It was a conservatively-played all-PEI final at the Silver Fox Curling Club Cashspiel this afternoon in Summerside, with Summerside’s Mike Gaudet edging Charlottetown’s Kyle Stevenson by a 5-4 score. Teams traded singles in every end except number four, where the Gaudet deuce gave him the edge needed to come out the winner. Playing with Gaudet this season are Eddie MacKenzie, Tyler Harris, and Sean Clarey, while Ben Blanchard, Kyle MacDonald and Doug MacGregor round out the Stevenson squad.
In semi-final action, Stevenson knocked off previously-undefeated Brett Gallant of Charlottetown by a 7-4 score, while Gaudet recorded triples in ends one and three en route to a 7-3 victory over Mark Armstrong of New Brunswick.
The Gaudet rink pick up two grand for their first place finish, while the Stevenson foursome bring $1600 back to Charlottetown. Gallant and Armstrong collect $1200 each, while quarter-finalists Rick Perron of New Brunswick and Danny Christianson of Nova Scotia go home with $800.
The Atlantic Curling Tour wraps up back on PEI in two weeks, with the ACT Championships taking place at the Charlottetown Curling Club December 11-14, with the top 16 regional qualifiers eligible to compete.
New Glasgow NS-The 2008 Sobeys Slam Final was a game of missed of opportunities on the part of Stephanie Lawton, and strong offense by Marie France Larouche. Put those two factors together, and the net result is a 7-3 final score in favor of the rink from Quebec. For Larouche, it was a second straight trip to the finals, after falling to Sherry Middaugh 6-4 in the 2007 final.
The tone was set early, as Stephanie Lawton had an excellent opportunity for 3 points in the first end, but a draw crashed on some rocks out front, and instead settled for a single point. After a blank in end two, Larouche had an open draw for 3, resulting from a misplayed draw by Lawton with her last. Larouche forced Lawton to take 1 in the fourth, then Larouche bounced right back with another 3 in the fifth.
At that point the score was 6-2, and the Quebec rink basically ran the game out, trading singles in six and seven, then running Lawton out of rocks in the eighth.
Larouche says she is very happy with the way her team played. “For the game, all the girls were so strong. There are 32 of the best teams maybe in the world (here), so we know we need to play well to win the game.”
When asked about coming to the Slam again next year, Larouche promised “we will be back.”
The two semi-final games earlier on Sunday were not for the feint of heart. In both cases, the team with hammer in the eighth had a one-point lead. In both cases steals of one sent the games to extra ends, and in both games, the final shot of the extra end was a nail-biter before the winner was determined. Stephanie Lawton needed a draw to the button for a 5-4 win over Cathy King, and was able to make it, while Marie France Larouche needed a hit on a rock partially behind cover for her 7-5 win over Sherry Middaugh.
It takes a number of sponsors to put on major curling events such as the PEI Scotties Tournament of Hearts provincial women’s curling championship. The PEI Curling Association recently presented a plaque to Charlottetown Wal-Mart management to thank the company for their contribution to last year’s successful event held at the Charlottetown Curling Club.
Photo L-R: Greg Lucas (Executive Director, PEICA), Carl Gibbons (Manager, Charlottetown Wal-Mart), Marina Provost (Day Manager, Charlottetown Wal-Mart), Darrell Doucette (PEICA Event Coordinator)
This year’s Scotties will take place at the Silver Fox Curling and Yacht Club in Summerside from January 22-26. Three-time defending champion and Summerside native Suzanne Birt will be back with a new team this year, with veteran skip Shelly Bradley (who skipped the runner-up team last year) at third, Leslie MacDougall at second, and Stefanie Clark, the only remaining member from last year’s rink, in the lead position.
The noon semi-final round is set at the Silver Fox Curling Club Cashspiel in Summerside. In this morning’s quarter-final play, Mike Gaudet of Summerside beat Danny Christianson of Halifax 6-2, while Kyle Stevenson of Charlottetown beat Rick Perron of New Brunswick 8-3. Stevenson now faces undefeated Brett Gallant, while Gaudet takes on Mark Armstrong of New Brunswick in the noon semi-finals. Gallant and Armstrong earned byes to the semis as a result of their 5-0 and 4-1 round robin finishes respectively.
The finals go at 3 pm, with $2000 going to the winning team, $1600 to the runner-up, $1200 for third and fourth place, and $800 going to the remaining quarter-finalists Christianson and Perron.
