TEAM TAMBOLI WINS 2022 U.S. JUNIOR WOMEN’S CURLING NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE
Team Tamboli captured gold at the 2022 U.S. Junior Women’s Curling National Championship on April 30, 2022. Photo by Tiffany Scheel.
On April 23-30th, 2022, Sentry Curling Center, home of the Stevens Point Curling Club in Plover, Wisconsin, hosted the nation’s top junior (U21) curling teams for the 2022 U.S. Junior Curling National Championships.
On the women’s side, the Championships welcomed 10 teams competing for the title and the berth to represent the United States at the World Junior Curling Championships 2023.
The 10 competing junior women’s teams opened the event with a round robin to determine which four teams would advance to playoffs.
The playoffs, a page system, qualified Teams McDonald, Ryhorchuk, Tamboli, and O’Hara.
In the page games, Team Tamboli defeated Team Ryhorchuk 6-5 in the 1 vs. 2 game to advance to the Championship final, and Team O’Hara topped Team McDonald in the 3 vs.4 matchup to move to the semi-final.
In the semi-final game, Team Ryhorchuk came out firing on all cylinders.
Leading 3-1 at the half, Team Ryhorchuk carried their momentum into the second half, limiting Team O’Hara to a single point in the sixth end before scoring seven combined points in the seventh, eighth, and ninth frames.
Team O’Hara captured bronze at the 2022 U.S. Junior Women’s Curling National Championship. Photo by Tiffany Scheel.
A 10-2 final advanced team Ryhorchuk to the Championship final and earned Team O’Hara (Kaitlin Murphy, Sara Olson, Anne O’Hara, and Elizabeth Janiak) the bronze medal.
In the Championship final, Team Tamboli opened the game with hammer.
After blanking the first end, Team Tamboli was first on the scoreboard with a deuce, but Team Ryhorchuk responded immediately with a score of three in the third to take a 3-2 lead.
Team Tamboli returned the favor of a three-ender in the fourth frame and forced Team Ryhorchuk to a single point in the fifth to lead 5-4 at the half.
Team Tamboli executed another strong end to open the second half, putting three more on the board and forcing Team Ryhorchuk to only a single in the seventh end.
Team Ryhorchuk won silver at the 2022 U.S. Junior Women’s Curling National Championship. Photo by Tiffany Scheel.
With one more point on the scoreboard in the eighth, Team Tamboli was able to limit Team Ryhorchuk to only three points in the ninth and tenth ends to secure a 9-8 victory.
Team Ryhorchuk (Brooke Giroux, Allie Giroux, Sophia Ryhorhuk, and Savannah Koch) earned the silver medal of the 2022 U.S. Junior Women’s Curling National Championship.
With the win in the Championship final, Team Tamboli (Jordan Hein, Amelia Hintz, Miranda Scheel, Anna Tamboli, and Tessa Thurlow) clinched the Championship title and earned the berth to represent the United States at the World Junior Curling Championships 2023.
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