Tabata fends off Fujisawa for first win at AMJ Players’ Championship
TORONTO — Team Momoha Tabata came from behind to defeat Team Satsuki Fujisawa 7-5 in a matchup of Japanese clubs during Draw 4 action Wednesday morning at the AMJ Players’ Championship.
Tabata scored two points in the seventh end to tie it and stole a pair in the eighth, as Fujisawa crashed on a guard, to earn a first win in the fifth and final Grand Slam of Curling event of the season.
Third Miku Nihira calls the game for the Sapporo-based squad, now 1-1 in the tournament, with Tabata throwing the last rocks.
Fujisawa, from Kitami, dropped to a 0-2 record.
Team Sayaka Yoshimura, also from Sapporo, improved to a 1-1 record with an 8-4 victory over two-time reigning world women’s champions Team Rachel Homan of Canada.
Yoshimura opened with the hammer and scored a critical count of four points in the second that had Homan (1-1) chasing the rest of the game.
In men’s play, Team John Epping earned a 7-5 win over Team Mike McEwen in an all-Canadian men’s matchup. Epping climbed to a 2-0 record while McEwen is now level at 1-1.
World champs Team Bruce Mouat from Scotland moved up to a 2-0 record with a 5-1 win over Team Korey Dropkin (0-2) of the United States.
Mouat captured a second gold medal in three years at the World Men’s Curling Championship after defeating Switzerland 5-4 during Sunday’s final in Moose Jaw, Sask.
Six teams made the trek to Toronto straight from the event, with Team Mouat making an early appearance here Monday night to face Team Homan in a charity skins game in the first Rio Mare Battle of the Sexes presented by The Curling Group. Mouat won $10,000 for Charlie Boy’s Cancer Fundraiser with Homan earning $2,000 for the Sandra Schmirler Foundation. A portion of ticket sales from the sold-out game will also be donated to their charities.
UP NEXT
Round-robin action continues with Draw 5 at 11:30 a.m. ET / 8:30 a.m. PT at the Mattamy Athletic Centre. Tickets are available at Ticketmaster.ca.
Live streaming of every game is available in free preview via HomeTeam.
Broadcast coverage on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+ begins Thursday at 11:30 a.m. ET / 8:30 a.m. PT.
NOTES
The AMJ Players’ Championship features the top 12 men’s teams and top 12 women’s teams from around the world. … Round-robin play runs through to Friday evening. Six teams qualify for the playoffs in both divisions, with the top two receiving byes to the semifinals. … If necessary, one tiebreaker draw is slated for Saturday morning. … The quarterfinals and semifinals are scheduled for Saturday. Both finals are on tap Sunday.
