HeartChart January 30,2010

Issue 1 – Saturday, January 30, 2010 • An Official Publication of the Canadian Curling Association.

Who’ll turn up Queen of Hearts?

The nation’s best stone slingers gird for battle in the Soo Jennifer Jones, Krista McCarville, Kelly Scott and Amber Holland, fresh off the Olympic Trials, are the frontrunners for Scotties glory.

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Page 10

HeartChart

SCOTTIES FORD HOT SHOTS COMPETITION

Askin ablaze after first round

Sweeping (qualifiers can select two sweepers) is perHeartChart Editor mitted, beginning with the final eight.

Ford of Canada will eam Canada lead provide the winner with a Dawn Askin of two-year lease on a 2010 Winnipeg was three Ford Taurus SEL FWD, an points better than any other Scotties rock-tosser on approximate retail value in excess of $25,000. The Friday during preliminary vehicle features a 3.5L V6 play in the pre-Hearts Ford Hot Shots competition at the engine with 6-speed automatic transmission.

Essar Centre.

In addition, second-place Askin scored an impresfinishers will take home sive 25 of 30 in the points event and led Winnipeg skip $2,000, while third-place finishers receive $1,000.

Jill Thurston (22), SasRounding out the quarterkatchewan second Tammy finalists decided Friday, Schneider, Manitoba third Kristen Phillips and Quebec Ontario lead Kari MacLean and Saskatchewan skip third Brenda Nicholls (tied Amber Holland scored 19 with 20). points each while Territories The shotmaking showlead Danielle Ellis had 18 down requires curlers to including a draw that covexecute six shots: Hit-andstay, draw-the-button, draw- ered the button, affording her a tie-breaking the-port, raise, hitnod for today’s last and-roll and double quarter-final positakeout. Each shot tion. is awarded points Others scoring 18 on a scale from 0-5, points who were rating the success of eliminated were each.

British Columbia Following FriDawn Askin skip Kelly Scott, day’s preliminary Nova Scotia second round involving all Sheena Gilman, 48 Scotties curlers, the top New Brunswick lead Lianne eight advance to quarterSobey, Newfoundland secfinal, semi-final and final ond Rhonda Rogers, Alberta contests today at 1:15 p.m., following the Scotties open- skip Valerie Sweeting and Team Canada second Jill ing ceremonies.

Larry Wood

Manitoba skip Jill Thurston of Winnipeg sits second after Friday’s inaugural round of the Ford Hot Shots competition at the Essar Centre.

Thurston has 22 points, three back of Team Canada lead Dawn Askin. The pre-Scotties event wraps up today at 1:15 p.m.

T

Officer, the winner two years ago.

The only two-time winner in the history of the event was Kelley Law of Vancouver, the B.C. runner-up this year and 2002 Canadian Olympic skip.

Other previous winners: Yukon/NWT’s Kelli Turpin, British Columbia’s Sherry Fraser and Kristy Lewis, Alberta’s Marcy Balderston, Saskatchewan’s Kay Montgomery, Manitoba’s Gerri Cooke, Ontario’s

Andrea Lawes and Jenn Hanna, New Brunswick’s Allison (Franey) Farrell, Prince Edward Island’s Suzanne (Gaudet) Birt, Nova Scotia’s Colleen Jones and last year’s winner and current Olympic skip Cheryl Bernard of Calgary.

Meanwhile, for the second consecutive year, Ford and the Canadian Curling Association has launched an interactive on-line version of the Hot Shots skills competition.

Curling fans will have a chance to win a two-year lease on a 2010 Ford Taurus SE, an autographed Team Canada curling jacket, full event VIP passes to the 2011 Tim Hortons Brier in London,Ont., Nintendo Wii and gift certificates to the Online Store of the Canadian Curling Association’s Season of Champions.

The Ford on-line game culminated last year with a one-game playoff at the Ford World men’s curling

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championship at Moncton after approximately 27,000 participants had played a total of over 1.6 million games.

Dan Sherrard of Edmonton was the inaugural winner.

Similarly, once the current contest closes on March 14, two finalists will be flown to Swift Current, Sask., site of the 2010 Ford World women’s championship, March 20-28, for a one game playoff.

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Page 11

ROAD TO THE SCOTTIES TOURNAMENT OF HEARTS

McConnery gang serves up an instant replay

Tricia Affleck: Five previous Scotties appearances.

Larry Wood HeartChart Editor

I

t was deja vu all over again at the Liverpool Curling Club when Nancy McConnery and Mary-Anne Arsenault squared off for the Nova Scotia Scotties title.

A year ago, with a far more experienced squad, the veteran five-time Scotties champion Arsenault of Halifax went into the game as a heavy favourite and admitted later “it was the worst game I ever remember playing in my life.”

Needless to say, McConnery and her Dartmouth team of Jennifer Crouse, Sheena Gilman and Jill Thomas was the eventual winner.

This time around, Arsenault was directing a team of relative rookies while McConnery was back with the same lineup that struggled to a 2-9 record at the Tournament of Hearts at Victoria last year. And once again Arsenault gassed it.

Qualifying directly to the final from the eight-team round robin which she led with a 5-2 record — actually tied with McConnery but No. 1 on account of an 8-4 Round-Six victory — Arsenault opened with three points on the first two ends.

But the favourite then was blanked over the next five as McConnery scored once in the third, stole one in the fifth after a blank fourth and stole a go-ahead two in the seventh after a blank sixth.

In the fifth, Arsenault could have locked things up with a three-ender but her last rock wrecked on a guard. In the

O’Rourke, Affleck shuffle the deck Nancy McConnery: Back-to-back Scotties. seventh, an Arsenault stone picked up debris, a incidence of misfortune which contributed to the game’s turningpoint theft.

NOVA SCOTIA Arsenault chose to take a tying point rather than blank the eighth but McConnery blanked the ninth and then didn’t need the hammer in the 10th when Arsenault failed to reach a counting position looking at two with her last shot. It ended 5-4.

From a provincial standpoint, the McConnery repeat is the first in Bluenose country since Colleen Jones won back-to-back Nova Scotia titles in 1996 and 1997.

