U.S. rocks Czechs for Olympic berth
The United States qualified for the men’s curling tournament at the Sochi Olympics with an 8-5 playoff victory over the Czech Republic on Sunday. The Americans, skipped by John Shuster, seized the advantage in the eighth end by scoring five points for a 7-3 lead. The Czechs pulled two back in the ninth, but Shuster’s team of third Jeff Isaacson, second Jared Zezel and lead John Landsteiner ended with another point to secure the last Olympic berth on offer. The U.S. won its final five games at the World Curling Federation’s qualification event in Fuessen, Germany.