Suzanne Birt and her Charlottetown Curling Complex rink edged the Kim Dolan team by a 5-4 score this afternoon at the Montague Curling Club to win Birt’s 9th PEI Scotties in a tight battle against a very experienced team, led by Charlottetown’s Dolan, who has 10 PEI women’s titles to her credit.
Birt, a former World Junior champion, also won last year, and is playing with a new team this time around, with her former teammate Robyn Green returning to play third stone, Meghan Hughes at second, and Marie Christianson at lead, with coach Danny Christianson. Team Birt will now compete at the national Scotties Tournament of Hearts. February 20-28, 2016 at Revolution Place, in Grande Prairie, Alberta.
PEICurling.com photo (L-R): Sinead Dolan, Michala Robison, Kim Dolan
Rounding out the Dolan team, who lost to Birt in both the A and B finals in the modified triple knockout round, but won the C by beating clubmate Lisa Jackson 7-5 Sunday evening to advance to the championship round, are Rebecca Jean MacDonald, Sinead Dolan (Kim’s daughter), and lead Michala Robison, with alternate Jackie Reid. Jackson handed Birt her first loss in the event on Sunday afternoon, keeping her out of the C final.
Dolan, who would have had to win both games in today’s championship round, while Birt, who won two sections only had to win one, forced this afternoon’s sudden death game with an 8-6 win this morning. In this afternoon’s low-scoring final, Birt blanked the first end, and took a single in the second. Dolan took one in the third, with Birt coming back with one in the fourth, and a stolen single in the 5th end to lead 3-1 at the break. Dolan was kept to a single in six, with Birt blanking the seventh, and taking a deuce in end eight to lead 5-2. Dolan narrowed the gap with a pair of singles, to lose by just a point.
Six teams – five from Charlottetown, and one from the host club were in the event. The Future Scotties developmental event, for female curlers under 21, attracted five teams, with the Alexis Burris rink from Cornwall going undefeated to lead the round robin series.