Morris, Vernon rink tied for 2nd place at Pre-Trials
SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. — Glenn Howard, a four-time Canadian champion from Tiny, Ont., improved to 6-0 and clinched first place in Pool A with a 4-3 extra-end win over John Morris and his Vernon rink on Friday at the Road to the Roar Olympic curling pre-trials.
Morris, part of Canada’s Olympic champion team in 2010, finished in a three-way tie for second place with Halifax’s Jamie Murphy and Winnipeg’s Jason Gunnlaugson, but was awarded second based on its head-to-head wins over both Murphy and Gunnlaugson.
Those two teams will play in a third-place tiebreaker today.
Gunnlaugson nailed down the tiebreaker spot with a 5-3 win over Adam Casey’s Regina-based rink.
In Pool B, Charley Thomas is through to the playoffs after beating Edmonton’s Brendan Bottcher to clinch first place in the pool. There was a four-way tie for second place at 3-3 featuring Bottcher, Greg Balsdon of Kingston, Ont., Dayna Deruelle of Brampton, Ont., and William Lyburn of Winnipeg.
Bottcher was awarded second place based on head-to-head results, and will take on Howard this afternoon.
The other three teams will have to go the tiebreaker route, with Deruelle and Lyburn playing this morning, and the winner to meet Balsdon later today.
In women’s action, Julie Tippin of Woodstock, Ont., locked up first place in Pool A with a 6-5 win over Tracy Fleury of Sudbury, Ont., on Friday.
Tippin drew for the winning point in the 10th end, securing Pool A with a 4-2 record while knocking out Fleury (2-4).
The seven-way tie was avoided with the Tippin win, but it still left five teams at 3-3 — Edmonton’s Kelsey Rocque, Halifax’s Theresa Breen, Calgary’s Nadine Scotland, Winnipeg’s Shannon Birchard and Shannon Kleibrink of Okotoks, Alta. — and just two available playoff spots.
Rocque was awarded second in the pool based on her 3-1 record in head-to-head encounters between the tied teams.