Homan rink happy for well-earned break
SAINT JOHN, N.B. — Well, that was interesting.
Rachel Homan and her teammates from Ottawa scored one fairly routine victory and another by the skin of their teeth on Wednesday, just not quite as you’d expect things to go in the women’s world curling championship.
The two-time national champions and 2013 world bronze medallists never led until the absolute end against Germany, but stole two points in the 10th end for a 7-5 victory, and then thumped South Korea 10-3 in a match that featured a wacky eighth end and an episode of Canada’s newest comedy skit: Where’s Earle?
With the Canadian curlers leading 7-3, things got a little crazy after second Alison Kreviazuk completely missed on two attempted peels of South Korean guard rocks.
The four women called timeout so coach Earle Morris could come down for a chat, but didn’t know he had chosen that moment to leave the coaches’ bench for a washroom break. Alternate Stephanie LeDrew came down instead, shrugging in response to some good-natured jeers from the spectators.
Whatever she said, or didn’t say, it worked out in the end.
Third Emma Miskew ably placed a rock in good guarding position and, following a couple of skilful shots from skip Homan and misses from South Korea’s Un-Chi Gim, the Canadians had a steal of three points and their eighth triumph in nine games this week.
“I looked at the scoreboard, and it said 7-3. Good time to go. They’re not going to need a timeout at 7-3,” said Morris, who returned with a wry grin amid a shower of mock cheers from the crowd.
“It worked out. They’re good at figuring it out themselves.”
Those problem-solving Canadian curlers were 8-1 and alone in first place, a half-game ahead of 7-1 Sweden and Switzerland, and knew they had clinched at least a tiebreaker for a playoff spot. They were also looking forward to a two-draw break before ending the round robin with Thursday games against China (6-2) and Sweden.
“It’s going to be glorious,” Kreviazuk said. “We have massages booked. We’re going to go out for dinner with our families. It’s going to be nice, a nice mental break.”
As for those two whiffs, or “flashes” in curling-speak, the 25-year-old curler could only laugh and shake her head.
“I said to the girls, when I was in the hack (before the second miss), ‘At least I can’t flash this one because there’s no hole there, but I managed to find it,” she said. “It was just one of those things.”
There seemed to be a whole lot of “those things” in the earlier test against Germany.
Skip Imogen Oona Lehmann and her team were 1-6, exactly opposite the Canadians’ record, but they didn’t play like also-rans against Homan, Miskew, Kreviazuk and lead Lisa Weagle.
The Germans led 1-0, 3-1 and 5-3 before the Canadians closed the gap to a single point on a draw by Homan in the seventh end.
Oona Lehmann rolled her last rock out of the rings to blank the eighth end. In the ninth, she tried to put the game away with an angled double-takeout, but one Canadian stone bounced into another and stayed put, producing a stolen point and a tie score at 5-5.
In the 10th, after a nifty draw by Kreviazuk put a stone on the button, Germany successfully removed two guard rocks in front of the rings, but Corinna Scholtz whiffed on a third such try.
That allowed Homan to sneak two more rocks behind cover, and the Canadians had two on the button when Oona Lehmann made her final throw. That stone slid to the back of the four-foot circle, producing a steal of two for Canada.
Immediately behind Switzerland and Sweden in the standings are Russia and China, tied for fourth at 6-2. South Korea was the only other team with legitimate playoff aspirations, but, at 5-3, was probably going to need help.
The top four teams, determined by tiebreaker games if necessary, will advance to the Page playoff system starting Friday evening.
The semifinal is Saturday at 1 p.m., with the bronze-medal game on Sunday at 11 a.m. and the goldmedal final at 6:30 p.m.