Yale junior Deb Gruen began competition at the Paralympic Games Sunday, placing seventh for Team USA in the women's 200 IM (SM7) with a time of 3:27.48. Gruen's performance was part of an impressive day for the U.S., as the Americans took home four gold medals, two silver medals and three bronze medals.

Senior Hayley Zevenbergen made her first career goal an important one. Zevenbergen, who was playing in her 52nd career game, scored off a corner kick with 6:25 left in the second half to snap a scoreless tie and lift the Yale women's soccer team to a 1-0 victory over St. John's on a gorgeous afternoon at Reese Stadium.

If the 2008 season had begun just 35 minutes later, the story of Yale's opener at Providence Sunday might have been different. With an untested sophomore in goal for the second half and five freshmen seeing significant action, the Bulldogs outshot the Friars 7-4 and drew six penalty corners over the game's final 35 minutes. But by that time the Friars had already established a 4-0 lead, and Yale was not able to turn any of its chances into goals. The end result was a 5-0 Providence win.

The Yale men's soccer team opened the season in impressive fashion. Jordan Raybould scored in the first half, and Eric Meyer added a second-half tally as the Bulldogs blanked Maine 2-0 on a sunny and hot afternoon at Reese Stadium. Travis Chulick made four saves to post the shutout in goal.

If Friday's season opener is any indication, Yale women's soccer fans are in for a very exciting season. The Bulldogs were 1.1 seconds away from knocking off UConn, but the Huskies scored on a free kick to force overtime and then won it when Annie Yi scored with 2:05 left in the second overtime.

Yale and Princeton got a chance to hit different color jerseys for the first time this summer with a scrimmage at Princeton Stadium on a hot summer afternoon on the synthetic grass.

After nearly two weeks of pre-season preparation, the Yale men's soccer team is ready to kickoff the 2008 campaign. The Bulldogs host Maine on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Reese Stadium. Live stats from the game will be available on GameTracker.

The Boston Red Sox honored the Yale-Harvard football rivalry last night at Fenway Park by having the 2008 captains of both squads throw out a ceremonial first pitch.

Expectations are high for the 2008 Yale women's soccer team. The Bulldogs return a number of key players from last year's team that won 11 games and narrowly missed receiving an at-large bid to the NCAA College Cup. Yale will be put to the test right away, opening the season against a pair of talented Big East opponents starting at UConn (GameTracker) on Friday night at 7 p.m. St. John's (GameTracker) visits Reese Stadium on Sunday for the home opener at 3:30 p.m.

Much has happened in the 10 months since the 2007 Yale field hockey season ended, including a memorable spring trip to Argentina and a series of productive practices back in the United States. The Bulldogs get their first chance to show their progress this Sunday in the 2008 season opener at Providence (1:00 p.m., GameTracker, Providence All-Access Video), the team that edged them 2-1 in last year's opener.

It didn't take Ashley Brzozowicz long to learn the magnitude of the Olympic Games. It came when she marched with the Canadian delegation in the Opening Ceremony at Beijing's National Stadium, better known as the "Bird's Nest."

Juniors Julia and Lydia Mailander of the Yale volleyball team have been selected to represent the United States at the 2008 SWATCH FIVB World Championships for players under 21 years old. The twins, who both serve as outside hitters for the Bulldogs, will travel as a beach volleyball doubles team to Brighton, England from Sept. 3-7 to vie for the World Championship crown.

The Sports Network released the list of 2008 pre-season candidates for the top two FCS individual season awards and the Yale football team has the only two Ivy League players named. Senior captain and LB Bobby Abare (Acton, Mass.) is listed on the Buck Buchanan (Top Defensive Player) Award Watch List, while classmate RB Mike McLeod (New Britain, Conn.) is a candidate for the nation's top FCS offensive player, the Walter Payton Award.

The 2007 season proved to be a valuable learning experience for a young Yale men's soccer team. The Bulldogs faced seven teams that went on to reach the NCAA College Cup, including playing a scoreless tie with then fifth-ranked Boston College. In 2008, Yale hopes to reap the benefits of the knowledge gained last year and return to its familiar perch in the upper echelon of the Ivy League standings.

Natalia Mann, Maggie Westfal, Emma Whitfield and Hayley Zevenbergen started their careers at Yale in 2005 with a bang, helping the Bulldogs to an Ivy League title, a school-record 15 wins and a pair of victories in the NCAA College Cup. The Class of 2009 hopes their playing days at Yale come to an end with a similar dream season.