| vv1122365 |
Joined: Oct 25, 2018
Post: 211
Sat Nov 10, 2018 12:05 am |
|
| He retired as |
| |
MONTREAL -- Sarah Koltuns Yukon rink may be paving the way for a new generation of northern curlers. Discount Tennessee Titans Jerseys . The team representing the Territories lost twice at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts on Monday -- both by a score of 9-3 after eight ends -- to Team Canadas Rachel Homan in the afternoon and Quebecs Allison Ross in the evening. But theres promise in the Yukons (1-4) play. Theyre the youngest team at this years Scotties. Skip Sarah Koltun, lead Andrea Sinclair and second Patty Wallingham are all 20 years old, while third Chelsea Duncan is 21. The young women from Whitehorse have put their studies on hold for the year in order to stay in the Yukon and train for the season. "Its just something we decided was worth it in order to become more successful," said Koltun. "In the sport in general, teams are becoming more successful at a young age." They raise money year-round and receive funding from the Yukon government to offset the cost of travel expenses to tournaments. After skipping seven consecutive years at the Canadian junior championship, Koltun is now the youngest skip ever to play in this, her first Scotties. "Its been really good so far," she said. "And to have the crowd on our side is really cool. Weve been enjoying it a lot. The teams here are a lot stronger." In their evening match, Quebec Ross (1-4) broke a deadlock in the seventh end, putting up a four-spot with her last stone. "It wasnt my first instinct," Ross said of the tough shot that ultimately gave her the victory. "I was just going to draw for two. And my lead (Pamela Nugent) said, Is the double there? We went and looked. We figured it was, and that we might as well try it out." Quebec stole another two in the eighth to record their first victory of the Scotties to the delight of the hometown fans. "We made some shots that made it worth the crowd cheering for us," said Ross. "It feels really good -- finally. We played as well as we played in the other games, but it actually went our way this time. Nice change." The evening draw saw tight finishes across all other sheets. Newfoundlands Heather Strong (4-1) and P.E.I.s Kim Dolan (2-3) took a 4-4 tie into the 10th end, where Strong scored a deuce for the 6-4 victory. Nova Scotias Heather Smith (1-4) was involved in a seesaw battle with British Columbias Kesa Van Osch (2-3). Van Osch made her final rock count in the 10th end to win 9-8 after giving up the two-point lead in the ninth. Nova Scotia has given up leads in each of its four Scotties losses. "Weve had chances to win all four," said Smith. "An end or a shot, here or there, are the difference in our games so far. We just cant find a way to win. "In a week like this one, you just have to hope to get more wins than losses on those close ones." Albertas Val Sweeting (4-1) needed extra ends to beat New Brunswicks Andrea Crawford (2-3) by a score of 9-8 in the 11th. Sweeting put two points on the board in the eighth, and another two in the ninth, before Crawford tied the game with the hammer in the 10th. In afternoon matches Monday, Dolan edged Ontarios Allison Flaxey (1-3) by a count of 7-5. Flaxey scored one in the seventh end, and another in the eighth, but couldnt complete the comeback. Manitobas Chelsea Carey (3-1) scored four in the ninth against Nova Scotia, which conceded right after. The afternoon draw also saw a Saskatchewan team that could do no wrong, beating New Brunswick 9-3 after eight ends. Saskatchewan skip Stefanie Lawton (3-1) stole four in the third and another three in the fifth to seal the victory. "Theres always room for improvement," said Lawton, who called the four-point steal in the third end a game changer. "It definitely gave us an advantage and we were able to capitalize on that throughout the game. We played strong and put the pressure on." Homan scored three to take the lead over the Yukon in the third end, and never looked back. With the score 4-1 in the fourth, Koltun had a chance to reduce the deficit, but overthrew her final rock. "Unfortunately we didnt play our best, but we just need to learn from it," said Koltun. Still-unbeaten Canada (4-0) added another four in the seventh for an impressive victory. "Were playing well," said Homan. "We have to fine-tune a few things here and there. We got an early head start, and it was tough (for the Yukon) to catch up. "Were feeling good. We just need to keep rolling." Homan said she recognized a slightly younger version of herself in the Yukons skip, and suggested their styles of play were similar. Koltun couldnt agree more. "We try to play and train similarly, putting in the effort, the time, thats necessary to be successful," said Koltun, whos admired Homan since seeing her play at the 2007 Winter Canada Games in Whitehorse. "That hard work will eventually pay off." Eddie George Jersey . -- Isaiah Pead took a stutter step forward, then raced to the left sideline and travelled 60 yards up the field before finally getting tripped up by a leg tackle. Quinton Spain Jersey .com) - Jimmie Johnson won Sundays AAA Texas 500 while championship contenders Jeff Gordon and Brad Keselowski as well as their teams were involved in a post-race fight on pit road after the two clashed in the closing laps at Texas Motor Speedway.MONTREAL -- The Montreal Impact hope that Frank Klopas has the blend of European style and American know-how theyve been seeking. The club that dominated the first half of the Major League Soccer season only to come crashing down at the end got its third head coach in as many seasons with the hiring on Wednesday of the Greek-American Klopas. The move made it official that the fiery Marco Schallibaum, whose future was in limbo since the end of the season, would not return. "I dont know whats happened in the past, but my philosophy is I always think long term," said Klopas, who signed a three-year contract as head coach and director of player personnel. "I believe in myself, that I can do a good job. "You go into a coaching situation, you know its based on results. But this is an opportunity I couldnt give up." The Impact had an American rookie head coach in Jesse Marsch in its inaugural MLS campaign in 2012, then went for one with no MLS experience in former Switzerland international fullback Schallibaum. Now the club has a native European