GANGNEUNG, SOUTH KOREA – Nina Roth's last throw had just enough on it Saturday afternoon, and the United States women's curling team beat the Olympic Athletes from Russia 7-6 in 11 ends at the Gangneung Curling Centre.
The American skip had the hammer after an extra end was needed. Getting sweeping help from Roth's teammates Becca Hamilton, Aileen Geving and Tabitha Peterson, the final rock made it about an inch closer to the center than the Russians in the 8-foot circle, improving the U.S. to 2-2 in the Olympic round robin.
"All teams benefit from having good sweepers. Aileen and I are pretty good on the brooms and we knew with that last rock we had to sweep. We knew where we had to put it and we did just that," Hamilton said.
Peterson is from Eagan, Geving from Duluth and Roth and Hamilton from McFarland, Wis.
The Americans led 4-2 after four ends, but the OAR team, skipped by Victoria Moiseeva, scored single points in the fifth and sixth ends to tie it up. Each team traded single points over the next four ends.
The Americans were to face Canada on Saturday night (5 a.m. Central time).
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