Arsenault’s new batting order of Marie Christianson, Jennifer Baxter and Kelly

MacIntosh was formed with a four-year view toward the 2014 Olympics. Arsenault failed to qualify for last year’s trials. But MacIntosh was retained by the McConnery squad as fifth player for the Soo Scotties.

McConnery doubled CFB Halifax’s Sarah Rhyno 8-4 in the semi-final. Rhyno finished tied at 4-3 with Jill Mouzar of Halifax Mayflower and eliminated that former provincial champion 10-2 in a tiebreaker with a theft of five in the eighth end.

The semi was deadlocked after seven frames but McConnery hit for her second three-ender of the argument in the eighth end and stole another digit in the ninth.

McConnery won seven of nine games while Arsenault was 5-3, Rhyno 5-4 and Mouzar 4-4. Finishing at 3-4 were Jocelyn Nix of Kentville, Margaret Cutcliffe of Halifax and defending national senior champion Colleen Pinkney of Truro. Tanya Hilliard of Halifax won once in seven assignments.

Larry Wood HeartChart Editor

O

ne thing you can count on when it concerns Prince Edward Island teams at the Scotties. There’s always something new about the curling combination.

Known as the province that changes batting orders more often than the Blue Jays, the Island produced another new-found combo for the current Scotties when Charlottetown veterans Kathy O’Rourke and Trisha Affleck sandwiched junior grads Geri-Lynn Ramsay and Eric Carmody between them and charged through the seven-team triple knockout provincial championship at Montague with a 7-1 record.

Something else about this team, too. O’Rourke skips but throws second rocks.

Carmody, Island junior champion skip the past three years, plays second but throws last boulders.

Ramsay, Carmody’s longtime cohort, throws third rocks while Affleck man-

ages the lead position she has handled in five previous Scotties renewals.

O’Rourke stopped Montague’s Tammy Dewar 8-6 in a sudden-death playoff that was decided in the 10th end with a stolen deuce.

P.E.I. Dewar singled in the first end but O’Rourke, after a blank second, took three in the third. Following a swap of singles, Dewar responded with a go-ahead trio in the sixth. Singles with last rock then proved the order of fare until O’Rourke had it tied playing the final end with Dewar in possession of the hammer. The Montague skip needed a draw to the button with the last rock but her stone overcurled leaving O’Rourke the monumental theft.

O’Rourke won the A and C sections of the draw

while Dewar won four straight for the B berth in the playoffs. Had Dewar won an extra section, she also would have earned an extra life in the playoffs.

In the A grouping, O’Rourke powered past Donna Butler of Cornwall 8-4, defending champion Rebecca-Jean MacPhee of Charlottetown 10-4 and Lisa Jackson of Charlottetown 9-5. In B, Dewar dropped former champion Suzanne Birt of Charlottetown 8-7, MacPhee 7-6, Jackson 9-8 and O’Rourke 6-3.

O’Rourke rebounded in C to sideline Birt 8-7 with a last-end theft and Butler 7-5.

Dewar earlier had lost to Butler 7-4 in the C semis.

Shelly Bradley, who played third for Birt, will be the P.E.I. fifth player at Sault Ste. Marie. Bradley has skipped at three previous Scotties (1994, 2000, 2001) and threw fourth stone for MacPhee in 2005.

Behind O’Rourke at 7-1, Dewar finished 4-3, Butler 3-3, Jackson and Birt 2-3, and Shirley Berry of Cornwall 1-3; MacPhee, a pretourney fave, was eliminated with three straight defeats.

Page 12

HeartChart Another major compinent of the Sault’s successful bid was the planned location in the city’s new downtown entertainment centre with a capacity of almost four thousand.

“When CCA officials did a walk-through of the Essar Centre they said it was a perfect location for the Scotties,” says Randa.

“And the players who have arrived here for the event agree this is a phenomenal site for the Scotties.”

Randa admits to having butterflies in her stomach leading up to the opening ceremonies and the first draw in the competition, but feels confident her committee and hundreds of volunteers have done a great job.

“Our committee just seemed to jell so well. We had lots of humour at our meetings and no internal conflict. When that happens you see the results which will be a great 2010 Scotties,” she says.

And it’s that advice that the Sault committee will be

From Page 5

CRONIN: ‘Perfect location’ passing on to their counterparts from Charlottetown who are here to observe and learn from the Sault event.

2010 Scotties tourney chair Sandra Randa is ready for a great week.

At the conclusion of the Scotties, volunteer work crews will begin the daunting task of dismantling at the Essar Centre so the OHL’s Sault Greyhounds can return to the ice, and local curlers can resume their league schedules.

And Randa, who has put in hundreds of hours as the lead organizer, said she plans to “really retire” after the Scotties and spend a month in the sunshine in Florida, far from the cold of the curling rink.

Sault Ste. Marie has a long history of hosting major curling events since 1978. This is the fifth national event for the city including the 1990 Brier, the Canadian men’s curling championship, and the 2008 Canadian junior curling championship.

Profit from the 2010 Scotties is shared with the CCA. The Sault’s portion of the profit is in turn shared with the two local curling clubs and some district curling venues.

From Page 4

Andrea Kelly: A perfect 8-0 at provincial playdowns.

KELLY

Three teams finished with 3-4 records — skipped by Jessica Ronalds and 2008 champion Sylvie Robichaud of Moncton and Fredericton’s Mary Jane McGuire who lost the 2009 final to Kelly. Veteran 11-time provincial champ Heidi Hanlon of Saint John was 2-5; Sharon Levesque of Fredericton finished 1-6.

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Saturday, January 30, 2010

Page 13

Time out for trivia Larry Wood HeartChart Editor

QUESTION OF THE DAY: Mabel DeWare of Moncton was the first skip in Canadian women’s championship history to win the title while losing one game.

Name the skip who beat her. And her hometown.

Anybody remember the score?

2. Name the first winner of the Ford Hotshots competition connected to the Scott Tournament of Hearts, also her home province.

3. Did she skip in that Scott championship? If not, which position did she play and for whom?

4. Name the curler she defeated in the Hotshots final, and that curler’s home province.

5. Shannon Aleksic, the current B.C. fifth player, last played for B.C. in the

Scotties at which position for which skip in which year?

