U.S. Men’s curling team Can’t Complete the Comeback, Falls to Italy

Italy played better the whole match.

Cortina Bay, ITA- The U.S. Men’s curling team needed to win this match against Italy to put themselves in a great position to clinch a spot in the Semi-Finals. Facing the host nation is always a difficult task when they have the home crowd filling up the Curling Arena; you must find ways to keep your nerve and have your best ready to go. Strong concentration and sticking to the game plan. Unfortunately for the USA, they played behind after the third end and couldn’t force an extra end as they lost to Italy by a final score of eight-to-five.

Overview

After the USA took a one-point lead in the opening end, Italy came out with a strong game plan. With a stone already on the eight-foot, Joel Retornaz sent the hammer down the sheet and knocked out the last stone of the USA, and it landed inside the button for two points. The USA leveled the score at two in the third end, but in the fourth, a massive end for the home side to take a bigger lead. While the USA had two successful stones to clear the house and take advantage in the middle of the end, Italy refilled the house to take the points. Daniel Casper threw the hammer down and was helped by Aidan Oldenburg and Ben Richardson to sweep the ice. The stone overcurled and went too deep inside the left of the four-foot. Italy took advantage and won by claiming three points.

The USA cut its deficit to one with ahuge two pointer in the fifth end when Italy’s 8th stone went down the sheet and lost steam. The sweepers gave up right away, and the stone stoped to far away from the house to do anything. Just a helpless guard that would be overtaken with ease. Casper sent the hammer down and took out a stone, and they had a stone inside the eight-foot to make the score five-to-four for Italy. Two scoreless ends in the sixth and seventh sent the action to the final three ends of the match to see who would take the win.

Italy gave the first blow against the USA, and there was a slight belief that it wasn’t going to happen on the hammer. A stone was already inside the 12-foot for Italy, and when the hammer was sent, the stone was losing steam again. But Maltia Giovanella and Sebastiano Arman Swept their brooms as they had never swept before. willing the stone to keep curling and making it inside the top of the 12-foot to take two points, and got it. The USA did earn a point in the ninth end, but really needed two. That made the score seven-to-five and the hope for a possible two points to tie, or three points to win.

When they got to the tenth end, Italy used their seventh stone to take out two USA Stones, but only got one. Team USA used their eighth stone and sent it down the sheet to reach the top right of the eight-foot. But Italy sent their hammer down theleft side, to knock out the USA stone, and grabbed the point to win the end and the match. This was a bad loss for Team USA as they have now evened their record at 4-4. Currently, in the table, they are tied with Great Britain, and they play Great Britain in the last match. While the rest of the field above them has two more to play. Both Switzerland and Canada have qualified for the Semi-Finals. Norway and Italy have two more matches.

Wednesday, February 18th, Italy Faces Canada, Norway Faces Switzerland. On Thursday, February 19th, Italy faces Norway, and Canada faces Switzerland. Then the Men’s Semi-Finals will be on that same day in the evening. So there is still a slim chance the USA can make the Semis, but they must defeat Great Britain first to force that chance.

Olympic Curling News:

• U.S. Women’s Curling Team Reedems Themselves With A Monster Performance Against Denmark
• U.S. Men’s Curling Team Falls in the Tenth End to China
• U.S. Women’s Curling Team Falls Flat in Loss to Winless Italy
• The Curling Controversy Seen Across the World

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