The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Jon Kuiperij Sports Editor sports@oakvillebeaver.com Sports 23 | Thursday, November 21, 2013 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com "Connected to your Community" Erika Brown Sochi bound Oakville curler wins U.S. trials to qualify for her third Olympics By Herb Garbutt Burlington Post staff It felt good from the moment it left her hand. All week, Erika Brown had been throwing in-turn draws to determine who would get the hammer for the first end. Seven times in eight matches, Brown had outdrawn her opponent to give her team the advantage. Earlier in the same match, in the second and eighth ends, Brown had made the shot to score two points. Now tied 7-7 with Allison Pottinger in the 10th end, all she needed to do was slide a 42-pound chunk of granite 134 feet down a sheet of ice and stop it inside a four-foot circle. The reward -- a trip to the Olympics. The Madison, Wis. native, who has called Oakville home for close to a decade, refused to let that enter into her thoughts as she prepared to make the shot. "I was more focused on execution than I had been all week," the skip said. "I was pretty clear-headed. I didn't have the outcome on my mind. I had thrown that shot well all week, so when I let it go, I wasn't overly alarmed." "How's the weight?" called out vice Debbie McCormick as teammates Jessica Schultz and Ann Swisshelm lightly swept the rock as it made its way down the sheet. As it reached the top of the four-foot circle, Swisshelm raised her arms above her head and Schultz began jumping. Brown, standing and watching from half way down the sheet wasn't ready to celebrate just yet. · · · It has been 25 years since Brown made her Olympic debut in Calgary. Curling was a demonstration sport in 1988 and Brown was a 15-yearold vice on the rink of Lisa Schoeneberg. They upset the U.S. national champion and finalist at the Olympic trials just to make it to Calgary. Brown was the youngest member of the U.S. Olympic team, a distinction which led to her being featured prominently in a Sports Illustrated story on curling's debut. She remains the youngest curler to ever play in the Olympics. The Calgary Games were truly a family affair for the Browns. Erika's Erika Brown, far right, celebrates with teammates (from left) Jessica Schultz, Debbie McCormick and Ann Swisshelm, following their 8-7 vicotry over Allison Pottinger Saturday at the U.S. Curling Olympic Trials in Fargo, N.D.. | photo by Michael Burns Jr. -- USA Curling mom, Diane, was the alternate on the Schoeneberg rink and her dad, Steve, was the team's coach. Still, even with her parents by her side, the opening ceremonies were a lot to take in for the high school freshman. "What I remember the most is the opening ceremonies, walking in with my dad and my mom," said the seven-time U.S. champion. "It was overwhelming. It would be at any age, but for a 15-year-old, I was pretty awestruck." The American rink finished the round-robin 4-3 to get into a tiebreaker, but Norway won and went on to claim the bronze medal. Brown returned to the Olympics in 1998 in Nagano, again playing vice on Schoeneberg's rink. The U.S. rink went 2-5 and finished fifth. Despite having played in five world championships since then, the Olympics proved to be elusive. In 2006, on Patti Lank's rink, they were knocked out in the semifinals at Olympic trials and then at her first trials as a skip in 2010, she was edged by Lank in the quarters. "You're never quite sure if you're ever going to get back," Brown said. "Being there as a 15-year-old in '88 when it was a demonstration sport, I think that was the biggest motivator for me for sticking with the sport and playing for the last 25 years. Being on the Olympic team has kept me on the ice all these years." · · · "Those last 15, 20 feet, it felt like 15 or 20 minutes," Brown said. "The girls started to celebrate but I was waiting for it to come to a dead stop." As the rock came to rest at the back of the four foot, Brown pumped her fists and shouted `Yes!' "We're really lucky to have the opportunity to be part of Team USA," she said. "We want to try and make the most of it." Brown anticipates a busy schedule of matches against international teams for her rink over the next two months as it prepares for Sochi. Each member of Brown's rink has been to the Olympics before -- McCormick skipped the U.S. entry in Vancouver -- with a total of seven Games between them. That means they will not be caught off guard by long opening ceremonies, living in an athlete's village or a competition that stretches out over 10 days, allowing them to focus on their game. The U.S. has never won an Olympic women's curling medal. Brown's rink established itself as a strong contender to end that drought when it reached the semifinals of the world championships in March, finishing fourth after losing the bronze-medal match. The rink continued its strong play against a highly competitive field at the US trials. Seven of the eight curlers in the final had Olympic experience. At trials, Brown's rink went 4-2 to earn a share of first. Four of the six matches were decided by a point, or in the final end. In the best-of-three final, Brown scored three in the seventh end on her way to a 7-5 win over Pottinger in the opening game Friday. In Saturday's second game, Brown built a 7-5 lead, but Pottinger tied it up in the ninth, setting up Brown's opportunity to win it in the 10th. "All that hard work the last three years came together perfectly," Brown said. "It's what we've been waiting for. Playing at that level, not just on the national stage, but on the world stage, is what we've been working toward. We want to go after the gold medal." AIRE ONE MADNESS SALE! High Efficiency FURNACE & CENTRAL AIR $ PACKAGE INCLUDES: 3990 ONLY THE FORECAST CALLS FOR * INSTALLED OR $ Gas Furnace 95% EFF. 59 /MTH OAC* · 95.5% High Efficiency Gas Furnace · High Efficiency Central Air R410A Refrigerant · 10 Years Factory Warranty · Limited Time Offer OVER 120,000 SATISFIED CUSTOMERS HEATING & COOLING www.aireone.com · 1-888-827-2665 905-849-4998 905-632-0505 9 Locations To Serve You Better! A+ RATING *See dealer for details