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Nugget Column #16 – Tuesday January 12th, 2015
Life keeps getting better for local curler Kate Sherry who is recently celebrating her second provincial curling victory (first in the junior women’s category) and will head to the Egg Farmers of Ontario Canadian Junior Curling Championships in Stratford, Ontario January 23rd – 31st, 2016.
Sherry, who throws second stones for Team Megan Smith out of the Sudbury Curling Club, outplayed seven other Northern Ontario teams for the privilege of sporting Northern Ontario’s green and gold when the pursuit to becoming Canada’s next junior women’s champion gets underway later this month.
Team Smith concluded round robin play at the January 5th-ending provincial championship in Sioux Lookout with a 5-2 record losing to Team Daly and two-time defending champion Team Burns in their final two games.
Having recorded the best round robin record, Team Burns received a bye to the championship final and awaited the winner of Team Smith versus Team Gaudry in the semi-final. Smith came out on the winning end of an 8-1 scoreboard putting them one game away from their goal.
In a rematch of last year’s junior girls final, Team Smith found themselves down 2-1 without hammer after four ends of play. With only half a game to go our girls stole three points in the fifth and took three more in the ninth end to secure an 8-4 victory.
We look forward to cheering on Megan Smith, Kira Brunton, Kate Sherry, Emma Johnson, and Coach Chris Johnson as Team Northern Ontario. Fourteen men’s and fourteen women’s teams representing each of the ten provinces in addition to Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Northern Ontario will compete for the chance to advance to the World Junior Curling Championships in Erzurum, Turkey. TSN will provide live coverage of the semi-final and final action.
In other playdown news Malcolm O’Bright, Dylan Burns, Andrew Hong, Sean Breadmore, Mike Pettela, and Coach Brian Whitehead finished second at the NOCA’s Bantam Boys regional in Copper Cliff this past weekend. Unfortunately, only one team advanced to the provincial championship from this event. We heard from numerous spectators that Team O’Bright represented the club with much pride and class.
At the same event, Kate Sherry and Team Brunton, qualified for the NOCA’s Bantam Girls provincial at the Community First Curling Centre in Sault Ste. Marie.
Team Jeff Brown fell just short of a berth to the Traveler’s Men’s Provincial coming to North Bay February 10th – 14th. The local men’s team will have one final chance to qualify from the NOCA Men’s East qualifier being hosted by the Idywylde Golf and Country Club on January 22nd, 23rd, and 24th.
This weekend the Powassan Curling Club will host the Northern Ontario Police Curling Championship.
Teams skipped by friends of ours: Steve Mitchell, Charlie Robert, and Tony Chilton will compete in round robin play followed by a playoff. Spectators are welcome and a schedule can be view online at poicecurling.ca/policecurling/nont.
Bobby Ray General Manager North Bay Granite Club