Wake Forest Athletics
Crandall, Kasold Win Pan American Games Championship Title
7/28/2015 12:00:00 AM | Field Hockey
By Erika Carrubba, Wake Forest Athletic Communications (@WakeHockey)
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Former Demon Deacons Lauren Crandall and Michelle Kasold were on the U.S. Women's National Field Hockey Team that won the 2015 Pan American Games Gold Championship Title on July 24 in Toronto.
Team USA held defensively strong to secure the 2-1 win over Argentina to claim the gold and defend the 2011 Pan American Games Gold Championship Title. With the 2-1 win at their continental qualifier, Team USA confirmed their direct invitation to the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games.
At the Pan American Games, the USWNT hit the backboard a total of 39 times. Even more impressive, Team USA were able to hold Uruguay, Chile, Cuba, Dominican Republic and Canada scoreless, not conceding a single goal during the accumulative 300 minutes of Pan American Games play before meeting Argentina in the finals.
Crandall, a native of Doylestown, Pa., joined Wake Forest in 2003 and played four seasons for the Deacs, starting all but one of her 86 appearances. While she is now a defender on the U.S. squad, she competed as a midfielder during her collegiate career and earned back-to-back spots on the NFHCA First Team All-American squads in 2005 and 2006. Crandall earned a pair of NCAA title rings in 2003 and 2004 and came very close to claiming a third in 2006 when Wake Forest dropped a 1-0 heartbreaker to Maryland in the national title match. Crandall also served as the team captain for the United States during the 2012 Olympic Games in London.
Kasold, hailing from Chapel Hill, N.C., completed her career in the old gold and black in 2008. She remains the school's all-time leader in both career assists (60) and assists in a single season (30 in 2008) and was instrumental in helping Wake Forest reach the national title match in 2008. Kasold started an astounding 92 contests for the Deacs over her four-year career and, in addition to holding the school record for assists, also sits in fourth place all-time with 51 total goals. She was named a three-time NFHCA First Team All-American and earned spots on the All-ACC squad from 2006 to 2008.
