The Amber Holland rink from Kronau Saskatchewan beat the Sherry Middaugh team from Coldwater Ont. by an 11-6 score this afternoon to repeat as winners of the Sandra Schmirler Charity Curling Classic at the Caledonia Curling Club in Regina. A four point third end and a steal of three in the final frame helped ensure the $12,000 victory. The Middaugh foursome had to settle for $8000 for second place in the 30 team charity event. Holland beat Chantelle Eberle of Regina 9-5 in semi-final play, while Middaugh edged out Lisa Eyamie of Calgary 5-4. The Eberle and Eyamie rinks each went home with $5000, with the Chelsea Carey team of Morden Manitoba, the Stefanie Lawton rink of Saskatoon, Winnipeg’s Jill Thurston team, and the Heather Nedohin rink of Edmonton, who lost out in the quarter final round, earning $3500 each. An additional $3000 was paid to the winners of the final round robin games.
PEI’s Kathy O’Rourke team lost their final round robin game on Sunday morning against Crystal Webster of Calgary by a 10-1 score in only four ends to finish out of the playoffs with a 2-3 win-loss record. The PEI team had hammer in the first end, and picked up a point, but Webster took a deuce in the second end, and stole four points in each of the next two ends to bring the game to an early conclusion.
The O’Rourke foursome lost their opener 8-2 to the Jill Thurston rink of Winnipeg, but stole three points in the seventh end to edge the Heather Burnett foursome of Saskatchewan 6-5 in their second game. The PEI team, which includes Erin Carmody throwing final rocks, Geri-Lynn Ramsay at third, O’Rourke throwing second but calling the game, and Tricia Affleck at lead stone, then faced the Erika Brown rink from Madison Wisconsin, losing 7-5 when Brown rallied with a triple in the final end. The Island rink then edged Saskatchewan’s Trish Paulsen team 6-5 in an extra end, stealing a single in the third and a deuce in the 4th to lead 4-2 after four ends. After trading singles in ends five through seven, the Paulsen rink forced the extra end with a steal in the eighth, but the PEI team used hammer in the extra to win the game.
