Niagara swept from medal contention
Knights finish 2-5 at national women’s curling championships
Niagara College finished the women’s curling season by going 2-5 and failing to advance to the medal round at the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association championships in Camrose, Alta.
The Knights stormed out of the gates with a 2-1 record in their first three games, including victories over the defending Ontario champion Humber Hawks and the reigning Alberta gold medallist Concord Thunder.
With a pair of victories over topranked teams to open the event hosted by the University of Alberta-Augustana, Niagara seemed poised to challenge for a spot on the podium.
However, losses on Day 2 – Northern Alberta Institute of Technology Ooks, 8-6; Red Deer Kings, 7-2 – set the stage for a must-win game against the Lakeland Rustlers on the opening draw on Day 3 of the national championships.
After trading points early in the game, the turning point came in the fifth end when Lakeland took advantage of missed shots by Niagara to steal two points. The Rustlers increased their lead to three and the Knights were unable to battle back in a 8-6 loss that eliminated Niagara from medal contention.
The Knights lost their final game 7-5 against the host rink a to finish the event in sixth place.
Despite losing some tough matches to close out the season, 2016-17 saw Niagara capture the silver medal at the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) championships.
It was the first medal in women’s curling for the region’s community college since 2013.
The season also saw first-year skip Emma Caldwell named an OCAA second team all-star. Caldwell, along with fellow St. Catharines natives Courtney Smith, vice; and Renee Boyce, second; are all eligible to return for the 201718 season.