Australia edges Canada in extra end of mixed doubles curling at Games

BEIJING — The students schooled the teacher on Sunday in mixed doubles curling at the Beijing Games.

It could prove to be a costly lesson for Canada's John Morris and Rachel Homan, who now must beat undefeated Italy in their round-robin finale just to make the playoffs.

A semifinal appearance seemed like a good bet for Canada after a thrilling 7-5 win over the Czech Republic in the afternoon. But dropping a 10-8 decision to Australia — a team that Morris coached this season — left Canada on the brink of an early exit.

"It's put us in a bit of a pickle here," Morris said.

The result capped a wild day at the Ice Cube, which saw Great Britain (5-3) and Norway (5-3) join Italy (8-0) on the right side of the cutline.

A loss for Canada (5-3) on Monday morning would give Sweden (5-4) the final berth, since the latter has the tiebreaker advantage.

"I think we always had to beat Italy," Homan said. "We've got to win. Our fate is in our own hands."

With the game on the line against the Czechs, Homan needed to draw for a piece of the button to get a deuce and force an extra end. Her view of the time clock was partially obstructed but she managed to get the stone away with one second to spare.

"I saw a four and I assumed it said 14 (seconds)," Homan said. "So I double-checked with John and he said, 'Go, go, go.'"

Canada won it with a deuce in the extra end. Zuzana Paulova and Tomas Paul had hammer but Homan made a nice angle bump raise that essentially left the Czechs without a shot.

"Absolutely the most dramatic curling game I've ever been a part of," Morris said. "Just a roller-coaster. We just had to hang tough and just hope for the best."

Canada entered the night game with a chance to qualify for the playoffs with a win and