FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 24, 2010
USA men win gold at 2010 World Seniors
(STEVENS POINT, Wis.) - Paul Pustovar and the American men defeated Canada, 4-3, today to win gold at the 2010 World Senior Championships at the Ural Lightning Arena in Chelyabinsk, Russia.
Pustovar (Hibbing, Minn.) and teammates Brian Simonson (Hibbing, Minn.), Tom Harms (Pengilly, Minn.), Don Mohawk (Nashwauk, Minn.) and Dale Gibbs (Woodbury, Minn.) won the first gold medal at this event since 2002, the year it debuted.
"I'm elated; it's a fantastic feeling - after all that practice and all that work that we've done in the last couple of years and actually all the practice in my entire life," said Pustovar, who has represented the U.S. at five world men's championships and now two world senior events.
The U.S. tied the game in the eighth with a steal to force an extra end, where they'd steal the winning point to get to the top of the podium.
"In the extra end we were able to get the draw around the guards to the four-foot. And that rock stayed there the whole end and we just kept guarding it. And they had two mistakes...they had two of their own red rocks up front in that extra end, so that hurt them as they were guards for us actually," Pustovar said.
Sharon Vukich (Seattle) and teammates Mary Colacchio (Falmouth, Mass.), Susan Curtis (Rogers, Ark.,) and Betty Kozai (Seattle) came up short in their quest for the bronze medal as Sweden's Ingrid Meldahl rink defeated the Americans, 6-5.
"We're disappointed, but we had a very good game," Kozai said. "I suppose they are a very experienced team and that may have given them an edge. But it was down to the last rock and that's the excitement of curling!"
Canada's Colleen Pinkney rink defeated Switzerland's Renate Nedkoff to win the women's gold-medal match, 8-4. Australia's Hugh Millikin won the country's first-ever world championship medal in curling with a 4-3 win over Switzerland for the bronze medal.
USA line scores:
Gold-medal game, men:
*Canada 002 001 000 3
USA 000 100 111 4
Bronze-medal game, women:
Sweden 021 020 01 6
*USA 100 102 10 5
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USA Curling is sponsored by Nike, bitRail, AIT Worldwide Logisitics, Laphroaig Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky, and is partnered with CurlingZone.
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USA men to play for gold; women for bronze |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 23, 2010
American men to play for gold, women to play for bronze at 2010 World Seniors
(STEVENS POINT, Wis.) - USA's Paul Pustovar rink will have a chance for redemption as they earned the right to play for gold for the second year in a row after an 8-5 semifinal win over Switzerland today at the 2010 World Senior Championships in Chelyabinsk, Russia. Sharon Vukich and the American ladies, however, will play for bronze after a 6-4 loss to the Swiss ladies.
Pustovar (Hibbing, Minn.) and teammates Brian Simonson (Hibbing, Minn.), Tom Harms (Pengilly, Minn.) and Don Mohawk (Nashwauk, Minn.) will meet Canada for the second straight year. In fact, Canada and the U.S. have met in seven of the nine men's gold-medal matches since the event began in 2002 with the U.S. only winning the gold once (2002). Last year, Pustovar's team lost to Canada, 4-3, to settle for silver. Canada's Bruce Delaney rink outlasted Australia's Hugh Millikin, 3-2, in the other semifinal to advance. Switzerland and Australia will play for bronze.
It was a close match for the Americans against Switzerland's Andre Pauli rink. The U.S. trailed 3-1 early on but capitalized on a steal in the fifth end to take control of the game.
"It's just like last year, it's unbelievable," Pustovar said. "We've worked hard all year to get back here and we did make it. This game didn't look like that after three ends or so when we gave up a big three. And they had a chance to get another point in there but didn't quite make it correctly. Then we did get a break when they hit and rolled out one and we stole two."
Vukich and teammates Mary Colacchio (Falmouth, Mass.), Susan Curtis (Rogers, Ark.) and Betty Kozai (Seattle) lost to Switzerland's Renate Nedkoff rink, 6-4. They'll now play Sweden's Ingrid Meldahl rink for bronze. All medal games are set for 11:30 a.m. Saturday (local time). Switzerland will play undefeated Canada, led by Colleen Pinkney, for the gold.
The U.S. ladies struggled to put more than singles on the scoreboard throughout the match as the Swiss ladies took a 4-2 lead halfway through. The Americans closed the gap to 5-4 after seven but the Swiss sealed the win with a single in the final end.
"On the very last end, Sharon's first stone over-curled a little bit. If we'd got the dead-on freeze it would've made it a lot harder to take two out. But because it came just off corner, it was angle-freezed, so it made the double a lot easier for the Swiss skip who had a great shot with the double just to clear the house. Then the last shot was just a bit heavy and it rolled through. It was good for the Swiss," said Coach Ken Thomson.
