SCHEIDEGGER RELISHING FIRST SCOTTIES
Alberta champs in good shape heading into Tuesday’s action, despite loss to Curtis rink
Casey Scheidegger’s perseverance has finally been rewarded.
Scheidegger participated in seven Alberta women’s curling championships and never reached a final. That changed this year, when she broke through. Scheidegger scored one in the 11th end of the women’s final to edge Shannon Kleibrink of Okotoks 8-7. After years of trying, Scheidegger was off to her first Scotties Tournament of Hearts.
“It’s an absolute dream come true,” she said Monday during a break at the Canadian women’s curling championship featuring 16 rinks. “We hear that all the time in sport and it’s such a cliche. It has been a goal and a dream for such a long time that it’s very rewarding and an honour to represent our province. It’s rewarding to know we worked so hard for something and that we finally got it.”
Scheidegger shared that joy with her Grande Prairie team of third Cary-Anne McTaggart, second Jessie Scheidegger and lead Kristie Moore. The accomplishment was more special because 30-year-old Casey was able to share it with her sister.
“I’ve been with her for most of the road,” said Jessie, 27. “I’m younger than her, so she’s had a couple of more years in women’s than I’ve had. We’ve experienced the same tough losses together, though.”
Some of those tough defeats took place during the Canadian Olympic team curling trials held in December. Scheidegger missed the playoffs with a 3-5 record.
“We had a couple of tough losses at the trials and we tried to learn from those and they helped us get out of Alberta this year,” Jessie said. “A lot of hard work and dedication goes into winning provincials because it’s such a grind mentally and physically. We were just able to figure it out this year.”
And they added their names to a list of Alberta women’s champions that include Cheryl Bernard, Heather Nedohin, Val Sweeting and Chelsea Carey.
“A lot of people think that we came out of nowhere,” Casey said. “We have been around for a really long time. We’ve just really stuck to Alberta and we haven’t travelled much.”
Casey Scheidegger was content curling on the Alberta cash circuit until getting an opportunity to play in the Grand Slam of Curling’s Canadian Open in North Battleford, Sask., last year. She got hot at the right time and stole one in the ninth end to beat Silvana Tirinzoni of Switzerland in the women’s final to claim her first Grand Slam title.
“I’m really still in shock about it,” Jessie said. “It was a really good moment for us in our careers. We learned a lot from it, too.”
Scheidegger’s team has a lot of Alberta covered when it comes to its geography. Casey and Jessie live in Lethbridge. McTaggart and Moore reside in Grande Prairie, about 900 kilometres north of Lethbridge.
“To practise, we basically work two-on-two,” Jessie said. “We also try to get together at the national training centre (in Calgary) and we get a few sessions in there.”
Casey Scheidegger is also a secondary school teacher in Lethbridge and that requires juggling her vocation and curling.
“It’s tricky from a planning perspective and being away from the students’ perspective because it’s an adjustment for them as well,” said Casey, who teaches grades 10 to 12. “I’m really lucky that the Palliser Regional Schools is my district and they are super supportive of this. My principal and vice-principal are also supportive because they know that I’m setting a really good example for my students by following your dreams and working hard for something.”
Stacie Curtis of Newfoundland and Labrador defeated the Alberta champions 9-5 Monday to improve to 4-0. Scheidegger fell to 3-1.
“We knew that they were a good team and that they have a ton of experience,” Casey said. “We knew that we had to play well and we didn’t. Those are the breaks.”
Casey was struggling with the rocks and the ice.
“We let it get the best of us and that happens in our sport,” she said. “We’re going to come back stronger because that’s what a good team does. It comes back firing the next game.”
Scheidegger was off Monday night. She’s scheduled to play Nunavut’s Amie Shackleton Tuesday morning and B.C.’s Kesa Van Osch in the evening draw.