Aylward prevails in dramatic finish
Gorveatt captures provincial senior men’s championship
SUMMERSIDE – There was no lack of drama in the women’s final of the P.E.I. senior curling championships on Monday.
It not only came down to the last rock, but they had to measure to determine the winner as the Kim Aylward rink from the host Silver Fox Entertainment Complex in Summerside staged a thrilling come-frombehind victory. Aylward trailed 5-2 after six ends, but scored a triple in the seventh end and stole a single in the final end to edge the Shelley Ebbett team from the Cornwall Curling Club 6-5.
Also on Monday, the Philip Gorveatt rink from the Charlottetown Curling Complex and the Montague Curling Rink won the provincial senior men’s title after edging the Dale Cannon team from the Silver Fox 4-3.
Both the Aylward and Gorveatt rinks will represent P.E.I. at the 2019 Everest Canadian senior curling championships at the new Chilliwack Curling Centre in Chilliwack, B.C., from March 23-28.
WOMEN
The Pat Aylward-coached winning team, which also includes third stone Debbie Caissy, second stone Shelley MacFadyen and lead Donna Whelan, posted a 6-2 record (won-lost) in the modified tripleknockout event, and advanced to the final against Ebbett by eliminating defendingchampion Shirley Berry and her Cornwall rink 9-5 victory in the morning semifinal. Each of the three teams involved in the championship round had won one tripleknockout section, but Ebbett had received a bye to the final game by virtue of playing in all three qualifier games.
Rounding out the Ebbett team are third stone Kim Pippy, second stone Paulette Richard, and lead Colleen Soltermann.
MEN
The closely-fought men’s final featured neither team taking more than a single point in an end.
The Gorveatt rink, which includes third stone Kevin Champion, second stone Larry Richards, and lead Mike Dillon, finished runner-up in this event a year ago. They won two of the three sections of the modified triple-knockout draw this year, giving them two chances to win the championship, but the second game was not needed.
Six men’s and six women’s teams took part in this year’s provincial senior championships featuring men’s and women’s divisions for curlers age 50 and over.