Eighteen teams are taking part in this annual Atlantic Curling Tour event.
New Glasgow NS-The Quarter-Final draw of the Sobeys Slam was incredibly exciting with three of the four games going down to the final rock, one of them even needing an extra end. The only game which was not a nail-biter was over early. Stephanie Lawton scored 3 in the first, stole 4 in the fourth, and shook hands after 5 ends in a dominating 9-1 victory over Crystal Webster. Last year’s finalists will meet this year in the Semi-Final, as Marie France Larouche stole 1 in the eighth as Bingyu Wang’s draw with her final stone came up light, and Sherry Middaugh made a hit for 2 points with her last rock in the extra end against Heather Rankin. Cathy King did not have to throw her last rock, as Mary Anne Arsenault just missed with her last, giving King the 6-5 victory.
This sets up a Western Semi-Final, and an Eastern Semi-Final. Cathy King from Alberta will face Stephanie Lawton from Saskatchewan, and Mary-France Larouche from Quebec meets Sherry Middaugh of Ontario. This is a rematch of last year’s final, which was won by Middaugh.
The semis go at 11:30 this morning, with the final at 3 pm.
The Board of Directors of the PEI Curling Association is pleased to announce that Mr. Darrell Doucette has accepted the position of Event Coordinator for the upcoming season. Mr. Doucette is a native of Rustico, currently living in Charlottetown, and brings a wealth of event and project management experience to the position, which involves coordinating the running of fourteen provincial championship events, with curlers from under 12 years of age through to over 60.
Photo: Darrell Doucette Click for larger version.
During the “off-season”, Mr. Doucette is owner/operator of “Tournament Golf” (www.tournamentgolf.ca), a golf event management company. He has been involved in the management of several PEI golf courses, and prior to that worked in construction planning and project management. He has also been an avid curler, and is very familiar with the sport.
Mr. Doucette can be contacted at tournamentgolf@yahoo.ca.
Due to a conflict with the curling portion of the 55+ Games, the dates for the Provincial Stick Curling Championship at the Cornwall Curling Club have been advanced from early March to February 16-18. Entry deadline is Jan. 26, and entry fee is $60 per two-player team. This will be the third year for this event, which was won the first two years by the Cornwall duo of Ernie Stavert and Sterling Stratton.
In stick curling there are two curlers per team, who deliver their rocks with delivery sticks, with each team member delivering from opposite ends. Sweeping is allowed only from the hog line to the back of the house at the playing end. Two curlers, one from each team, alternately deliver 6 stones each per end, while their teammate skips that end. The roles are then reversed, and the partners deliver the stones back. All games are six ends.
Stick curlers are excited about a new rule this year which extends the free guard zone from the hogline to the backline of the house. This means that no stone may be removed from play until the fourth stone of each end. Bob Leard is a stick curler and delivery stick manufacturer from Montague who has played under the new rule, and says that it makes for a much more exciting game, as there are always rocks in the house.
For more information on stick curling, including complete rules of play, visit www.stickcurling.ca.
The quarter-finals get underway Sunday at 9 am at the annual Silver Fox Curling Club Cashspiel in Summerside. Two teams, skipped by New Brunswick’s Mark Armstrong and by Charlottetown’s Brett Gallant, have advanced directly to the noon semi-finals, as a result of their round robin results. Gallant will play the winner of a quarter-final between Rick Perron of Moncton and Charlottetown’s Kyle Stevenson, while Armstrong meets either Summerside’s Mike Gaudet, or Danny Christianson of Halifax.
Gallant went through round-robin play undefeated, while Armstrong, Stevenson, Perron and Christianson had 4-1 win-loss records, and Gaudet went 3-2.
The finals go at 3 pm, with $2000 going to the winning team, $1600 to the runner-up, $1200 for third and fourth place, and $800 going to the remaining quarter-finalists.
In play on Saturday, Perron scored five points in the third end for a 5-0 decision over Charlottetown’s Tim Cullen, and scored four points in the final end to win 7-4 over Robbie Shaw. He beat Ted MacFadyen 6-1 in four ends in another Saturday game.
Bill Hope of Charlottetown handed Christianson his only loss by a 5-1 score, aided by a four point steal in the second end, earlier in the day, Christianson doubled Charlottetown’s Tim Cullen 8-4, taking 4 in the fifth end, and stealing a 6th end single to end the game early.