6. She also played for a Scotties contender from another province. Which one, who was the skip, what was Shannon’s position and in what year?

7. Who was the designated fifth player for that team at the Scotties?

8. In 1991, a provincial junior champion team at the Nationals included three current Scotties skips. That team was from which province and who were the three skips and their positions on that junior team?

9. Where did that team finish at the Junior Nationals?

10. Krista McCarville recently won the won the Ontario provincial roundrobin segment for the second straight year. Name the skips she defeated this year and last year in the finals.

11. Count back six Quebec championships and current vice-skip Brenda Nicholls played which position on the 2005 Quebec champ?

Who else played on that team.

12. In how many Scott Tournament of Hearts renewals were Colleen Jones and Kay Zinck teammates?

13. During the five tournaments in which Colleen Jones won national titles, she lost less than three games only once. That year was . . .?

14. Can you name her conquerors (skips) in that tournament?

Answers

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QofD: Emily Woolley, Toronto, 14-13.

2. Kay Montgomery, Saskatchewan.

3. Vice-skip for Sherry Anderson.

4. Catherine Derick, Quebec.

5. Second for Kelley Law in 2007

6. Saskatchewan, Cindy Street, lead in 1999.

7. Amber Holland.

8. Manitoba, Jill Thurston, skip, Jennifer Jones, third, Kelly Scott, lead.

9. Lost in the final to New Brunswick’s Heather Smith.

10. Tracy Horgan of Sud-

bury in 2010, Alison Goring of Toronto in 2009.

11. Brenda skipped the team of Allison Ross, Catherine Derick and Marie-Josee Fortier.

12. Four Scotties.

13. 2004.

14. Heather Smith-Dacey, Lois Fowler.

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HeartChart

Editor: Larry Wood

Associate Editor: Todd Kimberley

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Veteran Kathy O’Rourke of Charlottetown will skip the P.E.I. entry but throws second rocks. Junior grads Erin Carmody and GeryLynn Ramsay play the back end.

Manitoba’s Jill Thurston is a relative veteran with a young Winnipeg team of rookies.

The same applies to Sharon Cormier’s Polar bunch from Yellowknife. Cormier has played in fifth previous Scotties but will be on the teehead for the first time in this fracas.

Meanwhile, the spectre of that strange week at the Trials will hang over the early going at the Essar Centre. And Cheryl Bernard’s Olympic entry will be in town throwing rocks on Friday.

“I don’t know if you ever get over something like that,” said Jones of her stunning 2-5 showing. “But you grow from it. We were incredibly disappointed but six other teams left disappointed, too.

“It’s the nature of the game. If there was a guarantee in sport you wouldn’t want to play. The fact you can go out there and on any given day you can be beaten is why sport is so exciting.

From Page 2

WOOD: Looking forward It gives you goosebumps. I wouldn’t change that.

“We knew all along that we had the Scotties to play for and we’ve been excited about that. The Trials are the past and we have to look forward to the future.

“We just carried on. We didn’t try to analyze the whys of it. We had Christmas right after it so we had a little break. Then we went to Switzerland and had some fun. We’ve curled together for a long time and we’ve had our share of big losses before, we’ve lost the Canadian final before, and you can analyze something until you’re blue in the face but at the end of the day sometimes it just does not work out. We’ve had success. We know we can have success.

“The Trials is one event.

If you let it weigh you down you might as well stop playing. You can’t continue to

play if you’re not enjoying it. So we went over to Berne and played a ton of games — 10 in three days — against high-calibre teams and that’s a great way to get all the disappointment out of your system.”

And Jones won that tournament, too. The field included most of the top Olympic contenders.

“You can’t band-aid something and we aren’t looking to fix anything or how we felt inside,” she said.

“We’re just looking to go out there and do our thing. Our team has a great perspective on that. You can’t change what happened the game before or the event before, you can only look forward.

“The past is history and history is good but you can’t live your life in the past. If you do you’re always going to doubt yourself and that’s not how I want to live. And that’s not how we play the game.”

Jennifer Jones, by the way, is bound for the Olympics next month in any case.

“Yeah,” she said. “I’m going to the dark (media) side for the first time.”

She’ll be blogging on the web for Yahoo throughout the Games.

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Page 15

ROAD TO THE SCOTTIES

How sweet it is for young Sweeting crew

Larry Wood HeartChart Editor

W

hen rookie Valerie Sweeting of Edmonton engineered a 9-7 extra-end victory over veteran Shannon Kleibrink of Calgary in the Alberta Scotties final last month at the Calgary Curling Club the immediate aftermath was unreal.

Sweeting and her team of Megan Einarson, Whitney More and Lindsay Makichuk appeared totally stunned with disbelief after the young Vegreville skip executed her final shot, a crisp runback that required some precision on the angle.

“This may sink in later,”

allowed Sweeting, a former Saskatchewan junior champion vice-skip, on cable TV. As it was, everybody in the building appeared to be engulfed in a fog of confusion.

The 22-year-old Sweeting rated among the longshots in the 12-team triple-knockout provincial joust that transpired minus defending champion and Olympic trials survivor Cheryl Bernard of Calgary but still involved some big-name shooters.

None of the names seemed to impress Sweeting, though. She and her young team survived with a 7-2 record and failed to trail at any point in the final.

Sweeting stole the second end after Kleibrink blanked the first. Kleibrink then

settled for a tying single in the third. The teams then miraculously traded deuces from the third to eighth ends at which point Sweeting continued to lead by a pair.

ALBERTA Kleibrink blanked the ninth end to retain hammer for the 10th and seemed to have a winning three-spot locked up there but her last stone was slightly off target

on an open hit at the back of the rings and nipped out one of her own rocks as well as Sweeting’s counter.

That left Sweeting with the hammer in overtime and she called and executed her precise last shot to score a winning deuce.

Sweeting was overlooked almost immediately when she was clobbered 12-3 by Leslie Rogers of Calgary in the opening round of play.

But the young team with homes in Vegreville (Sweeting), Edmonton (Einarson), Red Deer (More) and Lloydminster (Makichuk) rebounded to upend former champion Renee Sonnenberg of Grande Prairie 8-6 and Calgary’s Crystal Webster 7-5 before dropping to

the last-chance C grouping following an 11-2 pummelling from veteran Cathy King of Edmonton.

