Pyeongchang, South Korea • They painted shooting stars on their face, wore gold spandex pants as a good omen, drank Pabst Blue Ribbon beer because, well, it fit the theme of the night, and downed cupcakes with red, white and blue sprinkles on top.
Inside this living room a block east of the Westminster College campus, they huddled on the floor, knees tucked in tight, tuned into the TV that was live-streaming the event on the other side of the world through a laptop. Festive streamers hung from the ceiling and two American flags hung on opposite sides of the room as they watched their friend and classmate drop her skis onto rails, twist off and eventually hit jumps that solidified her Olympic intro.