Team USA women’s curling entered Thursday with a simple task: Win, and you’re in. With a victory over Switzerland, the United States would guarantee itself a spot in the playoffs.
In the end, it wasn’t that simple, but Team USA secured its spot in the semifinals with a narrow 7-6 win over Switzerland that came down to a clutch hammer from Tabitha Peterson in an extra end. After giving up three points in the 10th end and missing on some early shots in the extra end, Peterson needed an expertly placed shot with the hammer to send the U.S. to the semifinals.
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It nearly came down to a measurement, but Peterson did it. Team USA picked up the walk-off win to advance.
While the match ended in dramatic fashion, things started slowly. Team USA opened the match with the hammer, and after an uneventful first end, decided to strategically clear the house so they could keep the hammer in the second end. No points were scored until the second end, when Peterson used the U.S.’s hammer to grab the first point of the game. Peterson didn’t have a large margin for error with her shot, and managed to land the stone almost directly on the button, grabbing a point and an early 1-0 lead for Team USA.
Switzerland used its first hammer in the third end to tie things up. They had a shot at two points in the end, but the hammer wasn’t thrown hard enough, and failed to knock Team USA’s stone far enough outside the house to net Switzerland two points. The Americans grabbed the lead back in the fourth end, as Peterson once again landed the hammer on the button to go up 2-1.
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The fifth end proved to be massive for Team USA. After placing a stone close to the button, the Americans decided to play defense, making it harder for Switzerland to score with the hammer. The tactic worked out, as Switzerland’s hammer made contact with one of Team USA’s defensively placed stones. That stopped the momentum of Switzerland’s hammer, allowing Team USA to steal a point in the end. That pushed Team USA’s lead to 3-1 after the fifth end.
Thanks to more strong defense, Team USA limited Switzerland to a point in the sixth end. Leading 3-2, and holding the hammer, Team USA needed multiple points in the seventh end to gain some breathing room. They made that happen, as Peterson’s hammer netted the U.S. two more points, giving them a 5-2 lead entering the eighth end.
Switzerland needed multiple points in the eighth end, but had to settle for just one. That made it 5-3, with the U.S. controlling the hammer in the ninth end. If Team USA could score multiple points in the end, they would hold a massive lead heading into the final end. It looked shaky with three U.S. stones left, but Peterson cleared out Switzerland’s stone on the second-to-last stone for Team USA. A strong shot by Switzerland’s Alina Paetz limited the U.S. to settling for just one point in the end, giving them a 6-3 lead heading into the 10th end.
Switzerland refused to go down quietly. Paetz executed on the hammer, grabbing three points to tie the match 6-6, sending it to an extra end.
While the momentum seemed to be slipping away from Team USA, it held the hammer in the extra end, a massive advantage.
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But the letdown in the 10th may have extended to the extra end for the Americans early on. Some missed shots made it stressful with just three stones to go. Team USA still had an opening as the match wound down, but it wasn’t going to be easy.
It all came down to the final stone. Peterson needed to navigate around three Switzerland stones to secure the victory for Team USA. She came up extremely clutch with her shot, getting it just around Switzerland’s stones, but not pushing it too far outside the house. It was a close finish, nearly coming down to a measurement. Ultimately, that wasn’t needed, and the U.S. picked up the narrowest of wins.
With the victory, Team USA women’s curling advances to the medal round for the first time since 2002. That team failed to medal after losing in the semifinals and the bronze-medal game.
This time around, Team USA’s opponent in the semifinals will be familiar, as the Americans will face off against Switzerland on Friday. The winner will move on to the gold-medal match. The loser will play for bronze.
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Sweden and Canada will meet in the other semifinal game Friday.
Team USA defeated both Switzerland and Canada in round-robin play, but lost 9-4 to Sweden during the round-robin session. Both wins over Switzerland and Canada came by just one point, which should lead to some more tense games for the Americans as they inch closer to earning a medal.
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