wesleyan Transfer Will Eldridge for 2025
Indiana Baseball isn’t quite done in the transfer portal just yet, as the Hoosiers look to continue to improve their roster for the 2025 season. On Thursday, Indiana Wesleyan right-handed pitcher Will Eldridge announced his commitment to Indiana via his social media pages. The 6-foot-4 righty has two years of eligibility remaining. Eldridge, a Cutler, Indiana native, spent the first two seasons of his collegiate career pitching at the NAIA level with Indiana Wesleyan.
As a true freshman in 2023, Eldridge recorded a 5.37 ERA in 18 appearances — 15 of which were starts. In 70.1 innings pitched, Eldridge struck out 89 opposing hitters, holding opposition batters to just a .189 average on the year. For his efforts as a freshman with the Wildcats, Eldridge earned Crossroads League Co-Newcomer of the Year honors. He was also selected to the All-Crossroads second team. This past season in 2024, Eldridge’s usage dropped significantly. He made just nine appearances — all coming in relief — and pitched just 18.1 innings a year ago. His 4.91 ERA was an improvement on his freshman season, as was his .185 batting average against, however the sample sizes aren’t comparable. A tall righty, Eldridge’s low to mid 90s fastball is something the Hoosiers can look to build off of for the future. Eldridge is now the ninth player and seventh pitcher to pledge his commitment to Indiana via the transfer portal this offseason.
Purdue University Diver Brandon Loschiavo headed to Paris as late addition for the United States
Purdue’s Brandon Loschiavo has been added to the US Olympic Team. This will be his second Olympic Games, as he competed in 2020. USA Diving officials said they were notified by World Aquatics Thursday night that an additional quota spot for the men’s 10-meter opened up for the United States due to the withdrawal of a confirmed athlete. The men’s 10-meter competition at the Olympic Games is scheduled for Aug. 9-10. Officials said Loschiavo finished second at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Knoxville, Tennessee, last month, but the trial only had one men’s 10-meter quota spot. According to USA Diving, countries earned quota spots with top-12 finishes at the World Aquatic Championships in 2023 and 2024. Loschiavo finished eighth at the 2024 World Championships and got the one United States spot. Officials said there will be a maximum of 136 divers competing in the diving events at the Olympic Games. Diving at the Olympics started on Saturday and runs through Aug. 10.
Indy Eleven Men’s Soccer and FC Tulsa play to scoreless draw
Indy Eleven and FC Tulsa played to a 0-0 draw on Friday evening at ONEOK Field in Tulsa Oklahoma. The Boys in Blue move to 9-6-5 to remain in fourth place in the USL Championship Eastern Conference, while Tulsa moves to 5-6-7. A scoreless first half saw Indy Eleven outshoot Tulsa, 4-2, with one chance coming on goal from Aedan Stanley. Tulsa had 53.2% of the possession in the half. The teams traded four shots apiece in the second frame, with Indy getting its second on target from Augi Williams. Romario Williams and Augi Williams combined for half of Indy’s shots with two apiece, while Hunter Sulte earned his fourth clean sheet of the season. Indy Eleven stays on the road for its second meeting of the season with Charleston Battery on Friday. The Boys in Blue return home Wednesday, August 7 against Rhode Island FC.
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