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USA moves into tie for first place |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 15, 2010
USA moves into tie for first place at 2010 Paralympic Winter Games
(VANCOUVER, British Columbia) - Although the city of Vancouver is named after a British captain (George Vancouver), its ancestral ties didn't help Great Britain tonight as Canada's neighbors to the south squeaked out a last-rock win to improve to 4-1 in the round robin standings at the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games.
"Making tough shots like that at the end of the game is good practice for the end of the week," USA skip Augusto Perez said. "That's what makes this game exciting, right? It wasn't our best game of the week, but I told them to just leave me a path to make a shot."
With the win, the Americans are in a tie for first place with Canada, which suffered its first loss of the week to Sweden, 8-4. But the win tonight wasn't without drama. In the tournament's first extra-end game, USA survived a late rally by Michael McCreadie's rink to keep the win streak alive as Perez drew to the center of the house for the win.
"If you give GB enough room to breathe, they'll come back and get you," Perez said. "GB is never an easy game and it might not show on the scoreboard but they're a strong team."
In an up-and-down game where the ghost of missed shots kept rearing its ugly head, the U.S. showed signs of brilliance and weakness all within nine ends.
Perez (East Syracuse, N.Y.) and teammates Patrick McDonald (Orangevale, Calif.), James Pierce (North Syracuse, N.Y.) and Jacqui Kapinowski (Point Pleasant, N.J.) didn't start the game as they'd like, missing five shots in a row before Perez made a takeout to score a single and save the end for his teammates.
"That's the worst I've played all week," McDonald said. "It's not like golf where you shoot a 63 and come back the next day and do it again. Hopefully, I got my bad game out of my system, and it's the only one."
The Americans got back on track in the second end with Kapinowski getting a stone tucked behind the center guard and the U.S. quickly added to the bounty. With Aileen Neilson throwing last rocks, GB gave U.S. a steal of one when Neilson's final stone clipped a guard and sailed out the back of the rings. GB got a stone in scoring position behind the small wall of guards in the third but McDonald was able to get a big enough bite of granite to push it out. Perez then used his final stone to knock out the lone GB rock and leave three U.S. stones in the house, forcing Neilson to draw into the eight-foot but she had too much weight on it and gave the U.S. three more points.
The Americans were just a bit off with some of their shots in the fourth end as GB found its rhythm, scoring two points to cut the U.S. lead to three. After forcing Perez into a single in the fifth, Neilson had a pistol of a takeout in the sixth to score two points and inch closer at 6-4.
Kapinowski got a stone behind the corner guard early in the seventh end to keep Great Britain chasing. Pierce followed her in to place a second rock in the house and benefitted when GB couldn't convert the double takeout. McDonald and Perez failed to remove the GB rock in the side of the house, forcing Perez to make a clutch draw to the four-foot for a single.
The Americans kept the house fairly empty in the eighth until misses by McDonald and Perez gave GB a chance to score three and send the game into overtime. The Americans wanted to employ a similar strategy of keeping things uncluttered in the extra end but more misses by the Americans gave GB a window of opportunity. Neilson, however, left the four-foot open for Perez to draw in the game-winner.
"It can be cruel at times. It's just a small margin between winning and losing," McCreadie said. "If we win every game we still can think about playoffs."
The Americans return to the ice on Tuesday with one match against Sweden (2-3) at 6 p.m.
The official site of the U.S. Paralympic Team, www.usparalympics.org, will also offer daily video and news highlights of the competition from Vancouver. Also check out www.paralympicsport.tv for on- demand feeds.
USA line score:
Great Britain 000 202 03 0 7
*USA 113 010 10 1 8
*last stone in first end
Game scores: Sweden 8, Canada 4; Switzerland 9, Germany 3; Norway 9, Korea 6; USA 8, Great Britain 7
Standings:
Canada 4-1
USA 4-1
Korea 3-2
Germany 2-2
Italy 2-2
Switzerland 2-2
Norway 2-3
Sweden 2-3
Japan 1-3
Great Britain 1-4
Live scoring from the event will be http://www.vancouver2010.com/paralympic-games/wheelchair-curling/schedule-and-results/ or visit www.usacurl.org.
