Team USA’s Cory Thiesse and Korey Dropkin delivered a historic 9-8 upset over defending gold medalists Italy, securing their spot in the Olympic mixed doubles curling final—a first for the U.S. in this discipline.
With a clutch final stone from Thiesse, Team USA unconventionally defeated Italy’s Stefania Constantini and Amos Mosaner, the same duo that dethroned them just hours earlier in a 7-6 round-robin defeat. The 9-8 semifinal win does more than avenge a loss—it writes a new chapter in American curling history.
A Tale of Two Hammers: How Tactical Mastery Sealed the Upset
The match was a symphony of precision and pressure, with both ends unfolding as structural game-theory. In the first end, Italy claimed two points. Team USA answered with a two-pointer of its own, expertly using their final stone to neutralize the Italians’ early hammer advantage.
By the fourth end, the balance torn away. Italy, dominant in round-robin, began to miss. Dropkin, sweeping Thiesse’s path stone to perfection, crafted a three-point end and a 5-4 lead. That margin grew to 7-5 entering the seventh end, but Italy responded with its power play—scoring three points to leap ahead 8-7.
The final end demanded a “two points or out” mentality for Team USA. They played their power play, hammer in hand. A timeout. Two well-placed stones. Then the decisive shot: Dropkin cleared two Italian stones, opening the path. Thiesse delivered, dislodging the Italian center stone and pushing another just beyond the button. Two points. 9-8. Gold-medal game secured.
The Redemption Arc: How USA Learned From Round-Robin Defeat
Earlier the same day, Team USA fell 7-6 to Italy in the round-robin finale. The loss handed Italy the hammer in the first end of the semifinal, yet Team USA refused to replicate their sloppy start. Instead, they limited the Italians to two first-end points—half the 4-0 lead Italy grabbed just hours prior.
Dropkin proved the human trash bin every opponent feared. Thiesse delivered stone after stone with surgical accuracy, punctuating the final end with a truly picture-perfect draw that pushed out two Italian stones at once.
What’s Next: Sweden Reborn
Team USA faces a Sweden side that blanked Great Britain 9-3. Their bronze performance in Beijing is a warning bell; they are a balanced, patient unit hungry to upgrade metal. The gold-medal match commences at 12:05 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Februar. 10.
Italy vs. Great Britain tussles in the bronze-medal match at 8:05 a.m. ET, same day.
With this upset, Team USA doesn’t just reach history—they reframe expectations, proving mixed doubles curling is their stage now.
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