News Tour Challenge

PARADISE, N.L. — Ottawa’s Rachel Homan continues to cruise through the inaugural Tour Challenge after posting a 7-3 victory over Eve Muirhead of Scotland in Saturday’s quarterfinals.

Homan heads into the semifinals (Saturday, 9 p.m. NT; Sportsnet ONE) with an unblemished 5-0 record at the season-opening Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling event and will face EunJung Kim of South Korea, who advanced with a 7-2 victory over Winnipeg’s Kristy McDonald.

Team Homan grabbed a three-ender in the second to open the scoring. The teaams alternated singles through the third and fourth ends and Homan forced Muirhead to another lone point in five. Homan added a pair in six to go up 6-2 and held Muirhead to one more single in seven. The two-time Masters winner Homan made the tap with her last shot coming home to secure the victory.

Muirhead, who won the past two Grand Slam women’s events, stole a point in the eighth end to edge Olympic gold medallist Jennifer Jones of Winnipeg 6-5 in the early morning tiebreaker draw to qualify for the playoffs. 

The other women’s semifinal sees Tracy Fleury of Sudbury, Ont., take on Switzerland’s Silvana Tirinzoni. Fleury beat Sherry Middaugh of Coldwater, Ont., 6-4 and Tirinzoni topped Edmonton’s Kelsey Rocque 6-1.

NOTES: The Tour Challenge is the first of two new tournaments on the expanded seven-event 2015-16 Pinty’s GSOC season and features 30 men’s and 30 women’s teams split into two tiers. … Winners of the Tier 1 divisions also receive berths to the second new Pinty’s GSOC event, the season-ending Champions Cup. … Tier 2 champions earn byes to the next Grand Slam, the Masters, running Oct. 27 to Nov. 1 in Truro, N.S.