No matter. Sweeting rebounded for five straight wins — 9-1 over Tiffany Odegard of Edmonton, 6-3 over Sonnenberg, 9-7 over Rogers for the C berth in the semi, 8-3 over B winner King and the final decision against previously undefeated A winner Kleibrink who had earlier shaded King 5-4 in the A-B playoff.

In the semi, Sweeting trailed 1-0 after five but scored a sixth-end deuce, stole three in the seventh and a single in the eighth.

Kleibrink had stolen the 10th to edge Rogers 5-4 in the A quarter-finals, then

Draw 11 (7:30 p.m.)

Quebec vs. Territories New Brunswick vs. Saskatchewan Ontario vs. P.E.I. Nova Scotia vs. Nfld/Labrador

Nova Scotia vs. British Columbia Manitoba vs. Territories Alberta vs. New Brunswick

knocked off King 10-8 and Heather Nedohin of Edmonton 8-5 to win the initial flight. Hence, the favourite was 4-0 heading into the final while Sweeting was 6-2, having played twice as many games in the poorlyconceived provincial format.

At the finish, Sweeting was 7-2, Kleibrink 4-1, King 4-3 and Rogers, who joins Sweeting as fifth player for the Scotties, 5-3.

Trailing were Sonnenberg and Webster with 3-3 records, former champs Nedohin and Jodi Busche of Dawson Creek at 2-3, Odegard, Megan Kirk of Lethbridge and Delia DeJong of Edmonton at 1-3. Brenda Doroshuk of Edmonton was winless in three starts.

SCOTTIES TOURNAMENT OF HEARTS DRAW SCHEDULE Saturday Draw 1 (3 p.m.)

P.E.I vs. Saskatchewan Territories vs. Newfoundland/ Labrador New Brunswick vs. Ontario Quebec vs. Nova Scotia Draw 2 (7:30 p.m.)

Nova Scotia vs. Territories Manitoba vs. Team Canada Sheet C British Columbia vs.

Alberta Sheet D New Brunswick vs.

P.E.I.

Sunday Draw 3 (10:30 a.m.)

Team Canada vs. New Brunswick P.E.I. vs. Alberta Nova Scotia vs. Manitoba Territories vs. British Columbia

Draw 4 (3 p.m.)

Manitoba vs. Newfoundland/ Labrador Quebec vs. British Columbia Team Canada vs. Saskatchewan Ontario vs. Alberta Draw 5 (7:30 p.m.)

Ontario vs. Quebec New Brunswick vs. Nova Scotia P.E.I. vs. Territories Newfoundland/Labrador vs.

Saskatchewan

Monday Draw 6 (10:30 a.m.)

Saskatchewan vs. Ontario Quebec vs. Newfoundland/ Labrador Draw 7 (3 p.m.)

British Columbia vs. New Brunswick Team Canada vs. Territories

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Alberta vs. Nova Scotia Manitoba vs. P.E.I. Draw 8 (7:30 p.m.)

Newfoundland/Labrador vs.

Team Canada Alberta vs. Quebec Saskatchewan vs. Manitoba British Columbia vs. Ontario

Tuesday Draw 9 (10:30 a.m.)

P.E.I. vs. Nova Scotia British Columbia vs. Manitoba Territories vs. New Brunswick Alberta vs. Team Canada Draw 10 (3 p.m.)

Alberta vs. Manitoba Ontario vs. Newfoundland/ Labrador British Columbia vs. Team Canada Quebec vs. Saskatchewan

Wednesday Draw 12 (10:30 a.m.)

Saskatchewan vs. British Columbia Quebec vs. Team Canada Newfoundland/Labrador vs.

Alberta Ontario vs. Manitoba Draw 13 (2 p.m.)

New Brunswick vs. Newfoundland/Labrador Territories vs. Ontario Nova Scotia vs. Saskatchewan P.E.I. vs. Quebec Draw 14 (6:30 p.m.)

Team Canada vs. P.E.I.

Thursday Draw 15 (10:30 a.m.)

Nova Scotia vs. Ontario Newfoundland/Labrador vs.

P.E.I. New Brunswick vs. Quebec Saskatchewan vs. Territories Draw 16 (3 p.m.)

Territories vs. Alberta Manitoba vs. New Brunswick P.E.I. vs. British Columbia Team Canada vs. Nova Scotia Draw 17 (7:30 p.m.)

Manitoba vs. Quebec Saskatchewan vs. Alberta Team Canada vs. Ontario Newfoundland/Labrador vs.

B.C.

Friday 9 a.m.

Tiebreaker (only if two or three tiebreakers are required) (3 p.m.)

Tiebreaker (only if one, two or three tiebreakers are required) 7:30 p.m.

Page One-Two playoff 7:30 p.m.

Tiebreaker (only if three tiebreakers are required).

Saturday, Feb. 6 1 p.m.

Page Three-Four playoff 7 p.m.

Championship semifinal

Sunday, Feb. 7 2:30 p.m.

Championship final

Page 16

HeartChart

ROAD TO THE SCOTTIES

Newcomer Nichols is money in the bank

Larry Wood HeartChart Editor

A

s they say on The Rock, it was time.

Time, that is, for a change of face in the provincial women’s curling throne room after five straight years of teams skipped by Heather Strong and a dozen years of contenders handled by either Strong or Cathy Cunningham or both.

The outsider, decidedly younger, was Shelley Nichols and her Remax St. John’s club team of Stephanie LeDrew, Rhonda Rogers and Colette Lemon, the eventual champion. Nichols, carrying a smattering of experience after playing third for Strong at the 2006 and 2007 Scotties, needed everything in her shotmaking arsenal as she

stole the winning point from Strong in an extra-end, sudden-death, 9-8 gut-clencher to decide the overland junket to the Soo Scotties.

The eventual champs earned an extra playoff life with an undefeated record throughout the six-team round robin tournament at the home club. So when the veteran Strong dispensed with former national junior champion Stacie Devereaux of St. John’s 10-3 in the semi-final, she was faced with twice defeating Nichols.

It was a new role for Strong who, in most other years, had been sitting in that catbird seat with an extra life in the final.