Gaudet doubled Derek Ellard of Moncton 6-3, and beat Terry Piper 6-2. Gallant beat Charlottetown clubmate Kim Dolan 7-5 in an extra end, shaded Gaudet 7-6 by stealing two points in the final end, and beat Ellard 6-4, while Stevenson beat clubmate John Likely 8-3, taking four points in the 6th, and won 8-1 over Karen Currie of Cornwall.
Eighteen teams are taking part in this annual Atlantic Curling Tour event.
Donna Butler’s Cinderella run concluded Saturday evening at the Sobeys Slam in New Glasgow NS, as Crystal Webster scored 4 in the sixth to take a 6-4 lead, then Butler blanked the seventh but was only able to get one with the hammer in eight to fall 6-5. Webster will face Stephanie Lawton in the quarter-finals, which begin Sunday morning at 8.
World Champion Jennifer Jones missed some opportunities early, and Cathy King took 4 in the sixth to take a 6-2 lead. But Jones replied with 3 of her own in the seventh, and was one down going home, without the hammer. King scored 2 in the eighth, and advanced to the quarter-finals, against Mary Anne Arsenault of Halifax, with an 8-5 victory.
Heather Strong and Marie France LaRouche went back and forth, until Larouche clinched the win with 2 in the eighth. Last year’s finalist now faces Team China in the quarters.
Heather Rankin survived a close call against Krista McCarville. She thought McCarville’s stone was shot rock, but a measurement revealed otherwise for a 7-6 victory. Rankin now meets defending champion Sherry Middaugh.
The semifinals are scheduled for 11:30 am and the final goes at 3 pm.
Draw #11 at the Sobeys Slam in New Glasgow NS advanced two teams to the Quarter-Finals and sent six teams packing. It also marked the end of the week for the Bluenose Curling Club, with all further games to be played at John Brother MacDonald Stadium. The ‘B’ Event qualifying games featured Sherry Middaugh facing Heather Strong, and Stephanie Lawton taking on Heather Rankin. Both Heathers were defeated, but live to play at least one more, as they drop down to the ‘C’ Event qualifiers scheduled for 7:30pm.
In the ‘C’ Event, six games were played, to determine the 6 teams to join Strong and Rankin in the 7:30 games. The winning teams advanced, while the losing teams were knocked out. World Champion Jennifer Jones was too much for Julie Reddick, Cathy King went right to the final rock against PEI’s Suzanne Birt, winning 4-3, last year’s Slam Finalist Marie France Larouche stayed alive with a win over Patti Lank, and regional qualifier Donna Butler of Cornwall PEI continued to impress with a 7-3 win over Karen Porritt.
Butler is now playing Crystal Webster in the Qualifer #7 game, which is being webcast live on CurlTV.
For CurlTV subscribers, the Donna Butler rink are playing Crystal Webster from Calgary at the Sobeys Slam beginning right now (7:30 pm) at www.curltv.com.
Charlottetown’s Suzanne Birt rink and Cornwall’s Donna Butler foursome move to a 3-2 win-loss record after Saturday morning play in the Sobeys Slam being played in New Glasgow NS. Any further losses will put them out of this triple-knockout event. In this morning’s action, Sherry Middaugh of Ontario scored 4 points in the fourth end after blanking the first three, in a 7-4 victory over Butler, while Stephanie Lawton of Saskatchewan kept the Birt rink scoreless through the first three ends, taking a deuce, then stealing a triple and another pair. They traded pairs through the next two ends, and ended early with a 9-2 final score.
Birt now plays Cathy King of Alberta at 4 pm, while Butler also plays at 4, against the winner of a noon contest between Karen Porrit of Manitoba and Karri-Lee Grant of Ontario.
The B-side qualifiers also go at 4 pm, with Lawton playing Heather Rankin of Alberta, and Middaugh facing Heather Strong of St. John’s. Mary Anne Arsenault of Halifax, and Bingyu Wang of China have already qualified for the money round in the A section. The four C Division qualifiers go tonight at 7:30.
Quarter-finals are 8 am Sunday, with the semis at 11:30 am, and the final at 3 pm.
Summerside — Three-time P.E.I. Junior champ Brett Gallant and his team, which includes Summerside curlers, were hot on the ice Friday, winning both their games at the Silver Fox Curling Club’s Summerside Cashspiel.
Click to read this story in today’s Journal Pioneer.