Follow all the action online at http://curling2010.ru/index.php.
USA game scores:
USA senior men (Pustovar):
*Switzerland 003 002 0x 5
USA 010 220 3x 8
USA senior women (Vukich):
*Switzerland 202 010 01 6
USA 010 101 10 4
*last rock in first end
USA Curling is sponsored by AIT Worldwide Logistics, Laphroaig Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky, bitRail and Nike and is partnered with CurlingZone.com.
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For more information: Terry Kolesar, USA Curling,
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
, 715-344-1199, Ext. 202, 608-338-9900 (cell)
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USA women join men in semifinals |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 22, 2010
USA women join American men in playoffs at 2010 World Seniors
(STEVENS POINT, Wis.) - Both American teams have earned semifinal berths at the 2010 World Senior Championships in Chelyabinsk, Russia.
Paul Pustovar (Hibbing, Minn.) and teammates Brian Simonson (Hibbing, Minn.), Tom Harms (Pengilly, Minn.) and Don Mohawk (Nashwauk, Minn.) had clinched their spot earlier today but secured the No. 1 seed in their pool with a 7-3 defeat of Japan's Masayasu Sato rink in the round robin finale to finish 5-0. They'll face Switzerland's Andre Pauli rink in the playoffs, which are set for 5:30 p.m. Friday (local time). Canada will play the winner of the tiebreaker matches between Australia, Hungary and Japan in the other semifinal. Whichever team prevails from the tiebreakers will be making that country's first senior men's worlds semifinal appearance.
Sharon Vukich's American team just had to wait to see the results of the final round of matches to see if they'd be playing in a tiebreaker game or if they'd earn the berth outright. When Sweden won and Japan lost, the final two spots went to the U.S. and Sweden, each with identical 4-3 records. Canada (7-0) and Switzerland (5-2) earned the No. 1 and 2 seeds.
Vukich and teammates Mary Colacchio (Falmouth, Mass.), Susan Curtis (Rogers, Ark.), Betty Kozai (Seattle) and Dani Thibodeaux (Kirkland, Wash.) will battle the Swiss ladies, led by Renate Nedkoff. Vukich's team lost to Switzerland, 7-5, during the round robin.
Vukich and mixed doubles partner Mike Calcagno (Seattle) ended the competition on a winning note with a 9-8 defeat of Latvia's team of Dace Regza and Ansis Regza to finish with a 3-3 record. The duo took an early advantage with four points in the first end and then held off a late rally by the Latvians with a deuce in the eighth end for the win.
The U.S. has qualified for every world senior men's playoff since the inception of the event in 2002. To date, they've earned one gold medal (2002), five silvers (2009, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003) and one bronze (2008). The American ladies have earned three bronze medals at Senior Worlds (2007, 2004 and 2002).
Follow all the action online at http://curling2010.ru/index.php.
USA game scores:
Mixed Doubles (Vukich-Calcagno):
*USA 400 300 02 9
Latvia 011 041 10 8
USA senior men (Pustovar):
Japan 020 001 0x 3
*USA 101 200 3x 7
*last rock in first end
Standings, Mixed Doubles:
Green Group:
*Russia 6-0
*China 4-2
*Australia 4-2
USA 3-3
Japan 2-4
Slovakia 1-5
Latvia 1-5
Blue Group:
*Switzerland 4-0
*New Zealand 3-1
**Czech Rep. 1-3
**Denmark 1-3
**Austria 1-3
Red Group:
*Spain 4-1
*Italy 3-2
**Estonia 3-2
**Hungary 3-2
Finland 1-4
England 1-4
*clinched playoff berth
**tiebreaker
Senior Women:
*Canada 7-0
*Switzerland 5-2
*USA 4-3
*Sweden 4-3
Japan 3-4
Italy 2-5
New Zealand 2-5
Russia 1-6
*clinched semifinal berth
Senior Men, Red Group:
*USA 5-0
**Japan 3-2
**Australia 3-2
**Hungary 3-2
Russia 1-4
England 0-5
Senior Men, Blue Group:
*Canada 5-0
*Switzerland 4-1
Sweden 3-2
New Zealand 1-4
Italy 1-4
Finland 1-4
*clinched semifinal berth
**tiebreaker
USA Curling is sponsored by AIT Worldwide Logistics, Laphroaig Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky, bitRail and Nike and is partnered with CurlingZone.com.