Having lost to both Nichols and Devereaux during the round robin, Strong launched her comeback bid by stealing the margin of difference in a 6-3 victory

over Nichols that forced a second and deciding scuffle.

And that was a classic.

Nichols stole a third-end deuce for a 3-1 lead when Strong was short on a draw.

NFLD/ LABRADOR But Strong bounced right back with a tying deuce in the fourth. Nichols cracked a three-ender in the fifth but Strong grimly answered with two in the sixth and a steal of one in the seventh to square matters again.

Nichols regained a single-

point lead in the eighth with a draw to the four-foot. But Strong took the lead for the first time since the opening end with a draw to count two in the ninth.

In the 10th end, Nichols could have attempted a wide-angle raise-double take-out for the win with her last rock but opted to play a hit through a port (against two) to tie the score.

And that set up the 11th where Nichols stashed a counter behind a series of guards and Strong was left with an in-turn 12-foot raise for the decision. Her rock failed to curl sufficiently for the connection.

Team Nichols — Michelle Jewer is the fifth player — will be a favourite at the Scotties, trotting out pink-coloured brushes to create awareness for breast cancer. Second player Rogers is a cancer

Shelley Nichols: Rock-solid in provincial final.

survivor who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2002.

Following surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy was successful and Rogers has been cancer-free since.

Nichols finished with a

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6-1 record to Strong’s 5-3 in the all-St. John’s competition. Devereaux was 4-2, veteran former champion Laura Phillips was 2-3, Cindy Miller was 1-4 and Susan Hannan was 0-5.

Page 2

HeartChart

Jazzed Jones sets sights on Scotties three-peat LARRY WOOD HeartChart Editor

R

olling into Sault Ste. Marie and targetting a third straight national women’s curling championship at the Scotties, skip Jennifer Jones isn’t fazed by being thrust into the obvious role of favourite, never mind coming off a major disappointment at last month’s Olympic Trials in Edmonton.

“I think it’s a honour to be made a favourite in any competition,” Jones was saying Friday following an Essar Centre practice session.

“It’s an honour to be placed in such a great category. But, you what? I think it’s a honour just to be playing in something like

this. Every year you come begins her 11th Scotties trek out and get that same rush today. you got the first time. That’s “There’s absolutely no never changed and whether pressure attached to it,” you’re a favourite or an said Jones of the unlimited underdog doesn’t really expectations heaped on her matter.” team, “I’d just rather be Jones here. I love to heads a play, and obvi“It’s an honour quartet of ously we’re just to be playing unsuccessful playing to win, teams from in something like but it’s the this. Every year you experience that the Trials come out and get that form makes it. We’re one-third of that same rush you not scared to the Scotties got the first time.” be out there, field. Former we’re excited champion Two-time defending Scotties to be out there. champion Jennifer Jones You can’t look Kelly Scott of Kelowna at it as a presalso experisure situation. enced a poor “We know performance at Edmonton. we didn’t perform well at On the other side of the the Trials, hopefully we’ll coin, Thunder Bay’s Krista perform well here.”

McCarville and Amber HolJones agreed the Trials land of Kronau, Sask., are experience might be someriding waves thing of an advantage for of high con- those who participated. fidence after “Those teams are deficredible nitely more experienced,” showings she said. “But I think it’s at the Trials tremendous for curling to followed by have a group of new young powerhouse teams and it means the sport runs in their respective prois evolving. The young vincial championships. team coming out of a tough But Jones and her Winniprovince like Alberta beat peg team of Cathy Overton- some tough teams and that’s Clapham, Jill Officer and exciting for the future of the Dawn Askin remains the fa- game. I think you’re going vourite in anybody’s book. to have a youthful energy Overton-Clapham, the most out there that will be great experienced player at Essar, for the fans.

Winnipeg’s Jennifer Jones and her teammates have moved on from their surprising 2-5 showing at the Olympic Trials in Edmonton back in December.

“Obviously they know our names but they’re going to hear about all these other people in the future.”

Names, of course, sell tickets at an event like that Scotties.

“It helps to have some ‘name’ teams but I think you need a little mix,” Jones said.

“I mean, look at (Jason) Gunnlaugson in the men’s Trials. He became a fan favourite and he made a name for himself there. It’s great that these young teams are

getting their start. Some of these are teams people will be talking about down the road. They’ll be the “name” teams.

The Alberta unit, out of Edmonton, is skipped by 22-year-old lefthander Valerie Sweeting of Vegreville.

She leapfrogged former provincial champion and Trials finalist Shannon Kleibrink of Calgary, Trials contender Crystal Webster of Calgary and four other provincial champions — Cathy King, Renee Sonnen-

berg, Heather Nedohin and Jodi Busche.

Another rookie skip in the lists is Shelley Nichols of St. John’s.

Dartmouth’s Nancy McConnery is back for the fifth time, Fredericton’s youthful Andrea Kelly returns for the third time and Quebec’s Eve Belisle of Montreal is back for a second crack at the title.

Please see WOOD, Page 14

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Page 3

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT: Manitoba second Leslie Wilson, above, watches a rock’s progress during Friday’s practice session. At left, P.E.I. players Tricia Affleck, Geri-Lynn Ramsay and Erin Carmody (left to right) put finishing touches on a freeze.

The creamy consistency of Amarula delights with lingering subtle flavours of vanilla, caramel and chocolate.

Affirming its unrivaled taste, Amarula Cream was recently voted “Best Liqueur in the World” at the International Wine and Spirit Competition.

The Official Spirit of Championship Curling

The Best Shot on Ice.

Amarula is the official spirit of the Scotties Tournament of Hearts, Tim Hortons Brier and Ford World Women’s Curling Championship.

Please visit www.amarula.com to learn more. Amarula is a rare find. Appreciate it accordingly.

Page 4

HeartChart

ROAD TO THE SCOTTIES

Clean sweep earns Kelly a trip to the Soo Larry Wood HeartChart Editor

F

ormer Canadian junior champion Andrea Kelly of Fredericton will be returning for her second straight national women’s championship at Sault Ste. Marie following a eight-game unbeaten sweep of the New Brunswick Scotties at the Saint John Thistle-St Andrews Curling Club.

