NBCOlympics.com – Curling – U.S. loss makes medal highly unlikely
Posted: Feb.17, 2006, 10:19 am CST; Updated: Feb.17, 2006, 11:08 am CST
PINEROLO, Italy (AP) — Russia beat the U.S. women’s curling team 8-7 in an extra end on Friday, ending any real chance of the Americans reaching the Olympic medal round.
The United States dropped to 1-5 in the nine-game round-robin — last place. Their only chance of getting into the medal round would be on a tiebreaker at 4-5 — if a lot of things go wrong for a lot of other countries.
After falling behind 6-2, the Americans managed to tie the game in the 10th but couldn’t stop the Russians from scoring when they held the big advantage — called the hammer — that comes with throwing the last rock in the 11th end, or inning.
PINEROLO, Italy (AP) — Russia beat the U.S. women’s curling team 8-7 in an extra end on Friday, ending any real chance of the Americans reaching the Olympic medal round.
The United States dropped to 1-5 in the nine-game round-robin — last place. Their only chance of getting into the medal round would be on a tiebreaker at 4-5 — if a lot of things go wrong for a lot of other countries.
After falling behind 6-2, the Americans managed to tie the game in the 10th but couldn’t stop the Russians from scoring when they held the big advantage — called the hammer — that comes with throwing the last rock in the 11th end, or inning.
Trailing 7-4 in the ninth, Cassie Johnson cleared out the house to retain the hammer for the 10th and final end or regulation. And when the Russians couldn’t knock an American rock out of the scoring zone with their last throw, Johnson just needed to knock one yellow stone away and leave hers on target to get the three points needed to force an extra end.
But in the 11th, the Russians had the hammer.
Both teams loaded up the guard area with rocks before Jessica Schultz put the fourth U.S. rock in the white eight-foot circle. But the Russians put their fifth inside it, on the red four-foot circle.
With what was probably her last meaningful rock of the Olympics, Johnson threw long and left a Russian rock inside. The teams shook hands without Russia needing to make its final shot.
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