The Suzanne Birt rink from the Charlottetown Curling Complex, which includes two members of her 2016 winning team, third Marie Christianson, and second Meaghan Hughes, along with lead Michelle McQuaid, captured the PEI Scotties Provincial Women’s Curling Championship Sunday afternoon at the Western Community Curling Club in Alberton, with a 10-4 win over Cornwall’s Veronica Smith foursome. This is Birt’s 10th provincial women’s championship — she won her first in 2003. Hughes and McQuaid were also on the 2017 and 2018 winning teams, skipped by Robyn MacPhee.

Winning team photo (L-R): Bill Smith, Curl PEI Treasurer, Suzanne Birt, Marie Christianson. Meaghan Hughes, Michelle McQuaid, coach Mitchell O’Shea.

Other members of the Veronica Smith finalist team are third Jane DiCarlo, second Sabrina Smith, and lead Whitney Jenkins, with coach Pat Aylward.

Finalist team photo (L-R): Veronica Smith, Jane DiCarlo, Sabrina Smith, Whitney Jenkins, coach Pat Aylward.

Smith won the “A” Qualifier of the modified triple knockout draw, with Sarah Fullerton winning the “B” and Birt capturing the “C”. Smith had a bye to the final by virtue of playing in all three section qualifiers, so Fullerton and Birt played off in the Sunday morning semi-final, with Birt, helped out by a three-point fifth end, winning 7-6.

In the final, Birt stole a single in the first end, and kept Smith to one point in the second. Birt scored a deuce in the third, and stole another pair in the fourth end for a 5-1 lead, with Smith taking a single in the fifth. Birt came out strong after the 5th end break, taking a triple in the sixth and stealing a deuce in the seventh end for a big 10-2 lead. Smith took a deuce in the eighth, but it was handshake time with a 10-4 final score.

The winning Suzanne Birt rink will now advance to the national Scotties in Sydney NS: