SINCLAIR/RUOHONEN ADVANCE TO 2022 MIXED DOUBLES OLYMPIC TRIALS FINAL
Photo by Bob Weder
In Sunday’s semifinal, Team Sinclair/Ruohonen competed against Anderson/Dropkin to advance to the Trials Final.
Team Sinclair/Ruohonen earned their berth to the semifinal by winning yesterday’s tiebreaker game against Christensen/Shuster, and then the 3 vs. 4 page playoff game against Peterson/Polo.
Anderson/Dropkin found themselves in the tiebreaker game after coming up short against Persinger/Plys in 1 vs. 2 page playoff game on Saturday evening.
Anderson/Dropkin started the game with hammer due to their higher ranking in the playoff field and opened the game with a score of two.
Sinclair/Ruohonen was quick to answer, playing a lightweight takeout to remove Anderson/Dropkin’s counter and score three.
Anderson/Dropkin continued the game’s hammer efficiency in the third end, executing a draw for two and moving them to a 4-2 advantage.
In the fourth end, Anderson/Dropkin under curled by a few inches on a freeze attempt to Sinclair/Ruohonen’s counter, leaving Jamie Sinclair a lightweight takeout to remove the Anderson/Dropkin counter and move Sinclair/Ruohonen to a 5-4 lead at the half.
“She’s playing great and picking me up,” said Rich Ruohonen about his teammate, Jamie Sinclair, at the break.
Sinclair/Ruohonen, pleased with their level of play halfway through the game, remained focused on sticking to the same approach that carried them to Championship Sunday of the competition.
“In mixed doubles it’s all about getting the right angles and getting it set up in your favor so that you can make a good one on your last,” said Jamie Sinclair. “We’re just trying to put the rocks in some good positions to get some good angles.”
Anderson/Dropkin was the first point on the board in the second half of the semifinal, scoring one with hammer in the fifth end to tie the game at 5-5.
In the sixth end, Anderson/Dropkin was heavy on a freeze to try to limit Sinclair/Ruohonen to a single point, leaving the other side of the button open for Sinclair/Ruohonen to score two.
Sinclair/Ruohonen slid too deep into the house on their attempt to add two points to the board, resulting in a score of only one, but a result they were not disappointed in as the main objective of the end was to score.
“Our strategy was to score in six and keep a powerplay for the eighth,” said Ruohonen.
In the seventh frame, Anderson/Dropkin opted to utilize their powerplay and sat counting two rocks before Sinclair/Ruohonen’s final rock of the end.
Sinclair/Ruohonen removed one of Anderson/Dropkin’s counters to sit shot, but an open hit and stick by Anderson/Dropkin secured the deuce and gave Anderson/Dropkin a one-point advantage without hammer heading into the final end.
In the eighth end, Sinclair/Ruohonen used their powerplay, needing one point send the game into an extra end or at least two points to secure the victory.
Anderson/Dropkin faced three Sinclair/Ruohonen counters when they got into the hack to deliver their final stone of the game. Anderson/Dropkin’s attempt to hit their own rock into the pile of Sinclair/Ruohonen stones and sit shot ran straighter than the duo expected, resulting in a 9-7 victory for Sinclair/Ruohonen and qualification for the Trials final against Persinger/Plys.
“I think it’s just getting a good read on the ice early and making that first rock,” said Jamie Sinclair about the key to tonight’s final. “Fortunately, we’ve had the experience of this game today, so we’re just trying to get a jump on the ice early.”
Persinger/Plys and Sinclair/Ruohonen will compete for the 2022 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Mixed Doubles Curling championship tonight at 8:00PM on NBC Sports Network.
The champions of the 2022 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Mixed Doubles Curling will advance to the Mixed Doubles Olympic Qualification Event 2021 on Dec. 5-9, 2021, in Leeuwarden, Netherlands.
Team USA will need to finish top two in the field of 14 teams at the Mixed Doubles Olympic Qualification Event 2021 to qualify the United States for a berth to the 2022 Games in Mixed Doubles Curling.
Click here to view Mixed Doubles Olympic Qualification Procedures.
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