Photo (L-R): Veronica Smith, Tyler Smith
The eighth end proved crucial in both games tonight in the Curl PEI/Pepsi Provincial Junior Curling Championships, at the Cornwall Curling Club, giving both the Tyler Smith and Veronica Smith rinks from the host club the edge in their games against the undefeated Christopher Gallant and Amanda MacLean teams from Charlottetown and Cornwall respectively.
Photo: Tyler Smith lines up his shot – he wants to hit his front red rock onto Gallant’s blue shot stone, avoiding the other blue stone, and stick around to lie three
Photo: Smith makes the shot, and counts three
Fourteen year old Tyler Smith, who finished round robin play with a 3-3 win-loss record, and was playing his third game of the day after winning a quarter-final and a semi-final, had a slim 3-2 lead going into the eighth, against Gallant, who finished round robin play with a spotless 6-0 record and had a bye to the final when, with Gallant lying behind one behind a Smith guard with another Gallant rock partially covering it as well, Smith attempted, and made, a tricky raise on his guard to knock out the Gallant counter and hang around for a triple. Gallant’s final shot in the ninth end rolled out, and it was handshake time, with a 6-2 final score.
Photo: Veronica Smith rink wants to split the front rock into the rings, and roll the shooter in, too
The split is successful – Smith counts five!
Veronica Smith’s game was tied at 4 going into the eighth, where, going into her last shot she was lying three, with another rock just inches from the rings. She attempted to split that rock onto the house and roll her shooter in as well. The rock was a bit heavy, but both stones managed to stay in the rings, and she counted five. MacLean was kept to a single in the ninth, and Smith ran her out of rocks in the 10th, for a 9-5 final score.
Photo – winning Tyler Smith rink (L-R): Allan Campbell (coach), Jonathan Schut, Alex Jenkins, Alex Sutherland, Tyler Smith, Angela Hodgson (Curl PEI)
Photo: Runner-up Christopher Gallant rink (L-R): Andrew Cameron, Taylor McInnis, Kyle Holland, Christopher Gallant, coach Peter Gallant, Bob Fowler, President Cornwall Curling Club
The Tyler Smith team includes third Alex Sutherland, second Alex Jenkins, and first stone Jonathan Schut,, with coaches Allan Campbell and Kevin Smith. Tyler, who skipped the 2011 PEI Canada Games men’s rink, and last year’s Under 16 PEI championship team, doubled the Cody Dixon rink from Montague 8-4 in this afternoon’s semi-final, and edged the Matthew MacLean rink from the Maple Leaf Curling Club in O’Leary 9-8 in an extra end in the morning quarter-final. Gallant, along with third Kyle Holland, and lead Andrew Cameron were on last year’s winning rink, skipped by Alex Matters, who is not in the event this year. Taylor McInnis joined the Gallant rink at second stone this season. The team is coached by Peter Gallant, Christopher’s father.
Smith and Dixon, MacLean,Shawn Pitre of Charlottetown, and Alex MacFadyen of Summerside all finished round robin play with 3-3 win-loss records. Draw to the button results, followed by a tie breaker game and two quarter-final games were used to determine the teams in the semi-final. Gallant beat Smith 4-2 in their round robin encounter.
Photo – winning Veronica Smith team (L-R): Paul Smith (coach), Chloe McCloskey, Sabrina Smith, Katie Fullerton, Veronica Smith, Bill Hope (coach), Bob Fowler (President, Cornwall Curling Club)
Photo: Runner-up Amanda MacLean rink (L-R): Coaches Glen MacLean and Shelley Gray, alternate Jane DiCarlo, Aleya Quilty, Emily Gray, Kassinda Bulger, Amanda MacLean, Bob Fowler, President, Cornwall Curling Club
Third Katie Fullerton, second Sabrina Smith, and lead Chloe McCloskey round out the Veronica Smith squad, who were last year’s PEI Under 18 women’s champions, and are coached by Bill Hope and Paul Smith. Other members of the MacLean rink, who were also runners-up last year, are 3rd Kassinda Bulger, second Emily Gray, a member of last year’s Youth Olympics bronze medal team, lead Aleya Quilty, and alternate Jane DiCarlo, with coaches Shelley Gray and Glen MacLean.. Smith edged the Kaleigh MacKay rink from the Crapaud and Silver Fox clubs 4-3 in the semi-final this afternoon.
Both Smith rinks will now advance to the M&M Meat Shops Canadian Juniors, February 2-10, in Fort McMurray Alberta.
Seven men’s and five women’s teams took part in this year’s PEI Junior Championships, sponsored by Pepsi, who announced this week that they are renewing their over 40 years of sponsorship of PEI junior curling, by at least another five years.