The rangy Kelly just wasn’t to be denied in the eight-team round-robin affair but needed to tighten it up at the finish in order to scrape past Ashley Howard, also of Fredericton, 8-7 in the championship final.

Howard, daughter of legendary Brier shooter Russ Howard of Moncton, completed the round robin in third place with a 4-3 record before upending former world junior champion Melissa Adams of Grand Falls 6-5 in the semi-final.

Adams was a 5-2 finisher in

the round robin.

Kelly nudged Adams 4-3 in the opening round and the pairing appeared ideal for a final rematch but Howard, just one year out of the junior ranks, threw a wrench into those plans.

Kelly broke open a tie with two in the fourth and a stolen trio in the fifth end for a 6-1 lead in the final.

But Howard wasn’t done.

Fredericton’s Andrea Kelly is back for a second straight Scotties.

NEW BRUNSWICK Trailing 8-2 after seven frames, Howard took one in the eighth and stole back-toback deuces in the ninth and 10th ends to fall one point short of forcing the affair into overtime.

Kelly’s outfit includes returnees Denise Nowlan at third and Lianne Sobey at lead. Rookie second Jillian Babin played a year ago on Howard’s junior team.

Howard employed the hammer to eliminate Adams, drawing a narrow port with the last rock of the semi-final for the decision.

Please see KELLY, Page 12

Healthy and Vibrant Communities We are pleased to support the 2010 Scotties Tournament of Hearts in promoting sports and recreational opportunities in Sault Ste. Marie.

Call us to discuss ideas for your community.

Des communautés saines et dynamiques Nous sommes heureux d'appuyer le Tournoi des Coeurs Scotties de 2010 qui participera à la promotion des activités de sports et loisirs à Sault Ste. Marie.

Appelez-nous pour discuter de vos idées au sujet de votre communauté.

1.800.263.2887 www.trilliumfoundation.org

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Page 5

After two years of planning, Scotties rockfest is ready to roll

JIM CRONIN

HeartChart Columnist

S

andra Randa looks out over the four glistening sheets of curling ice at the Essar Centre with pride, satisfaction . . . and just a bit of relief.

After 24 months of planning, recruiting, organizing and finally execution, Randa, chair of the 2010 Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Sault Ste. Marie, and her 450 volunteers are about to witness the fruits of their labour as the first curling rocks slide down the sheets, accompanied by the

shouts of “hurry hard!”

Randa, a retired human resources professional who has been involved with curling for more than 40 years, readily admits there have been many sleepless nights, bouts of anxiety and missed meals through the almost two-year process leading up to today’s Scotties opening ceremonies and first draw, but it has all been worth it.

“The meetings are done, the planning is done, we are ready, so let’s roll,” says the enthusiastic chair.

To host the Scotties, Sault Ste. Marie entered a bidding process that began back in 2004. The goal was to convince the Canadian Curling Association that our city had the resources, volunteers and community support and enthusiasm to host this national event. The Sault was up against some tough competition from Charlottetown, which will be hosting the 2011 Scotties.

In July 2008 came the exciting news that Sault Ste. Marie would host the 2010 event. The local committee immediately began the task of recruiting an army of volunteers who would be responsible for a multitude of jobs ranging from personal drivers for the curling teams to construction crews who would turn the Soo Curlers rink into the HeartStop entertainment centre.

And not all of the volunteers are regular curlers, says Randa. “Probably 30 per cent of the volunteers don’t curl, but were excited to be involved in this national event,” she says.

Randa said the Sault has a phenomenal record of volunteer support which was an important factor in the Canadian Curling Association’s decision to give the Scotties to this city.

Please see CRONIN, Page 12

Sault Ste. Marie O N TA R I O

Tourism SSM and the City of SSM proudly welcome all athletes, family and fans to the 2010 Scotties Tournament of Hearts.

CIMCO Refrigeration welcomes all participants and fans to the...

With over 4,500 ice surfaces installed worldwide, CIMCO is proud to be recognized as the world leader in the design, engineering, manufacture, installation and servicing of artificial ice rink systems.

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C A N A D A

Page 6

HeartChart

SCOTTIES TOURNAMENT OF HEARTS: THE PLAYING FIELD

Alberta

B.C.

Manitoba

New Brunswick

Saville Sports Centre (Edmonton)

Kelowna Curling Club (Kelowna)

Deer Lodge Curling Club (Winnipeg)

Experience factor: 0 Skip: Valerie Sweeting (22-0) Third: Megan Einarson (23-0) Second: Whitney More (21-0 Lead: Lindsay Makichuk (21-0) Alternate: Leslie Rogers (29-0) Coach: Carmen Einarson Runner-up: Shannon Kleibrink, Calgary Last year’s record: Cheryl Bernard, Calgary, 6-5, finished seventh

Experience factor: 12 Skip: Kelly Scott (32-4) Third: Jeanna Schraeder (33-3) Second: Sasha Carter (35-4) Lead: Jacquie Armstrong (33-1) Alternate: Shannon Aleksic (33-2) Coach: Gerry Richard Runner-up: Kelley Law, Vancouver Last year’s record: Marla Mallett, Vancouver, 9-4, finished second

Experience factor: 4 Skip: Jill Thurston (38-3) Third: Kristen Phillips (28-1) Second: Leslie Wilson (30-0) Lead: Raunora Westcott (33-0) Alternate: Kendra Georges (27-0) Coach: Ron Westcott Runner-up: Janet Harvey, Winnipeg Last year’s record: Barb Spencer, Winnipeg, 2-9, finished 12th

Ontario

P.E.I.

Quebec

Saskatchewan

Capital Winter Curling Club (Fredericton) Experience factor: 6 Skip: Andrea Kelly (24-2) Third: Denise Nowlan (38-3) Second: Jillian Babin (20-0) Lead: Lianne Sobey (25-1) Alternate: Jodie deSolla (24-2).

