The U.S. women’s curling team had a heart-stopping finale to their round-robin schedule as they aim to make history at the Milan-Cortina Olympics.
The United States needed a win over Switzerland on Thursday to punch their ticket into the semifinals of the tournament, but the Swiss would not go away quietly as they scored three points in the 10th and final end of regulation to force overtime against their American counterparts.
After Switzerland tied the game up, the U.S. had the hammer, or the ability to throw the final shot, in the first end of overtime. On their very last throw of the end, with three Swiss rocks all around the button, Tabitha Peterson slid in a perfect curling shot that settled just off the button, giving the United States a 7-6 win and sending them into the semifinals.
Needless to say, the victory is historic for the U.S.
Since curling was added to the Olympics in 1998, the United States’ women’s team has never won a medal in the competition, but that’s exactly what they’re in position to do as they secured a spot in the semifinal on Friday.
Coincidentally, the U.S. will be playing Switzerland again with a berth in the gold medal match on the line, with the game starting at 7:05 a.m. on Friday.
You can watch that match at the link below.
If the United States wins, they would play for the gold medal on Sunday at 4:05 a.m. Central time. If they are playing for a bronze medal, their game would be at 7:05 a.m. Central on Saturday.
Sweden and Canada will square off in the other semifinal game, which will also be played at 7:05 a.m. Friday.
The U.S. women’s team has already made a bit of history in these Olympics, as Cory Thiesse became the first American woman to ever win a medal in curling when she captured the silver along with teammate Korey Dropnik in the mixed team event.
That medal was only the third the United States has won in the sport, with the men’s team winning gold in Pyeongchang in 2018 and a bronze medal in Torino in 2006.
The U.S. pulled ahead of Switzerland multiple times in Thursday’s game, securing a 3-1 lead after five ends and a 5-2 lead after seven. They scored a point in the ninth end to go up 6-3, but Switzerland was able to stun the American squad with three points in the 10th to tie things up and force overtime.
Fortunately for the U.S. they were able to take advantage of having hammer in the 11th end, sending themselves to the semifinal as their quest for an elusive medal continues.
