e with a 7-5 win

FUESSEN, Germany -- The United States qualified for the mens curling tournament at the Sochi Olympics with an 8-5 playoff victory over the Czech Republic on Sunday.Ross Cockrell Bills Jersey . The Americans, skipped by John Shuster, seized the advantage in the eighth end by scoring five points for a 7-3 lead. The Czechs pulled two back in the ninth, but Shusters team of third Jeff Isaacson, second Jared Zezel and lead John Landsteiner ended with another point to secure the last Olympic berth on offer. The Americans, coached by Tim Muller with Craig Brown at alternate, had kept their qualification hopes alive with a 7-5 win over South Korea in Saturdays tiebreaker. "We always seem to pick it up and bring it up the next step and find a way to play better in a game," Landsteiner said. The U.S. won its final five games at the World Curling Federations qualification event in the Bavarian town of Fuessen, and the Shuster rink will now be nominated to the U.S. Olympic team pending approval by the United States Olympic Committee. "The butterflies of winning for an opportunity like this, they never get old. Thats why we play this game," said Shuster, who won Olympic bronze in 2006 in the lead position. "These guys work their tails off and theyre some of the best in the business. Im extremely proud of how well our team has played the entire season and especially here when we had our backs against the wall," the 31-year-old Shuster said. Jiri Snitils Czech rink was playing its second playoff in as many days after losing to Germany for the first Olympic berth on Saturday. China qualified for the womens tournament in Sochi next year by beating Japan 7-6 in the playoff between the first and second-ranked teams. Japan was to get another chance to secure qualification in its playoff against third-place Norway on Sunday evening. DaNorris Searcy Womens Jersey . Thorpe, who spent six seasons with the Alouettes between 2002 and 2007 before returning as the teams defensive coordinator last season, has also been appointed the teams assistant head coach. Dinwiddie, who broke into the CFL as a quarterback with the Alouettes in 2005, began his coaching career in 2013 with the Alouettes. Brian Moorman Jersey . Bradley thwarted Marquezs attempt to win his fifth world title by coming on in the second half of the fight to win. It was the third straight close decision win for Bradley, who was a hotly disputed winner over Manny Pacquiao two fights ago.AUBURN, Ala. -- Federal authorities are investigating suspended Auburn point guard Varez Ward for alleged point shaving involving in at least two games this season, Yahoo Sports reported Thursday. The report cited anonymous sources and said the FBI began an investigation in late February centring on losses to Alabama on Feb. 7 and Arkansas on Jan. 25. Ward and guard Chris Denson were both suspended before a Feb. 25 game against Arkansas, but Denson returned for the next game. Denson was questioned and cleared of involvement in point shaving, the report said. "Auburn officials were made aware of a rumour regarding an allegation two weeks ago and immediately reported it to the FBI, the NCAA and the SEC," Auburn said in a statement Thursday. "Because of the nature of the allegation, Auburn is not in a position to make any further comment on the situation." The report said a player reported concerns to an assistant coach in late February. Auburn coach Tony Barbee has said only that Ward and Denson violated team rules. Ward didnt play in the final three games of the regular season or travel with the team to New Orleans for the Southeastern Conference tournament, where the Tigers open with Thursday nights game against Mississippi. YYahoo Sports reported that other Auburn players were questioned about whether Ward tried to get them to participate in the alleged point shaving. Lee Smith Womens Jersey. Ward, a Texas transfer, has averaged 9.0 points a game and leads the Tigers in assists. Ward scored three points and had six turnovers in the 68-50 loss to Alabama, playing 17 minutes. Vegas Insider said Alabama was favoured by five points. Ward lasted only 19 seconds after coming off the bench in the 56-53 defeat before crumpling to the floor. Barbee later said he took a knee to the right leg he had injured early in his sophomore season with the Longhorns, when he ruptured his quadriceps tendon on a dunk during pregame warmups. Auburn still covered the 9 1/2-point spread. In between those games, Ward had his hottest streak of the season. He scored 53 points in a three-game stretch, including 24 against Mississippi State. Ward has not commented publicly since his suspension. His last Twitter post was on Feb. 24 when he tweeted, "Cant win for losing smh" (shaking my head). It was the last in a series of posts that day, the first saying that his knee was "hurting bad." Ward sat out last season under transfer rules and has two years of eligibility remaining. ' ' '