Teams skipped by Daniel Casper, John Shuster, Scott Dunnam and Korey Dropkin advanced to the men's playoffs at the USA Curling national championships, as round-robin play concluded Thursday in Denver.
Casper's Chaska-based rink finished atop the standings with a 6-1 record. Team Shuster, from Duluth, tied with Dunnam's Philadelphia-based foursome for second place at 5-2, while Dropkin, of Duluth, was fourth at 4-3. Shuster's team claimed the No. 2 seed by beating Dunnam in the round robin.
Team Jason Smith, which includes former Viking Jared Allen, tied for fifth place in the round robin with a 3-4 record.
The championship round uses the Page playoff format. Casper and Shuster will play Friday in the 1-2 game, with the winner advancing to Saturday's final. The loser will play the victor of the 3-4 game between Dunnam and Dropkin in a Friday semifinal to determine the second finalist. The Page playoff games will start at 3 p.m., with the semifinal at 8 p.m. and Saturday's championship match at 1 p.m.
In the women's round robin, Eagan native Tabitha Peterson led her team to a 7-0 record, claiming the top seed for a four-team playoff that also will begin Friday.
Peterson, a two-time Olympian, will face No. 2 seed Delaney Strouse in the 1-2 game of the Page playoffs on Friday.
Strouse, of Minneapolis, finished the round robin with a 6-1 record. The winner of the 1-2 game advances to Saturday's championship, while the loser will play the winner of Friday's game between two Chaska-based rinks — No. 3 seed Sarah Anderson (5-2) and No. 4 seed Madison Bear (4-3) — in a semifinal to determine the other finalist.
Friday's schedule will start with the Page playoff games at 3 p.m., followed by the semifinal at 8 p.m. Saturday's championship match will be at 5 p.m.