Coach: Daryell Nowlan Runner-up: Ashley Howard, Fredericton Last year’s record: Andrea Kelly, Fredericton, 5-6, finished eighth

Nfld/ Labrador Re/Max Centre (St. John’s)

Experience factor: 2 Skip: Shelley Nichols (27-2) Third: Stephanie LeDrew (25-0) Second: Rhonda Rogers (37-0) Lead: Colette Lemon (28-0) Alternate: Michelle Jewer (34-0) Coach: Jeff Wilson Runner-up: Heather Strong, St. John’s Last year’s record: Heather Strong, St. John’s, 5-6, finished ninth

Territories

Nova Scotia Dartmouth Curling Club (Dartmouth)

Experience factor: 7 Skip: Nancy McConnery (46-4) Third: Jennifer Crouse (30-1) Second: Sheena Gillman (31-1) Lead: Jill Thomas (34-1) Alternate: Kelly MacIntosh (29-0).

Coach: Carole MacLean Runner-up: Mary-Anne Arsenault, Halifax Last year’s record: Nancy McConnery, Dartmouth, 2-9, finished 11th

Canada

Fort William Curling Club (Thunder Bay)

Charlottetown Curling Club (Charlottetown)

(Montreal, Ste-Foy, and St-Romuald)

Kronau Curling Club (Kronau)

Yellowknife Curling Club (Yellowknife)

St. Vital Curling Club (Winnipeg)

Experience factor: 8 Skip: Krista McCarville (27-3) Third: Tara George (36-3) Second: Ashley Miharija (23-1).

Lead: Kari MacLean (32-1) Alternate: Sarah Lang (20-0).

Coach: Rick Lang Runner-up: Tracy Horgan, Sudbury Last year’s record: Krista McCarville, Thunder Bay, 6-5, finished sixth

Experience factor: 10 Skip (second stones): Kathy O’Rourke (45-5) Third: Geri-Lynn Ramsay (21-0) Second (fourth stones): Erin Carmody (21-0) Lead: Tricia Affleck (39-5) Alternate: Shelly Bradley (47-5) Coach: Allan Ledgerwood Runner-up: Tammy Dewar, Montague Last year’s record: Rebecca-Jean MacPhee, Charlottetown, 7-5, finished fifth

Experience factor: 8 Skip: Eve Belisle (30-1) Third: Brenda Nicholls (37-4) Second: Martine Comeau (30-1) Lead: Julie Rainville (37-2) Alternate: France Charette (52-5) Coach: Bill Tschirhart Runner-up: Marie-France Larouche, St-Romuald Last year’s record: Marie-France Larouche, 7-6, finished third

Experience factor: 2 Skip: Amber Holland (35-2) Third: Kim Schneider (25-0) Second: Tammy Schneider (27-0) Lead: Heather Kalenchuk (25-0) Alternate: Jolene Campbell (28-0) Coach: Merv Fonger Runner-up: Sherry Anderson, Saskatoon Last year’s record: Stefanie Lawton, Saskatoon, 7-5, finished fourth

Experience factor: 7 Skip: Sharon Cormier (45-6) Third: Tara Naugler (32-1) Second: Megan Cormier (20-0) Lead: Danielle Ellis (28-0) Alternate: Dawn Moses (40-10) Coach: Brian Kelln Runner-up: Leslie Grant, Whitehorse Last year’s record: Kerry Galusha, Yellowknife, 4-7, finished 10th

Experience factor: 23 Skip: Jennifer Jones (35-5) Third: Cathy OvertonClapham (40-10) Second: Jill Officer (34-5) Lead: Dawn Askin (29-3) Alternate: Jennifer ClarkRouire (34-2) Coach: Janet Arnott Runner-up: Marla Mallett, Vancouver Last year’s record: Jennifer Jones, Winnipeg, 11-4, finished first

(player’s age and total Scotties appearances in brackets)

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Page 7

SCOTTIES TOURNAMENT OF HEARTS: FEARLESS PREDICTIONS

Beware the defending champs!

Jones quartet team to beat Larry Wood HeartChart Editor

I

t’s that time again — to scrutinize the entry form and handicap the field for the Scotties Tournament of Hearts here at Essar Centre. So, without further ado, here are our fearless predictions . . .

The Front Line 1. TEAM CANADA (St. Vital Curling Club, Winnipeg). Throw out the Olympic Trials result. Jennifer Jones, the Canadian champion two years running, has to be the favourite here.

Odds: 2-to-1

2. ONTARIO (Fort William Curling Club, Thunder Bay). Krista McCarville’s rink must dump its old habit of going sour following a hot provincial run. She’s got a newfound confidence discovered at the trials.

Odds: 3-to-1 3. BRITISH COLUMBIA (Kelowna Curling Club, Kelowna). Kelly Scott’s bunch is capable of winning it all if they can locate the old touch. They’ll need a massive recovery from disastrous Trials week.

Odds: 7-to-2 4. SASKATCHEWAN (Kronau Curling Club, Kronau). It’s a long overdue visit for Amber Holland, a former junior champ.

Her team has built up a formidable head of steam this season.

Odds: 9-to-2

The Second Wave 5. QUEBEC (Town Of Mount Royal, Etchemin & Victoria Curling Clubs, Montreal, St-Romuald, Ste-Foy). Eve Belisle’s crew turned in poor Trials effort, but this team has shown it can be a handful for anybody if the timing is ripe.

Odds: 6-to-1 6. MANITOBA (Deer Lodge Curling Club, Winnipeg). Jill Thurston, the survivor of this provincial gauntlet, can’t be overlooked, but her team may be short of training for the long haul.

Odds: 7-to-1 7. NEW BRUNSWICK (Capital Winter Club, Fredericton). Andrea Kelly, the smooth-shooting former junior champ, is not to be overlooked, but is still likely to be a spoiler at best.

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Celebrating 5 Great Years in The Soo. Cross Country Automotive Services 475 Pim Street Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6B2V3 Canada www.crosscountry-auto.com

Jennifer Jones, Cathy Overton-Clapham and Team Canada are two-time defending champions at the Scotties. Despite its disappointing result at the Olympic Trials, the Jones rink is the odds-on favourite at the Essar Centre.

Odds: 8-to-1 8. NEWFOUNDLAND/ LABRADOR (Re/Max Centre, St. John’s). Youth finally prevails on The Rock, but Shelley Nichols’ highly-rated unit surely will need a race.

