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ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — Germany’s Team Marc Muskatewitz earned its first win in a top-tier Grand Slam of Curling event Wednesday at the KIOTI National.

Muskatewitz made a double takeout to score two points in the extra end to edge Switzerland’s Team Yannick Schwaller 8-6 during Draw 6 action.

“It was a really good game,” Muskatewitz said. “We struggled in the first ends. … Today in the first end, we had some mistakes and in the end, we got more clear about the ice and how the rocks will run. It was a tight game over the whole time and in the extra end we had a chance to make the win.”

It’s the first Grand Slam major tournament for Muskatewitz after his team made its series debut in the Tier 2 division of the HearingLife Tour Challenge in October. His “welcome to the Slams” moment came during his opening game Tuesday facing hometown hero Brad Gushue with a nearly capacity crowd on hand at the Mary Brown’s Centre.

Despite the 6-2 loss, Muskatewitz said it was an amazing experience.

“My team is really young so it was our first time competing against the world-class teams in front of this crowd,” he said. “The crowd was amazing. They cheered for nearly every shot Gushue made because they played really well, but they also cheered for us if we made a good shot. It’s a pretty fair field here and it felt really nice yesterday.”

Muskatewitz defeated Scotland’s Team Bruce Mouat 9-7 Saturday in the European Curling Championships in Finland and the feeling of winning Germany’s first men’s gold medal in the tournament in 20 years is still sinking in.

“It feels different but for us, winning the Europeans, we haven’t realized it yet, 100 per cent,” Muskatewitz said. “We’re still here for a tournament, so we don’t have any big expectations because the crowd is so big here, so first of all, we’re getting used to it. We’re a really young team and have never played in front of this big and good crowd. For us it’s everything new, so we’re still learning.”

Yannick Schwaller is out of the lineup after undergoing knee surgery. His brother, Kim Schwaller, is filling in at second with Sven Michel moving to third/skip.

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Elsewhere in Draw 6, Saskatoon’s Team Mike McEwen defeated Team Marco Hösli of Switzerland 5-2. McEwen moved up to a 2-0 record while Hösli fell to 0-2 and must win his next game to stay in playoff contention.

“We’ve not had good outings against them,” McEwen said. “Maybe we’ve played them three times in the past, I think that might be our first win against them. They’re the real deal. They keep getting better and better. I’m not sure what their ages are as a team but they feel a lot younger than me.

“That was a great win. Just to stay disciplined, playing to our strengths and our game plan. We got the lead the early and that really helped us hold on to control the style of the game.”

Opening with the hammer was key to the game as McEwen converted for a deuce in the second end.

“It wasn’t looking like two either. A little razzle dazzle there,” McEwen said. “That was a big momentum change because we were in trouble that end. We blanked the first end, too, so that’s a really big momentum swing in that game.” 

McEwen is looking forward to his next game Thursday night against Gushue.

“This is why I curl, especially at this stage of my career,” McEwen said. “These are the moments that I get most excited to play for. Hopefully, the crowd by the end of the game, they’re getting a little quiet but I think it’s going to be a huge battle right to the end and I’m looking forward to it.

“Other than playing Brad in a national championship, it doesn’t get much bigger than this. Playing him on the weekend, of course, is even bigger. Anybody that’s on the ice beside us, they’re going to get the full St. John’s treatment of what a St. John’s crowd is like when (it’s an) 8 o’clock draw, Thursday, it’s getting close to the weekend, the crowd’s getting into it.”

Scotland’s Team Ross Whyte also climbed to a 2-0 record with a 7-2 victory over Team Michael Brunner of Switzerland (0-2).

Whyte defeated Hösli by an identical score Tuesday and also plays Schwaller as he faces all three Swiss teams in the tournament.

“It feels like we’re playing the Bern Masters,” Whyte said. “Out here in a great field and some great crowds, very happy to get that win.”

Whyte added it’s amazing to play in front of the St. John’s crowd.

“It’s something you always want to do,” he said. “You work really hard to get to these events to play in front of these crowds. It’s very good and hopefully, we’re at the end of the week and there’s a strong crowd still.” 

Craig Waddell is filling in for Team Whyte second Duncan McFadzean, who is out with a knee injury. Waddell has subbed on the team before when he spared for lead Euan Kyle at the Players’ Championship last season.

“He’s a great player and fits into our team really well,” Whyte said. “We know when we do have an injury or someone who can’t come, he’s always going to come in and do a great job. It’s going well so far and hopefully, we can continue that.”

Ottawa’s Team Rachel Homan doubled up on Halifax’s Team Christina Black 6-3 in the lone women’s game of the draw.

Homan is now at 2-0 and Black dropped to 0-2.

UP NEXT

Round-robin play continues with Draw 7 at 4 p.m. NT / 2:30 p.m. ET.

Live streaming of every game is available on free preview via HomeTeam.

Broadcast coverage on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+ begins Thursday at noon NT / 10:30 a.m. ET.

NOTES

The KIOTI National is the third Grand Slam of Curling event of the season featuring 16 of the top men’s teams and 16 of the top women’s teams from around the world. … Round-robin play runs through to Friday. The top eight teams in both divisions advance to Saturday’s quarterfinals. If necessary, one tiebreaker draw will be played Saturday morning to determine the final playoff spots. … The semifinals are also scheduled for Saturday with both finals on tap Sunday.