One men’s and two women’s draws were played on opening day of the Credit Unions of PEI Provincial Seniors Curling Championships, at the Silver Fox Curling & Yacht Club in Summerside, who are also hosting the national Seniors, March 16-24. The Jennifer Scott rink from Montague, and the Nola Murphy foursome from the host club are both 2-0 in the women’s triple knockout event, and have advanced to the first of four qualifying games for the Page championship round. That game takes place at 1 pm on Friday.
Murphy beat clubmate Marg Nowlan 9-7 this morning, and scored 5 points in the 10th end of a 10-6 win over Cornwall’s Karen Currie this evening.
Montague’s Scott rink, who together won the provincial women’s championship back in 1988, and are reunited this season, are off to a flying start in this event, stealing the last two ends in a 5-4 victory over defending champion Shirley Berry and her combined Cornwall/Silver Fox team this morning, and downing their clubmates, the Kathy Clarey rink, 10-4 in only six ends this evening.
In the men’s section, the Charlottetown/Silver Fox team of Rod MacDonald, John Likely, Mark O’Rourke. and Peter MacDonald, who have won a combined total of 23 PEI Tankard men’s championships between them, won their opener today, 9-3 over the Blair Jay rink from the host club.
Last year’s runner-up and this year’s Masters champion, Mel Bernard, also from the Fox, recorded a 5-2 win over his Masters teammate Lou Nowlan, while 2011 Seniors champ Bill Hope and his Cornwall/Silver Fox team doubled Montague’s Donald Clarey, with a rink whose other three members are from the Charlottetown Curling Complex, 10-5.
Friday action sees all six sheets in play at both 1 and 6 pm, with three women’s games, and three men’s matches in each draw, including the women’s A qualifier at 1.
Saturday draws are also at 1 (including the second women’s qualifier) and 6, with men’s tiebreakers (if needed), the final two women’s qualifiers, and the men’s semi-finals going Sunday, with the finals taking place Monday at 2 pm.
