Switzerland book spot in European Curling final

Switzerland's women are through to the final of the European Curling Championships after a tense 9-5 victory over Italy.

The Swiss ran the Italians out of stones in the tenth end to secure the win after grabbing an impressive three points in the ninth.

Italy were originally on the front foot, holding a 3-2 lead heading into the halfway point.

But it quickly became a see-saw game as Switzerland took the lead for the first time with a score of two and Italy battled back to equalise.

The lead soon slipped from the grasp of Stefania Constantini's rink, as Alina Paetz made a double take-out and stole three in the penultimate end.

Her tactical play left the Italians with too much to do and they conceded halfway through the tenth end, unable to win the match.

"Winning a semi always makes you feel great," said Swiss skip Silvana Titinzoni.

"We were a bit nervous at the beginning, I’m so glad to see we were able to recover after the first end, we're really happy about that.

"I know how it is to be a world champion, but not a European champion, so it would be great to have both."

Switzerland will play the winner of a Scotland and Denmark semi-final for the title on Saturday, with Italy heading into the bronze medal match.

With semi-final spots already decided in the men's competition, spectators were still privy to some exciting battles in the final round-robin session.

Italy and Scotland went head-to-head in a dramatic match that saw the reigning champions clinch the win.

It was a 5-5 draw heading into the final end, but Joel Retornaz's team were unable to use the hammer to full effect and the Scots notched two points for the win.

The two sides will clash once more this evening in an exciting semi-final re-match.

Sportsbeat 2022