Homan books ticket to Games

OTTAWA — The scenario played out perfectly for Rachel Homan and she wasn’t about to let the once-in-alifetime opportunity go to waste.

The 28-year-old Ottawa skip punched a ticket to the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea, on Sunday afternoon with a 6-5 victory over Calgary’s Cheslea Carey in front of a boisterous hometown crowd at the Canadian Tire Centre.

With the Canadian Olympic curling trials in her back yard in Kanata, Homan proved once again to be one of the finest players in the world, going 7-1 in the round robin, beating 2014 Olympic champion Jennifer Jones in the semifinal and then capping a great week off with the win over Carey.

Just as Jones did in 2013 in Winnipeg, Homan, third Emma Miskew, second Joanne Courtney and lead Lisa Weagle were able to bask in the glory of their win before an adoring crowd.

Carey had the hammer in the first end and kept things conservative after Homan’s lead Lisa Weagle put the first rock of the game into the house. From there on it was just an exchange of hits and looked like it would be an easy blank for Carey but she whiffed and Homan had an unexpected steal of one.

Homan went up 2-0 in the second end with another steal of one. She made a brilliant draw that just barely skinnied the guard and stopped on the button. Weagle and Courtney did an outstanding job of holding the line. Carey couldn’t match the precision shot and her last rock wrecked on the guard.

Carey got one point back in the third end, hitting and sticking for one after Homan made a tremendous hit and roll to lie two.

That gave Homan the hammer for the first time in the game but she was unable to take full advantage. In fact, a measure was necessary for her to record a single point after she played a come-around tap-back in the fourfoot. Carey played a strong end, freezing to Homan’s rock in the 12-foot with her first and drawing around a long guard with her second to make life difficult for Homan.