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For more information: Terry Kolesar, USA Curling,
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
, 715-344-1199, Ext. 202, 608-338-9900 (cell)
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American men clinch semifinal berth, women still in contention |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 22, 2010
USA men clinch semifinal berth at 2010 World Seniors
(STEVENS POINT, Wis.) - Paul Pustovar and the American men have clinched a semifinal berth after pushing their record to 4-0 this morning at the 2010 World Senior Championships in Chelyabinsk, Russia.
Pustovar (Hibbing, Minn.) and teammates Brian Simonson (Hibbing, Minn.), Tom Harms (Pengilly, Minn.) and Don Mohawk (Nashwauk, Minn.) defeated Australia's Hugh Millikin, 8-5, to earn the berth. Canada and Switzerland also locked down spots in Friday's playoffs. The U.S. men used a big second end to get past Australia, scoring four points and never trailing thereafter as they sealed the win with a steal in the eighth. They finish the round robin today against Japan (3-1) to determine first place in their group.
"It came down to the last end. It was a good game," Pustovar said. "They got ahead right away but we were able to come back with a big four in the second end to get ahead. He [Australian Skip Hugh Millikin] didn't have a real high percentage shot with his last shot to get two to tie. It was difficult. Brian [Simonson] made a great draw around the center guard to get to the four-foot and they couldn't get that one out."
The U.S. women, led by Sharon Vukich (Seattle), completed the round robin with a 9-4 win over Sweden's Ingrid Meldahl to finish 4-3. They'll wait to see how the other teams finish out the round robin to see if they earn a semifinal berth automatically or will be forced to play a tiebreaker game. Both Japan and Sweden are 3-3 with one game remaining. Canada (7-0) and Switzerland (5-1) have earned the first two of four women's playoff spots.
Vukich and teammates Mary Colacchio (Falmouth, Mass.), Susan Curtis (Rogers, Ark.), Betty Kozai (Seattle) and Dani Thibodeaux (Kirkland, Wash.) won the game when Meldahl missed her final shot of the game.
"We just went shot for shot with them. They're a really good team," Vukich said. "For the last shot, we just watched - she [Swedish Skip Ingrid Meldahl] was going for a really big take-out."
The U.S. ladies just missed the playoffs last year, finishing sixth in New Zealand.
"I think the girls have been pretty steady this week," Coach Kenneth Thomson said. "The game against Canada was a tough one - but the Canadians are a really good side. I think in the other games we played pretty well. And, we're looking forward to hopefully getting to the playoffs.
In mixed doubles action, Vukich and partner Mike Calcagno (Seattle) won their game last night against Japan's team of Tomoko Takeda and Naomasa Takeda, 9-4, to improve to 2-3 in the round robin standings. They finish the competition today with a re-scheduled match against Latvia (1-4). At 2-3, the Americans have been mathematically eliminated from playoff contention.
Follow all the action online at http://curling2010.ru/index.php.
USA game scores:
Mixed Doubles (Vukich-Calcagno):
*USA 100 021 03 7
Japan 011 100 10 4
USA senior women (Vukich):
Sweden 010 102 00 4
*USA 102 010 23 9
USA senior men (Pustovar):
USA 041 010 11 8
*Australia 200 201 00 5
*last rock in first end
Standings, Mixed Doubles:
Green Group:
*Russia 6-0
China 4-1
Australia 4-2
USA 2-3
Japan 1-4
Slovakia 1-5
Latvia 1-4
Blue Group:
Switzerland 2-0
New Zealand 2-1
Czech Rep. 1-1
Denmark 1-2
Austria 1-3
Red Group:
Spain 3-1
Estonia 3-2
Italy 3-2
Hungary 2-2
Finland 1-3
England 1-3
*clinched playoff berth
Senior Women:
*Canada 7-0
*Switzerland 5-1
USA 4-3
Sweden 3-3
Japan 3-3
Italy 1-4
New Zealand 1-5
Russia 0-5
*clinched semifinal berth
Senior Men, Red Group:
*USA 4-0
Japan 3-1
Australia 3-2
Hungary 3-2
England 0-4
Russia 0-4
Senior Men, Blue Group:
*Canada 5-0
*Switzerland 4-1
Sweden 2-2
New Zealand 1-3
Italy 1-4
Finland 1-4
USA Curling is sponsored by AIT Worldwide Logistics, Laphroaig Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky, bitRail and Nike and is partnered with CurlingZone.com.
