Einarson tops Fleury to reach Manitoba Scotties final
Kerri Einarson is through to the final of the Manitoba Scotties Tournament of Hearts.
Einarson moved on with an 8-6 victory Saturday night over Tracy Fleury to hand the defending champion her first loss of the women’s provincial curling tournament in Rivers, Man.
After alternating singles to start, Einarson counted a three-ender in the third and stole one in the fourth to run away with the lead. The teams traded points in five and six and Fleury narrowed the gap with deuces in seven and nine while limiting Einarson to a lone point in eight. Einarson was able to add another one with the hammer in the final frame.
Fleury will have another opportunity to reach the final taking on Jennifer Jones in the semifinal. The six-time Canadian champion Jones eliminated Kristy Watling 8-5 to advance.
The winner will represent Manitoba later this month the national Scotties Tournament of Hearts while the other two teams are also expected to head to Moose Jaw, Sask., to face off for the wild-card entry. Fleury, Einarson and Jones are ranked 1-2-3 on the Canadian Team Ranking System (CTRS) women’s standings and no other teams will be able to catch them.
Watch live coverage of the Manitoba Scotties Tournament of Hearts Sunday on Sportsnet starting with the semifinal at 10 a.m. ET / 9 a.m. CT followed by the final at 5 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. CT.
Meanwhile, Rachel Homan successfully defended the Ontario women’s title with a 7-6 victory over Hollie Duncan in Saturday night’s final. Homan posted an undefeated 9-0 record through the tournament. John Epping and Glenn Howard will face off in the Ontario Tankard men’s final Sunday.
Also on tap for Sunday are the semifinal and championship games for British Columbia (men’s and women’s), New Brunswick (men’s), Newfoundland and Labrador (men’s), Northern Ontario (men’s and women’s), Saskatchewan (men’s) and Northwest Territories (men’s).
Team | Scotties Tournament of Hearts | Tim Hortons Brier |
---|---|---|
Canada | Chelsea Carey | Kevin Koe |
Alberta | Laura Walker | Feb. 5-9 |
British Columbia | Sunday: Sarah Wark vs. Corryn Brown |
Sunday: Jim Cotter vs. Mark Longworth/Tyler Tardi |
Manitoba | Sunday: Kerri Einarson vs. Tracy Fleury/Jennifer Jones |
Feb. 4-9 |
New Brunswick | Andrea Crawford | Sunday: James Grattan vs. Jason Roach |
Newfoundland and Labrador | Erica Curtis | Sunday: Brad Gushue vs. Trent Skanes/Andrew Symonds |
Northern Ontario | Sunday: Krista McCarville vs. Krysta Burns/Laura Johnston |
Sunday: Brad Jacobs vs. Sandy MacEwan vs. Mike Badiuk |
Nova Scotia | Mary-Anne Arsenault | Jamie Murphy |
Ontario | Rachel Homan | Sunday: John Epping vs. Glenn Howard |
Prince Edward Island | Suzanne Birt | Bryan Cochrane |
Quebec | Noemie Verreault | Alek Bedard |
Saskatchewan | Robyn Silvernagle | Sunday: Kirk Muyres vs. Kody Hartung/Matt Dunstone |
Northwest Territories | Kerry Galusha | Sunday: Jamie Koe vs. Greg Skauge/Glen Hudy |
Nunavut | Lori Eddy | Jake Higgs |
Yukon | Hailey Birnie | Thomas Scoffin |
Wild-Card | Feb. 14 | Feb. 28 |