USA Curling is sponsored by AIT Worldwide Logistics, Nike, bitRail, Laphroaig Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky and is partnered with CurlingZone.
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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
, 608-338-9900 (cell), 715-344-1199, Ext. 202 (office)
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Americans improve to 3-1 at 2010 Paralympic Games |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 15, 2010
Americans improve to 3-1 at 2010 Paralympic Winter Games
(VANCOUVER, British Columbia) - Team USA made some valuable adjustments to their broom placement and shooting and it paid off in a big way as the Americans earned their third win this afternoon at the Paralympic Winter Games.
One day removed from out-scoring their opponents 22-5, Andrea Tabanelli's Italian rink was on the opposite side of the spectrum today as Augusto Perez and Team USA started fast and finished strong in defeating Italy, 8-2.
With the win, Perez (East Syracuse, N.Y.) and teammates Patrick McDonald (Orangevale, Calif.), James Pierce (North Syracuse, N.Y.), Jacqui Kapinowski (Point Pleasant, N.J.) and James Joseph (New Hartford, N.Y.) improve to 3-1 in the round robin standings behind Canada (4-0).
"That was one of our best games of the week. We've had a couple bumps in the road at the start of games, but today was better," Joseph said. "We've proven over the years that we can battle back. The other teams know that about us and that we are a team to be reckoned with."
Unlike the three previous games, USA got off to a great start in the opening end with Perez making a takeout past the center guard to the four-foot for two points. They'd been struggling with shots like that in the prior three games.
"We've been working on the ice. It's really weird in spots. Goose and I have been practicing every night," McDonald said. "With the things we learned during those sessions and adjustments we made, it was like night and day for me. I feel really comfortable and back in the groove. This is the first time I've been playing vice for Goose and I feel like we're clicking right away." The improved play by McDonald was evident as he shot 69 percent today compared to his average of 53 coming into this afternoon's match-up with Italy.
After holding Italy to a single in the second end, the Americans got plenty of rocks in play in the third end, leading towards another deuce when Perez made a takeout of an Italian rock in the back of the house. They were hoping for three points but Perez's stone curled a bit too much at the end and rolled out of the house after making contact.
The U.S. would extend its lead to 6-1 when Tabanelli missed his takeout attempt in the fourth end, leaving only U.S. rocks in play. A rare blank end, in wheelchair curling that is, occurred in the fifth when Tabanelli's deuce attempt was thwarted by Perez. After stealing a single in the sixth, the Americans continued to pressure the Italians with three U.S. rocks in the front of the rings as Tabanelli threw his final stone of the end, forcing him to draw in for a single. The lead at that point was too big for Italy to overcome as the Americans didn't falter in the eighth end.
Five games remain in the round robin with the Americans taking on Great Britain (1-3) at 6 tonight.
"A couple more like that, and we'll be in the playoffs and not worrying about a tiebreaker. But if we have to go that route, we'll be ready," McDonald said.
The official site of the U.S. Paralympic Team, www.usparalympics.org, will also offer daily video and news highlights of the competition from Vancouver. Also check out www.paralympicsport.tv for on- demand feeds.
USA line score:
*USA 202 201 01 8
Italy 010 000 10 2
*last stone in first end
Game scores: USA 8, Italy 2; Canada 13, Japan 2; Sweden 6, Norway 4; Korea 7, Great Britain 4
Standings:
Canada 4-0
USA 3-1
Korea 3-1
Germany 2-1
Italy 2-2
Switzerland 1-2
Great Britain 1-3
Japan 1-3
Norway 1-3
Sweden 1-3
Live scoring from the event will be http://www.vancouver2010.com/paralympic-games/wheelchair-curling/schedule-and-results/ or visit www.usacurl.org.
