Jacobs back on track, Horgan takes down Chandler

North Bay Nugget: Friday, February 12, 2016 9:28:45 EST AM

Fort William’s Team Dylan Johnston beat top favourite Team Brad Jacobs from Sault Ste. Marie Thursday afternoon, rebounding from two opening losses at the 2016 Travelers Northern Ontario men’s championship at the Granite Club.

And Sudbury’s Team Jordan Chandler hammered Mattawa’s Patrick Gelinas with a five-rock ninth end to win 6-2. At that point, Chandler was the only undefeated rink heading into Draw 4.

But the young guns from Copper Cliff Team Tanner Horgan beat their Nickel Belt rivals 7-2 to improve their record to 2-2 Thursday night, dropping Chandler down to 3-1.

And both Jacobs and Gelinas responded well to their early defeats. Jacobs doubled the Robbie Gordon team from Sudbury 6-3, moving to 3-1 heading into Draw 5 this morning at 11 a.m.

Gelinas moved to 2-2, as well, edging the Mike Assad team from Geraldton 8-7 and will play Johnston this morning and Horgan at 6:30 p.m.

Gordon is now 0-4 and will be looking for their first win this morning against Horgan, which earned silver at the junior nationals recently.

Johnston beat Jacobs 8-5 with consecutive two-rock ends to improve his record to 1-2 and leave the Soo rink, which won Canadian Olympic gold and earned their way to the Tim Hortons Brier seven previous times.

Also on Thursday afternoon, Horgan (1-2) edged Assad 8-7, handing the Geraldton crew its first defeat of the tournament. And Port Arthur’s Colin Koivula improved to 2-1 by rallying from a 6-0 deficit heading into the fifth end against Gordon to score in each end that followed for a 7-6 decision.

Koivula moved to 3-1 with a 7-6 win over Johnston in the evening.

The Gelinas team, out of the Voyageur Curling Club in Mattawa, opened with a 7-2 win over Koivula.

The teams are battling to represent this region at the 2016 Tim Hortons Brier in Ottawa next month. The final is set for 2 p.m. Sunday.