Shawny Ross carries a big stick and she’s not afraid to use it — at the curling rink, that is.
The legally blind curler from Stratford uses a curling cue to guide her shots at the Charlottetown Curling Club and the recent transplant from Ontario is hoping to coerce other blind or visually impaired Islanders into the sport with a demonstration Sunday at 4 p.m. at the club.
Click to read this story in today’s Guardian.
The 4 pm Friday draw saw the first of the elimination games at the 2008 Sobeys Slam in New Glasgow NS, and in a bit of a shocker, Shannon Kleibrink was eliminated after losing 7-6 to Karen Porritt in an extra end. Kleibrink scored 3 in the eighth to force the extra, but Porritt took advantage of the hammer to get her single point and stay alive in the triple knockout event. Kleibrink lost in three straight, losing her opener to Cornwall’s Donna Butler on Thursday, and her second game to Renee Sonnenberg of Alberta.
Second seed Jennifer Jones was also on her last legs, but had more luck, ousting the Nova Scotia rink skipped by Jill Mouzar 6-5. Nancy McConnery, also from Nova Scotia, was eliminated after a 6-3 loss to Cathy King, which was King’s first victory at the Sobeys Slam in two years of travel to Pictou County. Another rink with a Nova Scotia connection has been eliminated, as the Kelly Scott rink, skipped this week by Colleen Jones, fell to Amber Holland 5-4 to be eliminated.
Along with six elimination games in the seventh draw, there was one match in the ‘B’ Event, with Suzanne Birt of PEI sending Marie France Larouche of Quebec to the ‘C’ event after an 8-3 decision. Larouche, who made the final of last year’s Slam after qualifying from the ‘A’ Event, will now face Amber Holland in an elimination game Saturday morning. The PEI rink now sports a 3-1 win-loss record. Earlier on Friday, they beat Jill Mouzar of Halifax 9-4.
The first two Quarter-Finalists were determined in the 7:30 pm draw, with, Mary Anne Arsenault of Halifax beating Stephanie Lawton of Saskatoon 8-6 in one ‘A’ Event match, while Bingyu Wang shaded Sherry Middaugh 5-4 in the other. Lawton now plays Suzanne Birt Saturday morning at 8:30.
Cornwall’s Donna Butler rink also moved to 3-1 with a decisive 9-2 win over Sylvie Robichaud of New Brunswick on Friday evening, picking up four points in the seventh end. Butler now faces Middaugh at 8:30 Saturday morning. Earlier on Friday, Butler beat Carrie Lindner of St. Catharines Ont. 7-5.
A demonstration by Shawny Ross of vision-impaired curling will take place Sunday November 30 at 4 pm at the Charlottetown Curling Club. You may have seen the story on Compass featuring Shawny and a small but growing group of vision-impaired curlers hoping to start a league and send the first PEI team to the National Vision Impaired Championships. Come out and support them and spread the word to anyone who might be interested in participating or just watching. Everyone is welcome!
PEI’s Donna Butler and Suzanne Birt rinks won their first Friday games at the Sobeys Slam in New Glasgow NS, and move to 2-1 win-loss records.
Birt played Jill Mouzar (not Mary Anne Arsenault as we previously reported!) of Halifax this morning, and won 9-4, with two four-point ends. Butler scored three points in the seventh end in a 7-5 win over Carrie Lindner of St. Catharines Ont.
Birt faces Marie-France LaRouche at 4 pm, while Butler meets New Brunswick provincial champion Sylvie Robichaud at 7:30 pm.
ADAM RICHARDSON
Transcontinental Media
NEW GLASGOW, N.S. — There wasn’t a bunch of hype surrounding Donna Butler’s rink from Cornwall, P.E.I., at the Sobeys Slam.
After all, the team needed a regional qualifier just to reach the main draw, and was pitted against top seed and Olympic bronze-medallist Shannon Kleibrink in the first game Thursday.
She flew in under the radar, but after that noon contest at the Bluenose Curling Club, Butler won’t sneak up on anybody else this week.
