Ready for opening day
Scotties, Tankard begin today in Alberton
It’s good to be back, admits Suzanne Birt, who will be skipping one of the seven teams entered in this year’s P.E.I. Scotties Tournament of Hearts women’s curling championship.
Games start Wednesday at 9 a.m. at the Western Community Curling Club in Alberton but, because of nailing down the No. 1 seeding in the women’s field, Birt gets a bye into Wednesday’s 2 p.m. draw.
Birt, who has been the skip of nine provincial women’s championship teams since 2003, took a break from the sport the past two seasons.
This year she’s back in action, reunited with two of the curlers who were with her for her 2016 championship, Marie Christianson, who is throwing third; and Meaghan Hughes at second. Michelle McQuaid, who was with her when she skipped the 2015 provincial championship team, completes the rink.
They’ve played in five tournaments this year and made the playoffs in all of them, thus nabbing the top seeding. “We’ve been working hard, and practising when we’re not playing, and we’re ready for tomorrow,” Birt declared Tuesday.
She said the two years off allowed her to look at the sport from the outside, and she’s returned to
the game more relaxed.
“It feels really good. I mean, I missed it when I was gone for a couple of years.
“This time of year is always an exciting time of year. I’ve missed the competition, so it’s really good to get back and start competing again,” she said.
The defending champion skip from the past two seasons, Robyn
MacPhee, is not competing this year, but all three of her teammates are back, including Hughes and McQuaid who are back with Birt, while Sarah Fullerton is skipping her own team this year. Also bringing provincial championship experience to the ice is Veronica Smith, who, like Fullerton, is a former multi-year winning junior skip.
The women’s squads are vying for the Scotties title and the right to represent P.E.I. at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts, Feb. 16-25 at Centre 200 in Sydney, N.S. On the men’s side, two-time defending champion Eddie MacKenzie is back along with last year’s runner-up, John Likely. MacKenzie has five championships in the past eight seasons. Likely last won as
skip in 2002. Also bringing championship experience to the sixrink men’s field are Jamie Newson, the reigning Travelers and mixed provincial champion, and current junior champion Tyler Smith. The squads are looking to advance to the Tim Hortons Brier, which will be played at Westoba Place in Brandon, Man., from March 2-10.