News National

PORT HAWKESBURY, N.S. — Jeff Stoughton defeated Mike McEwen 8-2 in six ends Sunday afternoon to win the National championship and complete a career Grand Slam.

Stoughton became only the fourth skip ever to have won all four Grand Slam of Curling titles joining Kevin Martin, Wayne Middaugh and Glenn Howard in the exclusive club. The 49-year-old Stoughton won the Players’ Championship in 2003, the Masters in 2004 and the Canadian Open in 2006.

After a slow start to the tournament dropping their first couple of games — including a 9-2 thumping at the hands of McEwen — the team of Stoughton, third Jon Mead, second Reid Carruthers and lead Mark Nichols won five straight en route to the title to earn $23,000 CAD and 40 Order of Merit points.

“Our guys pulled it out today,” Stoughton told Sportsnet. “After losing the first two games of the tournament we were able to run the table to win it all. It’s fantastic to be out here and beat the best in the world. It’s a good feeling.”

It was a battle of familiar foes as the two Winnipeg clubs have clashed with a championship on the line before. Stoughton came out on top in the 2010 and the 2011 Manitoba provincial finals while McEwen was victorious in the 2010 Masters and 2011 Canadian Open finals.

Stoughton broke the game wide open after the fourth-end break with the score tied 2-2. McEwen flashed a takeout on his final shot in the fifth and Stoughton eased his last rock in to pick up four points.

A desperate McEwen needed to clear the house in the sixth with four counters in play but couldn’t quite pull it off as Stoughton stole two and the teams shook hands early.

McEwen, third B.J. Neufeld, second Matt Wozniak and lead Denni Neufeld collected $15,000 and 27 OOM points.

The final stop on the 2012-13 Grand Slam of Curling calendar is the Players’ Championship, April 16-21, at Ryerson’s Mattamy Athletic Centre in Toronto.