News Champions Cup

SHERWOOD PARK, Alta. — Winnipeg’s Kerri Einarson took down Eve Muirhead of Scotland 7-3 during Draw 2 action Wednesday morning at the Humpty’s Champions Cup. 

The all-new seventh and final Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling event of 2015-16 features the top event winners of the season in one last showdown before the summer break.

Muirhead, who captured her third Players’ Championship women’s title earlier this month, led 2-1 after two ends but jammed on a double attempt in the third and the Tour Challenge Tier 2 champion Einarson capitalized drawing for a deuce to pull ahead. Einarson extended her advantage to 6-2 following back-to-back steals when Muirhead hit and rolled too far with her last in the fourth end to give up one and missed the mark with an angle raise attempt in five to concede two more points. Facing multiple counters in six, Muirhead landed on the button for a single and Einarson matched with a point in seven to bring out handshakes. 

Nadine Lehmann from Team Alina Paetz is subbing on Team Muirhead for vice skip Anna Sloan, who is out for the rest of the season due to an ACL injury.

Meanwhile, Saskatoon’s Stefanie Lawton made an open hit in the extra end to edge Allison Flaxey of Caledon, Ont., 5-4.

In men’s division action, David Murdoch of Scotland earned a convincing 7-2 victory over Saskatoon’s Shaun Meachem. Murdoch jumped out to an early 5-0 lead stealing singles in the first two ends and swiping three in the third. Meachem got on the board with a deuce in four, but Murdoch remained in control adding a point in five followed by another single steal in six. 

Peter de Cruz of Switzerland powered past Saskatoon’s Steve Laycock 10-5. De Cruz scored four in the second end to pull ahead, held Laycock to a single in three, and added a deuce in four to lead 6-2. Laycock narrowed the gap with a three-ender in the fifth, but De Cruz counted another four points in the seventh to ice the game. 

Niklas Edin of Sweden held off American John Shuster 7-5. After giving up a steal of two in the opening end, Edin took the momentum scoring a deuce in the second to tie it and stole a pair in three to lead 4-2. Shuster settled for a single in four and Edin added two more points in five to go up 6-3. Shuster got one in six and a steal in seven, but Edin held the hammer coming home and counted one more to secure the win. 

NOTES: The Humpty’s Champions Cup runs through to Sunday at the Sherwood Park Arena Sports Centre. … TV coverage begins Thursday on Sportsnet. … The event is the second of two new tournaments added to the schedule this year along with the Tour Challenge, which opened the season in September.