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For more information: Terry Kolesar, USA Curling,
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
, 715-344-1199, Ext. 202, 608-338-9900 (cell)
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American men still undefeated, women hanging on to playoff hopes |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 21, 2010
USA men win third straight; Vukich pulling double duty at 2010 World Seniors, Mixed Doubles
(STEVENS POINT, Wis.) - A love of curling fuels Seattle's Sharon Vukich this week as she continues to pull double duty at the 2010 World Senior Championships and 2010 World Mixed Doubles Championship in Chelyabinsk, Russia. Moments after playing in mixed doubles with partner Mike Calcagno, Vukich joined her senior team in the fifth end of their match against Japan to help them seal an extra-end win. She'd pull the same feat in the night draw.
"It's not hard, it's so much fun, it's really easy to go back and forth," said Vukich, who is celebrating her 53rd birthday today. "In the mixed doubles you need that really good draw weight into the button a lot, so it actually helps your 'traditional' curling game. You get all that practice with the weight. The thinking isn't all that different. There's a tiny bit more thinking on the angles and the rock placement in the Mixed Doubles."
The American ladies led Japan's Naomi Kawano rink, 3-0, after the first half of play but allowed Japan to tie the game in the eighth to force the first extra-end game of the week. The U.S. ladies earned a deuce and the win in the ninth.
"We needed to win in order to try to get into the top four," said Kozai, who was born in Hawaii to Japanese parents. "So it was a very important game. We have another one tonight against Canada, that'll be fun!"
In the night game, however, the American ladies didn't have much fun, falling to Canada's Colleen Pinkney rink, 11-1. With the loss, Vukich and teammates Mary Colacchio (Falmouth, Mass.), Susan Curtis (Rogers, Ark.), Betty Kozai (Seattle) and Dani Thibodeaux (Kirkland, Wash.) fall to 3-3 in the round robin standings with one game remaining against Sweden (3-2). The top four teams advance to Friday's playoffs.
The American men, led by Paul Pustovar, won their third straight match to remain undefeated after getting past England's John Brown rink, 8-2.
"We have two tough games left yet [against Australia and Japan], so we have to win the last two. This game started off a little shaky. The ice was a little bit different, and we didn't play real well for the first two ends, so we had to step it up a notch after that," said Pustovar, who has represented the U.S. as a player at five world men's championships and two senior worlds.
England, playing with just three players due to the travel problems caused by the Icelandic volcano eruption, held the Americans in check for the first half of the match. However, Pustovar (Hibbing, Minn.) and teammates Brian Simonson (Hibbing, Minn.), Tom Harms (Pengilly, Minn.) and Don Mohawk (Nashwauk, Minn.) stole a single in the fifth end to take the lead and then followed up with steals in the next two ends to seal the victory.
"We were tied 2-2 after four ends but lost one, then two, then three! We just ran out of steam," Brown said.
Vukich and Calcagno fell to 1-3 in the mixed doubles standings after today's 13-5 loss to China's team of Yue Sun and Zhipeng Zhang (4-1). China started strong - scoring five-enders in the first and third ends while the Americans only put one point on the board. Vukich and Calcagno weren't able to close the gap to suffer their third straight loss.
Follow all the action online at http://curling2010.ru/index.php.
USA game scores:
Mixed Doubles (Vukich-Calcagno):
*China 505 030 xx 13
USA 010 301 xx 5
USA senior women (Vukich):
Japan 000 011 020 4
*USA 011 100 102 6
USA 000 001 xx 1
*Canada 422 210 xx 11
USA senior men (Pustovar):
*USA 010 112 3x 8
England 101 000 0x 2
*last rock in first end
Standings, Mixed Doubles:
Green Group:
Russia 4-0
China 4-1
Australia 3-1
Japan 1-3
USA 1-3
Slovakia 1-3
Latvia 0-3
Blue Group:
Switzerland 2-0
New Zealand 2-1
Austria 1-2
Denmark 1-2
Czech Rep. 0-1
Red Group:
Spain 3-1
Estonia 3-2
Italy 2-2
Finland 1-2
Hungary 1-2
England 1-2
Senior Women:
Canada 6-0
Switzerland 3-1
Sweden 3-2
USA 3-3
Japan 2-2
Italy 1-3
New Zealand 1-3
Russia 0-5
Senior Men, Red Group:
USA 3-0
Australia 3-1
Japan 3-1
Hungary 1-2
England 0-3
Russia 0-3
Senior Men, Blue Group:
Canada 4-0
Switzerland 3-1
Italy 1-2
New Zealand 1-2
Sweden 1-2
Finland 0-3
USA Curling is sponsored by AIT Worldwide Logistics, Laphroaig Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky, bitRail and Nike and is partnered with CurlingZone.com.
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For more information: Terry Kolesar, USA Curling,
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
, 715-344-1199, Ext. 202, 608-338-9900 (cell)
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Order of Merit: USA National Championships