with extensive experience in North American soccer. "It gets you thinking its the best of both worlds," said sporting director Nick De Santis. The 47-year-old Klopas, a native of Prosymna, Greece, is a former U.S. international striker who had a 39-29-23 record in three seasons in Chicago. While working as the Fires technical director, he moved in as coach of a 1-4-6 team partway through the 2011 campaign and got them to a 9-9-14 record. The following season, the Fire went 17-11-6 and made the playoffs. However, in 2013 the Fire were 14-13-7 -- the same record as Montreal. But the Impact got the fifth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot over the Fire due to a better goal differential. While Chicago replaced Klopas with Canadian coach Frank Yallop at the end of the season, Montreal chose to delay a decision on Schallibaums future for several weeks. The club insisted the former Switzerland fullbacks status was undecided even as reports swirled of a search for a new coach. The decision was finally made "a couple of days ago," said De Santis. "When a team goes through a difficult phase, but you see a team thats unable to get out of it, it becomes quite difficult," he added. "In the end, we met our goals, which is positive, but we cant hide that it was a team that struggled. "Whether it was physical or mental or the dressing room wasnt there any more, that has to be evaluated. We strongly believed that with our new structure being put in place, with the additions we wanted to add to help us keep growing, we needed to go in a different direction. In the end, it cost Marco his job." He had high praise for Klopas work in Chicago. The Fire were just the opposite of Montreal, starting the season 2-7-1 due partly to injuries and then having one of the leagues best records in the second half. "They were 17 points behind us and they were able to come within a point of making the playoffs," said De Santis. "We have to ask, when were in a difficult time, can we get out of it? Do we have the right people to keep the group together. Frank showed he can do that in the last two years." Klopas said he likes Montreal and has visited friends in the city often over the years. He even remembers the big crowds that once turned out for the Montreal Manic of the old NASL. He promised to try to learn French, as Marsch did in his year with the Impact. Schallibaum sppoke several languages. Marcus Mariota Jersey. . De Santis said having French-speaking personnel is important for the club, but that it is hard to find it in a coach who has MLS experience. Klopas was introduced to the teams supporters at a meeting Wednesday night. "Excited at the opportunity to play for Klopas and get the 2014 campaign underway! Welcome to the .IMFC famille," Impact defender Jeb Brovsky posted on his Twitter account. Bilingual Montreal native Mauro Biello was an option, but the Impact opted to keep him as assistant coach. The second assistant, Frenchman Philippe Eullaffroy, will be back only as director of the Impact Academy. "Mauro will continue to grow," said De Santis. "He can become a great coach and one day, it will be Mauros time to become a great coach here in Montreal. Right now, wed added someone with a lot of credibility and experience who will help us grow as a team." Schallibaum had the team in first place in July, only to plummet sharply in the second half. The Impact was routed by Houston in its first MLS playoff game, finishing the match with nine men after Andres Romero and star forward Marco Di Vaio were sent off. The team also won the Voyageurs Cup by taking the Amway Canadian Championship, although it was then ousted in the group stage of the CONCACAF Champions League. Schallibaum was suspended four times for a total of five games for sideline blowups, although he had his temper under control by the end of the season. Few European coaches have found success in MLS. "I dont think a European coach is (necessarily) going to struggle, but a European coach has to do a lot of homework in terms of understanding the league and the players you play against," said De Santis. "This is not a easy league to play in. In Europe, you think of three or four top teams and the other ones are in a mix where there are some easy games. In MLS, I cant even imagine one easy game weve played in." Klopas takes over a team that will be missing 20-goal scorer Di Vaio and Romero to suspensions for the first three games -- March 8 in Dallas, March 15 at Houston and March 22 at home against Seattle. The Fire will visit Olympic Stadium on April 12. Klopas played nine seasons in Greece, winning four championships with Athens club AEK, before joining the Kansas City Wizards for the inaugural MLS campaign in 1996. He moved to Chicago in 1998 and the Fire won both the MLS Cup and the U.S. Open Cup in the clubs first season. He retired as a player after the 1999 season and worked as a television commentator until he was hired as the Fires technical director in 2008. Klopas said he wont change the teams style of play, but it will need personnel moves to strengthen the defence after the retirement of Alessandro Nesta and to find some help for Di Vaio. He also hopes to bolster the wide positions in the midfield and to get Di Vaio some help up front. "This group has been put together to play a certain way," said Klopas. "Its been a good build-up team through possession, that likes to keep the ball on the ground. "I believe in the same philosophy, the same type of soccer." Goalkeeper coach Youssef Dahha and fitness coach Paolo Pacione will also stay on. Director of soccer operations Matt Jordan was promoted to technical director, reporting to De Santis. The Impact open camp on Jan. 27 in Montreal before heading to Florida on Feb. 14 to defend its Walt Disney World Pro Soccer Classic title. Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys Cheap Adidas Hockey Jerseys Wholesale Nike Baseball Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys From China Wholesale Jerseys China Wholesale NFL Jerseys China Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys Free Shipping Cheap Nike NBA Jerseys Authentic Cheap NHL Jerseys Canada Cheap Nike MLB Jerseys Cheap Soccer Jerseys China NCAA Jerseys Cheap Nike NHL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys Store Cheap Football Jerseys Store Wholesale Soccer Jerseys Jerseys NCAA China Jerseys NFL Cheap Cheap Nike NBA Jerseys ' ' '
|
|
