If you mention the word curling to Maureen Brunt, do not expect to hear a response involving irons or hair. That is because to Brunt, curling-the sport-holds a much greater significance than any common household appliance. It means a possible trip to Turin, Italy for the 2006 Olympic Winter Games.
The 22-year old UW-Madison senior is a member of Team Johnson, one of 10 women's teams competing in the 2006 U.S. Olympic team trials at the Madison Curling Club in McFarland. The weeklong tournament started Feb. 19 and runs through Feb. 26, with the winner earning the hallowed right to represent the United States next year in the Winter Games. From the looks of things, Team Johnson (6-0) has a good shot to win it all.
\We're 5-0 right now,"" Brunt said before Tuesday afternoon's 6-5 victory over Team Karst (1-5). ""We played the No. 2 last night and we beat them in an extra end. We've had some pretty good games so far.""
Starting the week as the No. 3 seed, Team Johnson-comprised of Brunt, sisters Cassie and Jamie Johnson and Jessica Schultz-is a group of veteran curlers. Schultz, 20, is a sophomore at Lake Superior College, Duluth, Minn., and joined the team at the start of this season. She faced new surroundings and was a little nervous heading in, but quickly became fast friends with the rest of the team.
""We pretty much have the same attitude, we're all kind of laid back,"" Schultz said. ""None of us are really over-aggressive, so it was kind of easy to just step into the team. It made me feel more comfortable playing with them.""
Brunt, originally from Portage, Wis., has been curling since the age of six and Cassie and Jamie have been curling together since first grade. Brunt and the Johnson sisters teamed up since 2001 and have notched some impressive holes in their curling belts. In their first year of curling, they won the Junior National Curling Championship and went on to win the 2002 Junior World Curling Championships, a first for any American women's team.
""It was the first time that any U.S. women's team had won a gold medal at the world level,"" Brunt said. ""So that was pretty cool.""
The top four teams advance to the semifinals, which are conducted in a page system. The No. 1 seed plays the No. 2 seed, with the winner advancing to the finals. The loser of the top-seeded game plays the winner of the No. 3-versus-No. 4 for the final spot in the championship.
Currently Team Johnson holds the top spot at trials, but faces tough competition in the final days. Team Johnson meets the only other undefeated team-Team Lank (6-0)-today, in a game that could determine the number one seed.
""We've played some tough games so far and we have some tough ones left to go,"" team skip Cassie Johnson said. ""But we are playing really awesome we think. We feel pretty confident.""
A game of curling is comprised of 10 ends, much like an inning in baseball. Brunt plays the lead for Team Johnson and throws her 42 lbs. rock first. Schultz follows in the second position, Jamie goes third as vice-skip and Cassie, the skip, finishes the end. The two teams alternate throws with only one team scoring per end, based on who has more rocks closer to the center of the house. Sweeping is part of the strategy and something the skip calls for.
""When you sweep you actually create a thin layer of water, from the friction of the broom on the ice,"" Cassie said. ""It doesn't speed [the rock] up so much as just helps it maintain its speed and helps it go further.""
But curling is as much mental as it is physical. Schultz stressed the role communication, teamwork and positive thinking plays in a game.
""Communication is a big thing [and] teamwork,"" she said. ""You have to be able to trust your skip and [have] confidence in the other players.""
The Johnsons use their sisterly bond to an almost unfair advantage. ""A lot of people, they usually say that we don't talk as much, probably because we are sisters and we just instinctively know what the other is thinking,"" Cassie said. ""So when I put the broom [down] for my shot we don't really communicate ... because we just know, just from the years that we've played together.""
""We know what to do, if there are any disagreements we talk about it on the ice before we make the shot,"" Jamie added. ""We've been curling together for 16 years ... so we know what our strengths and weaknesses are and we work on them.""
For the rest of the week, Team Johnson is optimistic about their chances for earning an Olympic spot.
""We have the team we're tied with, 5-0, we've got them Wednesday morning at 8 a.m.,"" Schultz said. ""But we feel pretty confident so far and if we just keep our confidence ... we're going to play well and play our best then we usually end up doing [that].\
