McCarville, Howard headline Tour Challenge Tier 2 field

Tournament of Hearts finalist Krista McCarville and four-time world champion Glenn Howard lead the list of teams set to compete in the Tour Challenge Tier 2 running Nov. 8-13 in Cranbrook, B.C.

The full field for the Tier 2 division has been announced for the second Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling event of the season taking place at Western Financial Place and Memorial Arena.

The Tier 1 teams were announced earlier Wednesday, click here to see the list.

Fifteen men’s teams and 15 women’s teams will compete in the Tier 2 division. Ten men’s and women’s teams received invitations to the event based on their World Curling Tour total Order of Merit (OOM) ranking as of Oct. 3 after the Tier 1 division lineup had been finalized. In the event a team declined, the next-ranked team on the OOM received an invite. The remaining five men’s and five women’s teams were invited from within the region of the event.

The Tier 2 offers an excellent opportunity for teams to fast track their way into the elite ranks as the winners will receive guaranteed berths to the Meridian Canadian Open taking place Jan. 3-8, 2017, in North Battleford, Sask. For other teams that have played in the series previously it’s a chance to reclaim their spot among the world’s best.

The inaugural Tour Challenge was held a year ago on the opposite side of the country in Paradise, N.L. Jim Cotter defeated Mark Kean for the Tier 2 men’s title while Kerri Einarson topped Chantelle Eberle’s team in the Tier 2 women’s final. The victories vaulted Cotter and Einarson into Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling series regulars and they both return to the Tour Challenge in the Tier 1 division.

Tier 2 games from round-robin play through to the semifinals will be held at Memorial Arena with the finals being played alongside the Tier 1 finals at Western Financial Place.

Tickets are now available, visit thegrandslamofcurling.com/tickets for more details. Can’t make it to Cranbrook? Sportsnet will have you covered starting Nov. 10, click here for the full TV schedule. Watch online with Sportsnet Now, click here to subscribe today.

Below is the list of teams set to compete in the Tour Challenge Tier 2:

MEN’S TEAMS

WCT OOM Rank (as of Week 7)	Team	Hometown
17	Glenn Howard	Penetanguishene, ON
18	Tom Brewster	Aberdeen, SCO
19	Jason Gunnlaugson	Winnipeg, MB
21	William Lyburn	Winnipeg, MB
24	Bruce Mouat	Edinburgh, SCO
25	Craig Brown	Blaine, USA
28	Jean-Michel Menard	Gatineau, QC
29	Brady Clark	Seattle, USA
30	Mark Bice	Sarnia, ON
31	Greg Balsdon	Kingston, ON
38	Dean Joanisse	New Westminster, BC
107	Andrew Bilesky	New Westminster, BC
112	Tyler Tardi	Langley, BC
119	Stephen Schneider	Vancouver, BC
139	Sean Geall	Kelowna, BC

WOMEN’S TEAMS

WCT OOM Rank (as of Week 7)	Team	Hometown
21	Krista McCarville	Thunder Bay, ON
22	Jacqueline Harrison	Mississauga, ON
23	Julie Tippin	Woodstock, ON
24	Shannon Kleibrink	Okotoks, AB
25	Casey Scheidegger	Lethbridge, AB
26	Cory Christensen	Blaine, USA
27	Stefanie Lawton	Saskatoon, SK
28	Nina Roth	Blaine, USA
29	Joelle Brown	Winnipeg, MB
30	Hannah Fleming	Lockerbie, SCO
40	Marla Mallett	Walnut Grove, BC
43	Diane Gushulak	Vancouver, BC
44	Karla Thompson	Kamloops, BC
75	Corryn Brown	Kamloops, BC
117	Kerry Galusha	Yellowknife, NWT