Click to read this story in today’s Guardian
Click for photo from the New Glasgow Daily News
Cornwall’s Donna Butler rink, and Charlottetown’s Suzanne Birt foursome split their opening games Thursday at the Sobeys Slam in New Glasgow Nova Scotia,
Butler, playing with Marie Molyneaux, Melissa Andrews, and Carolyn Coulson, doubled top-ranked Shannon Kleibrink of Calgary 6-3 in their opener, by stealing three points in the final end. Butler’s evening game, against Calgary’s Crystal Webster, also ended in a 6-3 score, this time in favour of the opposition, who scored three of their points in the first end. Butler now plays Carrie Lindner of St. Catharines Ontario, Friday at noon. Islanders may know Lindner from the 2001 Canadian Junior Championships, where she lost to eventual winner Suzanne Gaudet in the semi-finals.
Meanwhile Gaudet, now Suzanne Birt, and her rink, which includes Shelly Bradley, Leslie MacDougall, and Stefanie Clark, lost her opening game, 5-3 to Amber Holland of Regina in the morning draw, but won a cliffhanger over Janet McGhee of Ontario 7-6 in the afternoon, after McGhee picked up four points in the seventh end to come back from a 4-2 deficit, and Birt responded with a triple in the final end to pull out the one-point victory. Birt now plays at 8:30 am Friday against Mary Anne Arsenault of Halifax.
In other Thursday action, eight teams are sporting 2-0 records, and have put themselves into excellent position to earn one of the quarter-final spots for Sunday morning. At 2-0 are: Heather Strong of Newfoundland/Labrador, Mary Anne Arsenault of Halifax, Alison Goring of Ontario, Stefanie Lawton of Sask., Crystal Webster of Calgary, Bingyu Wang of China, Cheryl Bernard of Calgary, and Sherry Middaugh of Ont.
In Draw 1, Heather Strong hit and rolled out in the eighth, blanking the end and sending it to an extra, but was then able to take advantage of the hammer to defeat Patti Lank 5-4. Lank’s fellow American rink, Aileen Sormunen also lost 8-2 in five ends to former World Champion Kelly Scott’s rink, being skipped this week by Colleen Jones.
Defending champion Sherry Middaugh assured herself a different path this year, with a convincing 9-2 victory over Sylvie Robichaud. In the 2007 Slam, Middaugh lost her first two before rattling off 7 straight must-win victories to claim the inaugural championship.
In draw 3, there was a battle of Nova Scotia teams, which saw Mary Anne Arsenault come out on top of a 6-3 decision with Jill Mouzar. An all Saskatchewan battle between Stephanie Lawton and Amber Holland ended 9-3 in favor of Lawton. And an all-Alberta match-up between Cathy King and Heather Rankin ended with Rankin scoring 2 in the eighth to win 7-5.
In draw 4, there was a very interesting match between Andrea Kelly and Bingyu Wang. After blanking the first three ends, Kelly was able to take 2 in the fourth, followed by Wang scoring 1 in the fifth and stealing 1 in the sixth. The seventh end saw multiple rocks sitting around the button, before Kelly was forced to take one. Wang scored a deuce in eight to get the victory.
Another all-Alberta matchup in the ‘B’ event saw Shannon Kleibrink and Renee Sonnenberg blank four of the first five ends before lots of rocks came into play in the sixth. Shannon Kleibrink took 2 in the sixth to take a 2-1 lead. Sonnenberg answered with a deuce of her own in seven to go up 3-2 coming home. A couple of unfortunate misses by the Kleibrink team set up a steal of 2 by Sonnenberg, to give her the 5-3 victory.
Going into the Sobeys Slam, Cornwall’s Donna Butler sat down to answers some questions asked by event chair Jim Nix.
1. So Donna, unlike many of the teams here, you had to earn your way into the Slam. What was that like and did you find yourself doing a bunch of “scoreboard watching”?
” We spent a little more time watching the other game and the results of other pool that we would normally not pay a lot of attention to other pools until time for crossovers. “
2. Although most everyone in PEI and the Atlantic region is familiar with Donna Butler, many of our visitors may not be quite so familiar with your team. Tell us a little about how long the team has been together and how it came to be?
” Marie (3rd) and I have played together since 2001 except for one year while I was off having a baby. Carolyn (Lead) played with us for five of those years. Melissa joined Marie and me in 2006 and then in 2007 Carolyn can back to join us again. Last year we were very pleased with our results and really felt that we need to get a coach to join us. “
3. I have heard that Kathie Gallant is coaching you. Obviously, she is well known in the curling community and has a great deal of experience at many levels. What has it meant to you team to have someone like her coaching you?
