Little Rock curlers take part in Bonspiel at Chingaucousy

February 26, 2015 · 0 Comments

By Shellee Morning
King Curling Club
Three Little Rock teams recently participated in the Little Rock with a Heart Invitational Bonspiel at the Chingaucousy Curling Club and for some, this was a whole new experience.
These future curling stars who practise/play once a week at the King Curling Club not only enjoyed their first ever spiel, but more importantly received the best lessons they can get in the game of curling — real game playing.
The Little Rock with a Heart Bonspiel welcomed clubs from the Brampton, Hamilton, Milton, Oakville and Unionville areas for a six-end, two-game format.
Jitta ‘steals’ the show
Nine year old skip Jody Jitta, and his team of David Maan playing vice, Adrian Spataro in second, and Ethan Olivera as lead, opened their round at the Chingaucousy Spiel with a game against Team Milton.
The more experienced Milton team won the toss for hammer in the first and proceeded to sink a sea of rocks into the rings, applying pressure to the nervous King squad. Skipper Jitta stared down the broom for his target and executed a magnificent draw behind cover to “steal” the first end. Lightening the tension load, the King kids tightened their grip, allowing their skip to make the perfect shot in each end afterwards and finally winning the multiple-steals game.
The second game against Hamilton-Victoria was quite a bit more challenging for the nine to 11 year old youngsters. David Maan, who is now officially nicknamed “Mr. Double Take-Out,” said “why take out one rock when you can take out two,” did just that. Achieving double take outs on numerous occasions in the game rewarded him with a personal best performance. Although they were unable to take over their opponents, the kids had a great time and eagerly announced they want to do more spiels next year.
Last-minute team change
Team 2 consisted of Jacob Switzer, Ethan Walsh, Rosie Fragomen and Noah Harbridge and was put together at the last minute due to the original teams’ hockey playoff schedule.
For both Rosie and Ethan, it was their very first bonspiel experience and without having any time to practise as a team, the kids did very well. Learning strategy and rock weight is a big part of curling and this team, even though they lost both games, executed some great guards and made a few hits that will surely build their confidence. A tremendous amount of knowledge for understanding the game was collected by them all, and the chance to meet new friends and share some laughter was all a part of the weekend event. Traditional handshakes were given, then it was off to the snack table for treats and sweets.
These youngsters all ranging in age from eight to 10, did their coaches proud in the way they handled themselves, both on and off ice.
Smiles win over
Team 3 was led by 12-year-old Ethan Mumford, who guided his team of Eric Mumford, 10, Tayah Wilkins, 8, and Katerina Decoste, 8, with confidence and poise.
This was a first time bonspiel for both Tayah and Katerina, and both girls didn’t appear to be nervous at all. In fact, the smiles that emerged on their faces from the first rock thrown to the last won over the coaches, parents and fellow curlers. Even though the team lost both their games, Eric called a great game with shots that came up just inches short of a victory.
Next up for the Little Rockers is the Shamrock Spiel, hosted by the King Club, scheduled for March 18 and open to Little Rock and Bantam curlers.
Finishing off their season will be a trip to the Timbit Curling Championships, which is a three-day event with teams coming from all across Ontario.
There is lots of exciting curling yet to happen for future curling stars and everyone at the King Curling Club wishes them best of luck and great curling for their next two events.

Nine-year-old skip Cody Jitta (far right), seen here with team mates lead Ethan Olivera, 9, second Adrian Spataro, 11, and vice David Maan, 11, led his team to victory at the Little Rock with a Heart Bonspiel held at the Chingaucousy Curling Club.