News Canadian Open

YORKTON, Sask. — Scotland’s Eve Muirhead qualify for the playoffs at the Canadian Open stealing a total of six points in four ends to brush aside Winnipeg’s Jennifer Jones 8-2 Friday afternoon.

Muirhead advanced from the B event of the triple knockout preliminary stage with a 3-1 record. Jones (2-2) dropped to the last-chance C brackets.

“We’ve only lost one game, obviously, we managed to qualify through the B road but so far, so good,” Muirhead said. “Now I guess it’s like a new competition and a few more games, hopefully, and we just have to keep winning.” 

The reigning Olympic gold medallist Jones opened with the hammer but fell into trouble right from the start as Muirhead sat four stones in the house. Jones grabbed a piece of the button to limit the damage to only a steal of one. After Jones bounced back scoring two in the second, Muirhead replied with a deuce of her own to regain the one-point lead. Muirhead managed to steal two points in the fourth when Jones hit and rolled out of the house. Jones continued to struggle giving up another pair in five and shook hands after the sixth end when a measurement handed Muirhead another stolen point.

“We played really well and got off to a really strong start and that was what we wanted to do,” Muirhead said. “We put a lot of pressure on them the whole game.”

Elsewhere in Draw 12, American Nina Roth scored two in the seventh and stole four in the eighth to win 10-6 over Julie Hastings of Thornhill, Ont., in a C-event semifinal. Roth improved to a 2-2 record and has now won two straight while Hastings has been eliminated at 1-3.

Sherry Middaugh of Coldwater, Ont., also remained in contention at 2-2 with an 8-1 rout over Switzerland’s Silvana Tirinzoni (1-3).

In the men’s division B qualifiers, Jim Cotter of Vernon, B.C., nailed a five-ender in the seventh to win 8-3 over Edmonton’s Brendan Bottcher and advance. Cotter (3-1) dropped his first game of the Canadian Open to Brad Gushue of St. John’s, N.L., but bounced back to win three straight to reach the men’s quarterfinals. 

“We’ve been steadily getting a little better and better and the results haven’t exactly shown per se,” Cotter said. “We’ve had a lot of really tight games and just have kind of been on the wrong side but we’ve been building and getting stronger and stronger each game and so far it’s starting to come into place.”

It was also the second time this week Cotter iced a victory with a five count after pulling off the feat against Switzerland’s Sven Michel.

“They were going for it a bit there and our guys just kept plugging away making their shots and we just stayed patient and just got fortunate,” Cotter said. “They’re a great up-and-coming team so it was a good win for us.”

Reigning Olympic gold medallist Brad Jacobs of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., punched his playoff ticket with a 7-3 victory over Gushue in the B-qualifiers. Jacobs (3-1) broke a 3-3 tie with a single in five and pulled away with steals of two in six and one in seven. Gushue (2-2) opened the Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling season winning the Masters last month in Selkirk, Man., but missed the playoffs two weeks later at the National in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., and must win his final match in the C-qualifiers to avoid heading home early again.