Tier 2 champ Black hangs tough with world’s best at KIOTI National
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — Christina Black was down but not out midway through her quarterfinal match Saturday in the KIOTI National.
Trailing 3-0 to Sweden’s Anna Hasselborg entering the fourth end, Black and teammates Jill Brothers, Marlee Powers and Karlee Everist said to each other to just keep plugging away.
That they did and the Halifax skip had a shot to draw for a deuce to get back in the game. The claps of the close-to-capacity crowd at the Mary Brown’s Centre grew louder as her rock rolled into the house, then erupted into roars when it stopped at the back of the four-foot circle.
Black battled back again late in the match after falling behind 6-3 but holding the hammer coming home. After Hasselborg missed a cross-house double, Black capitalized by bumping her other stone to send Hasselborg’s shot rock out the back of the house and count an equalizing three points to push the game to an extra end.
Although Hasselborg prevailed, winning 7-6, making it to the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam of Curling major tournament and going the distance against one of the top teams in the world with the crowd cheering her on is something Black will surely remember for a long time.
“Oh my gosh, the experience here, it’s unlike anything I’ve ever experienced with this crowd,” Black said after the game. “This crowd was so fun. I’ve never felt so special. They clapped along with my draw for two early in the game like I was Brad Gushue, so that made my life.”
Team Black entered the competition as the lowest-ranked seed after winning the HearingLife Tour Challenge Tier 2. No surprise, Black rallied from a 1-2 start in the October tournament in Charlottetown and won five straight games with elimination on the line to take the title. Although the Tier 2 winners were supposed to earn invitations to January’s WFG Masters — where men’s champion Rylan Kleiter will join the field — the event conflicts with Nova Scotia’s provincial playdowns and Black received a berth to the KIOTI National instead.
It was a rough schedule to start round-robin play though, beginning with a battle between the Tier 2 champ and the Tier 1 champ off the bat as Black went up against Kerri Einarson. The six-time Grand Slam champion Einarson was in control from start to finish and put the game well out of reach with a five-count in the seventh to win 11-3.
Things didn’t get any easier for Black as she then faced world No. 1 Rachel Homan, fresh off of winning the Co-op Canadian Open two weeks earlier and en route to another undefeated run to claim the KIOTI National. It might not have been Homan’s best game, but even when the 17-time Grand Slam champion is merely good, that’s usually good enough. Homan won 6-3 as Black fell to 0-2 and was on the brink of elimination.
That’s when Black turned the tables, getting into the win column early Thursday morning with a 6-3 win over Isabella Wranå then fended off Stefania Constantini 8-7 the following day to bring her record level.
Black secured a spot in the tiebreaker round and took on defending champion Eun-ji Gim, whose South Korean club was playing short-handed as lead Ye-eun Seol and alternate Ye-ji Seol returned home for a family emergency. The teams alternated three-enders to start, but Black scored a critical count of four points in the fifth end and won 9-5 after Gim settled for a single in the sixth and shook hands.
Qualifying for the playoffs was huge for Black with her team earning 30 points to move up four spots and into 19th in the world rankings.
“Just getting into the playoffs was better than us winning two events at home in terms of points,” said Black, who has captured three titles on tour this season. “It’s just so great. I’m so proud of my team for how well they played all week.”
Black has embraced the underdog role before, riding an upset run to a fourth-place finish at the 2023 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, but it’s clear from this week that her team is not just punching above expectations but proving it belongs right up there with the world’s best.
“We know we’re a tough team. We can always stay in games,” Black said. “We can win multiple ways. We can come from behind.
“You just never give up and we’re a positive team, so you just keep plugging away. You have to get a couple of breaks, make your shots and you never know what can happen.”