” Lucky for us Kathie and Peter decided it was time for Peter to coach their son Brett Gallant, and we asked Kathie to join us. She is really helping us and pushing us to the next level. The coach really takes a lot of pressure off me preparing for practice times. The coach always gets away with saying more to the team then players can say to each other. “
4. There are not a lot of events in Atlantic Canada for teams, especially women to play in and even less where you can actually make enough to pay for the weekend away. What does the Team Butler schedule look like for 2008-09?
” We have played in Moncton, Charlottetown and now the Sobeys Slam. Had we not made the pool we would have played in the Summerside Men’s spiel. We would prefer Ladies spiels but if that does not work we will play in the men’s. We will be playing in only one more spiel before our Scotties play downs. We also curl two nights per week in the Charlottetown Super League and our home club competitive league. “
5. You played in the Rodd Curling Classic last weekend where you ultimately qualified for the Sobeys Slam. With only four qualifiers, it was tough and although you did miss qualifying, you had a not too shabby 3-2 record that included wins over a couple of reigning provincial champs Suzanne Birt from PEI and Sylvie Robichaud of NB, along with knocking off fellow Slam qualifier Nancy McConnery. That has to leave you feeling pretty good about how your team is playing heading into the Sobeys and also about how the year is going?
” I struggled a little in a few of the games where we had some chances. I know the whole team learned a few things and we now have two week to practice and prepare for the Sobeys. “
6. Most of the teams that will be attending the Sobeys will be flying in. Your choices are the ferry or the bridge. What will it be?
” We are going to pre book to catch the ferry. And we are hoping that it is not windy. “
7. You are aware of the field that will be attending the Sobeys. Have you had the opportunity to play against this level of teams before and if not, how do you think your team will respond? Further to that, I know many of our local teams have not played in an arena. It is definitely different but I think quite exciting as well. Have your girls had the chance to play in an arena before and do you expect much difference from playing in a curling club?
” I have an opportunity to through a few rocks as a fifth player at the Scott but this will be new for the remainder of the team. We are really looking forward to the fast ice that always makes for more interesting games and great shots. I really think we are all going to really enjoy the experience. “
8. Curling has changed a lot over the last number of years. What do you think has had the biggest impact on the game since you have been playing?
” Well I have been playing since I was in grade 7 at a time where you pushed as hard as you could just to make the other end. The fast Ice and free guard zone makes our game so great with such exciting shots. “
9. As a World Curling Tour event and part of the Grand Slam series, the Sobeys Slam will be playing 8 ends. Are most of the spiels in the region going to 8 ends or have they remained at 10 and what are your thoughts and preferences?
” All our events so far this year have been 8 ends and to me this is great. I really think it is the perfect length I think it shortens the start and middle of the game. Making the game get going a litter quicker. “
10. Your first game is against Shannon Kleibrink, the number 1 ranked team in the country right now – are you looking forward to playing Shannon?
” Yes, this is great. It puts the pressure on for game one and personally, I am a little nervous about it but once the game starts, I will settle in and just play. “
11. Any final comments?
” Just that as a team, we are so pleased that the host committee has allowed for the opportunity to have two spots filled with Atlantic Canadian teams through a qualifying process. We would also like to thank all of the volunteers that have made this event happen for the Atlantic Canada region. “
Cornwall’s Donna Butler rink, which includes third Marie Molyneaux, second Melissa Andrews, and lead Carolyn Coulson, are off to a tremendous start at the Sobeys Slam in New Glasgow Nova Scotia, doubling top-ranked Shannon Kleibrink of Calgary 6-3 in their opener, by stealing three points in the final end. Butler now plays Calgary’s Crystal Webster at 7:30 pm.
Meanwhile, Charlottetown’s Suzanne Birt rink, which includes Shelly Bradley, Leslie MacDougall, and Stefanie Clark, lost her opening game, 5-3 to Amber Holland of Regina in the morning draw, but won a cliffhanger over Janet McGhee of Ontario 7-6 in the afternoon, after McGhee picked up four points in the seventh end to come back from a 4-2 deficit, and Birt responded with a triple in the final end to pull out the one-point victory. Birt now plays at 8:30 am Friday against Mary Ann Arsenault of Halifax.