USA Curling is sponsored by AIT Worldwide Logistics, Nike, bitRail, Laphroaig Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky and is partnered with CurlingZone.
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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
, 608-338-9900 (cell), 715-344-1199, Ext. 202 (office)
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USA improves to 2-1 with win over Germany |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 14, 2010
Team USA improves to 2-1 as round robin continues at 2010 Paralympic Winter Games
(VANCOUVER, British Columbia) - One thing Team USA has shown at these Paralympic Winter Games is their ability to persevere when their backs are against the wall.
Augusto Perez and the American team used that skill set to steal a point in the final end against Germany's Jens Jaeger team to earn a 6-5 win and improve to 2-1 in the round robin standings. Canada remains in first place with a perfect 3-0 record.
"It was a hard-fought battle. I told the guys when we were four down that we could do this," Perez said.
Perez (East Syracuse, N.Y.) and teammates Patrick McDonald (Orangevale, Calif.), James Pierce (North Syracuse, N.Y.) and Jacqui Kapinowski (Point Pleasant, N.J.) got off to another slow start and had their work cut out for them after falling behind 0-4 after just two ends of play this afternoon at the Vancouver Olympic Centre.
Starting with the last-rock advantage, the Americans allowed Germany to steal points in the first two ends. Perez was heavy with a draw attempt for a single in the first and with lots of rocks in the front of the house in the second end, he attempted a raise but didn't make firm enough contact with the stone and the raised rock went out of the back of the house, giving Germany three more points.
The U.S. finally got some rocks in scoring position in the third end to get right back in the game. Germany only managed to remove one of three U.S. stones with Jaeger's final toss, opening the door for Perez to draw into the rings for three points but his stone stopped short as the Americans settle for two.
In the fourth, Kapinowski got the center guard up but didn't cross the hogline with her next one, giving Germany an opening that they weren't able to capitalize on. Perez would make a double takeout with his final rock of the end and roll his shooter behind a center guard that Jaeger was unable to remove as the hungry Americans closed the gap at 4-3.
After holding Germany to a single in the fifth, the U.S. got a couple of stones in the top of the house but Jaeger made a perfect draw down to the U.S. rock in the back eight-foot in the sixth, forcing Perez to duplicate the feat for a single as well.
The U.S. played a very solid seventh end, putting stones in scoring position throughout the end to keep Germany chasing. Jaeger missed the double takeout, allowing Perez to draw another stone in. Feeling the pressure, Jaeger made the takeout of the stone in the four-foot but rolled out, allowing the U.S. to tie the game.
In a fingernail-biting eighth end, both teams tried in vain to get a stone in the house behind the guards with Perez locking in the winning piece of granite with the 13th rock thrown of the end. The U.S. would go on to win as Jaeger missed the takeout with the final stone of the game.
"That one made up for the second end. The main thing was to force him to make his last shot," Perez said. "It's probably not the best way to win but it showed a lot of character. We toughed it out and were patient."
Team USA will return to the ice at 12:30 PST tomorrow to battle Italy (1-1) and again at 6 p.m. against Great Britain (0-2).
Eight ends of competition are played at the Paralympic and wheelchair world curling events. No sweeping is allowed and teams must be composed of both genders.
The official site of the U.S. Paralympic Team, www.usparalympics.org, will also offer daily video and news highlights of the competition from Vancouver. Also check out www.paralympicsport.tv for on- demand feeds.
USA line score:
*USA 002 101 11 6
Germany 130 010 00 5
*last stone in first end
Game scores: Italy 13, Switzerland 4; Korea 7, Japan 5; USA 6, Germany 5; Canada 6, Norway 5
Standings:
Canada 3-0
USA 2-1
Korea 2-1
Germany 1-1
Italy 1-1
Japan 1-1
Switzerland 1-1
Norway 1-2
Great Britain 0-2
Sweden 0-2
Live scoring from the event will be http://www.vancouver2010.com/paralympic-games/wheelchair-curling/schedule-and-results/ or visit www.usacurl.org.
