A nose hit accounts for a win

November 28, 2014 · 0 Comments

By Shellee Morning
King Curling Club
King curling’s ladies’ league is proving to be quite the competitive one.
With just a meagre five points between the third and ninth place teams, this league is surely turning into an exciting coalition of curlers.
Team Gorsline leads the pack with 28 points while Team Morning holds down second place with 23. Team Bones, who was in third place before last week’s round, was matched up against Team Morning that promised a game of equal opportunity and great shot making.
Team Morning, led by Skip Shellee Morning, along with Kaye Groen as vice, Noelle Andrews and Sharon Downey making up the front end, won the toss for hammer in the first. Skip Fran Bones and her squad Tamara Niepage, Debby Johnson and Cheryl Hamilton held the Morning team to a single point in the opening end, confirming this contest will be close and ring tight.
Both the second and third ends resulted in steals of a point each for Morning, earning a 3-0 lead. Bones, who is known for her quiet hit and rolls, didn’t disappoint. During the fourth, with an open opportunity for her signature hit, she prevailed and the team was rewarded with two points, closing the gap to 3-2. In the fifth, the crowded house of both yellow and red stones left the Morning Skip a pressure draw for just the single, but opened the gap back to a two-point lead.
Both teams had a few struggles along the way, but managed some good come-back throws to keep the game close. Debby Johnson for team Bones executed a few shots that nicely set up the rings for her skip in the sixth. That created some pressure and a bit of trouble for Morning. Running out of time, the teams played with intensity as this game was anyone’s to win. Tied at six apiece, it was down to skip rocks. Morning, with the hammer, played the final end cleanly, leaving Bones in the 1-2 counting position, with a lone stone out in the open for the hit and roll. With Groen calling the line, sweepers Andrews and Noelle worked hard to keep the line, but the rock at perfect weight forgot to curl and slid by the target by half an inch. Bone’s decided to hit her own rock for the roll behind cover and secure a steal. Again, her sweepers anticipated the curl, but as did Morning’s, the rock followed the same path leaving a second chance for Morning. Not wanting to make the same mistake again, Groen moved her broom an inch closer to the target and this time needing just a nose hit for the win. Superior sweeping by Andrews and Downey resulted in a perfect hit for the single point and claimed the victory.
Men’s League
The men’s league has once again assembled a group of high calibre competitive curlers, all vying for that ultimate top spot.
After seven weeks of play, the A Division group has a spread of 10 points between the first and eighth place teams. Team Barber leads the helm with seven wins and no losses, while team Frans is in the chase with five wins and two losses.
The B Division totals 12 points between first and last place, with MacDonald at the top and a three-way tie for second between G. Gerrits, Groombridge, and Howard with three wins each.
The C Division has a 14-point spread from top to bottom with D. Barber and Lee tied for first with five wins each, and Team Livingstone is right behind with four.
The “men with brooms” play with a force that not only ensures great games week after week, but also strengthens the league and certifies the high level of quality curling that King is producing in only its fourth season as a club. As the club’s season continues, all of its leagues are anticipating some great curling with new challenges and personal bests all yet to come before the playoff season begins.