The Provincial Firefighters Curling Championship takes place Friday through Sunday at the Charlottetown Curling Club. Last year’s winners were the rink of Wellington Gay, Ken McGregor, Ron Young and lead Charlie Murdock, from the Crossroads Community Fire Department. This year’s victors will advance to the 50th Anniversary Canadian Firefighters Muscular Dystrophy Hydrant Curling Championship, also at the Charlottetown Curling Club, from March 27 to April 4th, 2009. Defending national champs are the Yellowknife NWT Fire Department. PEI last hosted the national event in 1997, also at the Charlottetown club.
Ontario’s Glenn Howard rink are repeat men’s winners of the $97,000 Sun Life Financial Invitational Curling Classic, which wrapped up this afternoon in Brantford Ont. The Howard foursome beat Jean-Michel Ménard of Quebec 6-1 in the final. Marie-France LaRouche of Quebec shaded Jacqueline Harrison of Ottawa 8-7 in the women’s final.
PEI’s Suzanne Birt rink, which includes third Shelly Bradley, second Leslie MacDougall and lead Stefanie Clark, made it to the quarter-finals, losing a close 5-4 decision on Sunday evening to Eve Bélisle of Montreal. The Birt rink went home with $4000.
PEI’s Suzanne Birt rink, which includes third Shelly Bradley, second Leslie MacDougall and lead Stefanie Clark, lost a close 5-4 decision Sunday evening to Eve Bélisle of Montreal in the quarter-final round at the $97,000 Sun Life Financial Invitational Curling Classic in Brantford Ont. On Sunday afternoon the Birt foursome edged the Kathy Brown rink from Guelph Ont. by a 4-3 score to advance to the money round.
The Birt rink will go home with $4000 for their quarter-final finish.
In the other quarter-final matchups, Erika Brown of Madison Wisconsin edged Karen Bell of Stoney Creek 5-4, Marie-France LaRouche of Quebec got by Bingyu Wang of China by an 8-7 score, and Jacqueline Harrison of Ottawa edged Heather Strong of St. John’s 6-5.
On the men’s side, defending champion Glenn Howard downed Darryl Prebble of Toronto 6-2, Mike McEwen of Winnipeg lost to Andreas Schwaller of Switzerland by a 5-4 score, Brad Jacobs of Sault Ste. Marie doubled Brad Gushue of St. John’s 6-3, and Jean-Michel Ménard of Quebec beat Wayne Middaugh of Toronto by an 8-3 score.
The semi-finals go Monday morning at 9, with the finals at 12:30 pm Eastern.
The Sobeys Slam gets underway Thursday and wraps up Sunday at the Bluenose Curling Club and the John Brother MacDonald Stadium in New Glasgow NS. Charlottetown’s Suzanne Birt rink, which includes third Shelly Bradley, second Leslie MacDougall, and lead Stefanie Clark, along with Cornwall’s Donna Butler foursome, with Marie Molyneaux at third, Melissa Andrews at second, and Carolyn Coulson at lead, are PEI’s entrants. Other entries in this star-studded event include Jennifer Jones, Shannon Kleibrink, Kelly Scott, Stefanie Lawton, Sherry Middaugh, Cheryl Bernard, Cathy King, Mary Anne Arsenault, two US teams, and the silver medallists in last year’s World championship, Team China (Bingyu Wang).
Birt will play Amber Holland of Regina in the opening draw, Thursday at 8:30 am.
The Butler rink, who qualified as a result of their 3-2 finish at the Rodd Curling Classic in Charlottetown, will open against top-ranked Shannon Kleibrink of Calgary Thursday at noon.
Asked about the opportunity to play in the Slam and to face Kleibrink, Butler had this to say, “As a team, we are so pleased the host committee has allowed for two spots to be filled with Atlantic Canada teams through a qualifying process and we are very excited about the opportunity to play in the Sobeys Slam. It is such a great opportunity to play the best teams from across Canada. Playing Kleibrink in our first game does put pressure on us but it is great. I am a little nervous but once the game gets going, we’ll settle in and just play”.
The Sobeys Slam is the only women’s World Curling Tour Grand Slam event in Eastern Canada. Featuring the best women’s curling teams in the world, the Canadian teams will be competing for Canadian Team Ranking system (CTRS) points, enabling them to qualify for the 2009 Olympic Trials. It is not all about points however – with $60,000 up for grabs, the Sobeys Slam is one of the richest women’s cash spiels in the world.
A full schedule of events can be found at www.sobeysslam.ca.
Tickets can be purchased at the website, or at any Sobeys store in Atlantic Canada.
|
|
Recent Comments