USA Curling is sponsored by AIT Worldwide Logistics, Nike, bitRail, Laphroaig Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky and is partnered with CurlingZone.
(30)
For more information: Terry Kolesar, USA Curling,
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
, 608-338-9900 (cell), 715-344-1199, Ext. 202 (office)
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USA wins bronze; Tasa earns sportsmanship award |
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 14, 2010
USA defeats Switzerland to win bronze medal at 2010 World Juniors
(STEVENS POINT, Wis.) - In their last game together, USA's Alexandra Carlson and Tabitha Peterson capped their junior careers with a bronze medal Sunday morning at the 2010 World Junior Championships in Flims, Switzerland.
The Americans won the first medal for the U.S. junior women's curling program since 2003 as they defeated Switzerland's Manuela Siegrist rink, 9-7, in an extra end.
"That's incredible, pretty good, especially as it was our last game together as a team, because me and my third age out," Carlson said after the game. "We just had our weight and got everything right."
Carlson (Wayzata, Minn.) and Peterson (Eagan, Minn.) competed in their final competition at the junior level as they've surpassed the age limit for world and national junior competition. Teammates Tara Peterson (Eagan, Minn.), Sophie Brorson (Duluth, Minn.) and Miranda Solem (Cohasset, Minn.) will have to form a new team for next season to try to make another run at the world junior gold medal.
"The game went pretty quick, except for that one end where we missed our two hits and gave them four; that wasn't very fun," Carlson said. "That extra end was played well."
The U.S. team found themselves down 2-0 early on but rallied to score in three straight ends to build a 6-2 lead after six ends. A shaky seventh end handed the Swiss ladies four points but the Americans limited them to a single in the 10th end to force the extra end where the U.S. sealed the win with a deuce.
"We had a lot of bad stones," Swiss skip Siegrist said. "It was not possible to draw for two in the tenth end."
Sweden's Anna Hasselborg rink went on to win the gold medal as they defeated Canada's Rachel Homan, 9-3. In the men's competition, Switzerland's Benoit Schwarz captured the gold-medal with a a7-6 win over Scotland's Ally Fraser. Canada's Jake Walker team won the bronze after getting past China's Yangong Ji, 9-1.
Aaron Tasa (Bemidji, Minn.), alternate for the American men's team, was the recipient of the men's sportsmanship award along with France's Marie Coulet. Coulot and Tasa were selected for the award by fellow players at the championships. All participants at the World Juniors are invited to nominate a fellow competitor who, in their view, has best exemplified the traditional values of skill, honesty, fair play, sportsmanship and friendship during the event.
USA line score:
Switzerland 020 000 400 10 7
*USA 000 321 010 02 9
*last rock in first end
USA Curling is sponsored by AIT Worldwide Logistics, Nike, bitRail, Laphroaig Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky and is partnered with CurlingZone.
(30)
For more information: Terry Kolesar, USA Curling,
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
, 608-338-9900 (cell), 715-344-1199, Ext. 202 (office)
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End
| 1
| 2
| 3
| 4
| 5
| 6
| 7
| 8
| EE
| | Total
| *USA
| 2
| 0
| 2
| 2
| 0
| 1
| 0
| 1
| | | 8
| Italy
| 0
| 1
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 0
| 1
| 0
| | | 2
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- USA v. Germany (12:30, March 14)
End
| 1
| 2
| 3
| 4
| 5
| 6
| 7
| 8
| EE
| | Total
| *USA
| 0 | 0
| 2
| 1
| 0
| 1
| 1
| 1
| | | 6 | Germany
| 1
| 3
| 0 | 0 | 1
| 0
| 0
| 0
| | | 5 |
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Order of Merit: USA National Championships