Odds: 9-to-1

The Longest Shots 9. PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND (Charlottetown Curling Club, Charlottetown). There’s an accent on

youth from the Island, too, but Kathy O’Rourke’s unit will be in tough repeating last year’s MacPhee record.

Odds: 15-to-1 10. ALBERTA (Saville Sports Centre, Edmonton). Valerie Sweeting, the young lefthanded skip, scored upsets at home, but a repeat at this level is probably not in the cards.

Odds: 18-to-1 11. NOVA SCOTIA (Dartmouth Curling Club, Dartmouth). Nancy Mc-

Connery’s Bluenose entry is back intact from her 2-9 trek a year ago. Her quartet may carry added confidence this time, but are the shots suddenly there?

Odds: 20-to-1 12. TERRITORIES (Yellowknife Curling Club, Yellowknife). Sharon Cormier, the veteran campaigner, will upset somebody, but this competition is always tough on the undertrained Polars.

Odds: 25-to-1

Page 8

The Party Line • Your guide to what’s goin’ on

your guide to what’s goin’ on

o t e m o Welc

on stage Scotties. We’ll be bringing it to you every day to keep you on top of all the festivities at the Soo.

The heart of the party for the “Big Do in the Soo” is the HeartStop Lounge. All week long it pulsates with excitement as fans, volunteers – and at times, even the competitors – gather for a roaring celebration.

Over the years, the Season of Champions has experienced overwhelming growth. Hundreds of thousands of fans across the country have been drawn to the game. And, they’ve also discovered that curling comes with an incomparable party atmosphere!

The HeartStop Lounge features a diverse lineup of food and all your favourite beverages. You can dance to the beat of some great entertainers.

Plus, the HeartStop MC – Stuart Brown – leads the way with all kinds of crazy competitions and games.

The Party Line is new… and it’s your guide to what’s goin’ on here at the

So stay tuned to The Party Line and we’ll keep you in touch with the fun!

Upcoming Acts Sunday, January 31 – The

Chevelles • 10:30 pm Monday, February 1 – DJ Night • 10:30 pm Tuesday, February 2 – Bone Yard • 10:30 pm Wednesday, February 3 – College Battle of the Bands • 10:00 pm Thursday, February 4 – Dirty Little Swing Thing • 10:30 pm Friday, February 5 – Superfreak Disco Band • 10:30 pm Saturday, February 6 – Rockstar Live • 10:00 pm

The Chevelles are Revved

Up for the HeartStop Lounge Hop in for a wild ride back to the live music scene of the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s as the Chevelles take the stage tonight at 6:15 pm and again at 10:30 pm.

They rocked the house at the HeartStop on opening night – and if you weren’t there to see it, don’t make the same mistake twice. Get ready for their explosive, dynamic power as they draw on a lengthy songlist of fan favourites.

The band features Buck Chevelle (lead vocals/lead guitar), Kitty Chevelle (lead vocals/bass), Woody Chevelle (lead vocals/rhythm guitar/keyboards) and T.T. Chevelle (vocals/drums/sound tech).

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Page – 9

It’s Simply

personal

up close

HeartStop Lounge Menu

and

Thundering into the Soo! Today – 6:30 pm

Homestyle Cooking Available Daily 11 am – 8 pm Provided by Rico’s Catering

Daily Menu

At just 27 years of age, Thunder Bay’s Krista McCarville has shaken up Canadian women’s curling in a very short space of time!

It started with three consecutive trips to the M&M Canadian Juniors – 2000 to 2002 - before moving on to represent Ontario in four out of the past five Scotties Tournament of Hearts. In the Tim Hortons Roar of the Rings, the team fought their way through a tie-breaker day to a bronze medal finish.

And in this year’s provincial Scotties, McCarville stormed through undefeated.

Pasta and Meatballs $6.00 Soup and Sandwich $6.00 Salads (Garden, Caesar or Greek) $4.00

Today’s Specials Served 6 pm - 8 pm

Dinner Feature Cabbage Roll Dinner Served with Garden Salad

$10.00

Vegetarian Option Vegetable Stir-Fry – Noodles $8.00

Nightly Menu Available Daily 8 pm – 1 am Provided by Soo Curlers Restaurant Nacho Chips Chili & Bread Sticks Jumbo Hot Dog Chili Jumbo Dog Sausage On A Bun Hamburger Lemon Pepper Chicken Hoagie Roast Beef On A Bun Bbq Beef & Mozzarella On A Bun Mrs. B’s Pizza By The Slice Chicken Wings (8)

$5.00 $5.50 $4.00 $4.75 $5.00 $5.00 $5.00 $5.50 $5.50 $2.25 $8.00

They’re making more noise than most teams in the country – and they’ll be in the HeartStop Lounge tonight to answer your questions.

The Lewis family and Maitland Ford Lincoln are proud to be serving this great community for the past 50 years. Starting with an Esso service station in 1959, Maitland Lewis built that first business based on a philosophy of fairness, hard work and

trust. That philosophy carries on today at Maitland Ford Lincoln through Brent Lewis, General Manager and Judith Kovala (Lewis) Operations & Young Drivers Manager.

We are extremely excited about what the future holds with Ford and with Sault Ste Marie. Staying connected with our community and the support of those within it, are what make Maitland Ford Lincoln a success. We are proud to be the official vehicle sponsor for the Scotties Tournament of Hearts. Good Luck to All!

Twenty-four young curlers - representing clubs in Sault Ste. Marie and surrounding communities - were selected as Junior Stars through a random draw of applicants. The lucky Stars receive: a hat, event pin, jacket, photo with their assigned team, a tour of the TSN mobile and event tickets to their team’s draw for themselves and two chaperones.

Saturday 7:30 pm feature Stars: Team Manitoba Jacob Pelletier Marcus Reid Team Canada

Sponsor of the Day

Take a

Free Ride

Akeshia Trudeau

Kayleigh Fisher

Shuttle service is available daily between the Essar Centre and HeartStop Lounge at the Soo Curlers Association. The service is provided by Tim Hortons and the City of Sault Ste. Marie.

Shuttles will depart every half hour to both venues. Departure points are the main parking lot near the front entrance of the Essar Centre and front door of the Soo Curlers Association.

Full schedules are posted at both departure points and online at seasonofchampions.ca