SUMMERSIDE — Rod MacDonald is about to add to an already lengthy list of curling accomplishments.
The Summerside native will curl in a national championship in his hometown for the first time.
“I’m looking forward to it,” said MacDonald, who will skip the P.E.I. men’s entry in the 2013 Canadian senior curling championships at the Silver Fox Curling and Yacht Club. “It’s going to be fun to play in my hometown.”
A total of 24 teams – 12 men and 12 women – are competing in the nine-day event that runs from March 16 to 24.
MacDonald and his teammates are curling together for the first time in the senior ranks this year, but are quite familiar with each other. John Likely plays third stone, Mark O’Rourke is the second stone and Peter MacDonald handles the lead position.
“We have a good solid team,” assessed MacDonald, who has represented P.E.I. in seven Briers, including four as skip. “John has been at many national events, mixed events and a couple of Briers. He can throw the big weight and get me out of trouble when we are in a little bit of trouble, and he can throw the soft stuff as well. . .
“Mark has been curling with me the last four or five years as second, so I know what he can do. He can also throw the big weight well. Our middle two can both throw big weight and get me out of trouble and open the front up when we get in trouble.
“Pete, of course, has been at many nationals, and is a solid lead. I like our lineup and like our team.”
MacDonald joked that O’Rourke, who is the skip and lead’s brother-in-law, is the rookie of the team.
“He just turned the magic age of 50,” added MacDonald with a chuckle.
Provincial championship
The MacDonald rink won all six games en route to winning the provincial senior men’s title at The Fox on Feb. 18. After going 5-0 (won-lost) in round-robin play to earn a bye to the final, MacDonald defeated Bill Hope’s rink from the Silver Fox and Cornwall Curling Club 7-4 in the championship game.
“If we play like we did at provincials, we were getting stronger every game we played there, I think we will be tough,” added MacDonald. “We haven’t played a lot of games together,” commented MacDonald. “We played in the Summerside cashspiel together and lost in the final of that, and we just played (in the senior) provincials.”
Men’s Schedule
Saturday, March 16
2:30 p.m.
N.L. vs. Quebec
Alberta vs. P.E.I.
N.S. vs. N. Ontario
NWT vs. B.C.
Manitoba vs. Ontario
Sask. vs. N.B.
6:30 p.m.
Opening ceremonies
Sunday, March 17
10 a.m.
NWT vs. Manitoba
N.S. vs. B.C.
Sask. vs. N.L.
P.E.I. vs. N.B.
Alberta vs. Quebec
N. Ont. Vs. Ontario
2:30 p.m.
B.C. vs. P.E.I.
Sask. vs. Quebec
Manitoba vs. N. Ont.
7 p.m.
NWT vs. Ontario
N.S. vs. N.B.
N.L. vs. Alberta
Monday, March 18
10 a.m.
Quebec vs. N. Ontario
Manitoba vs. P.E.I.
Sask. vs. B.C.
2:30 p.m.
N.B. vs. Alberta
Ontario vs. N.L.
N.S. vs. NWT
7 p.m.
B.C. vs. Quebec
N. Ontario vs. P.E.I.
Manitoba vs. Sask.
Tuesday, March 19
10 a.m.
N.B. vs. Ontario
NWT vs. N.L.
N.S. vs. Alberta
2:30 p.m.
Sask. vs. P.E.I.
Quebec vs. Manitoba
B.C. vs. N. Ontario
7 p.m.
NWT vs. Alberta
N.S. vs. Ontario
N.L. vs. N.B.
Wednesday, March 20
10 a.m.
Manitoba vs. B.C.
N. Ontario vs. Sask.
Quebec vs. P.E.I.
2:30 p.m.
N.S. vs. N.L.; NWT vs. N.B.
Ontario vs. Alberta
Thursday, March 21
8 a.m.
Ontario vs. B.C.
Quebec vs. N.B.
NWT vs. P.E.I.
N.S. vs. Sask.
N.L. vs. N. Ontario
Alberta vs. Manitoba
4 p.m.
N. Ont. vs. N.B.
Ontario vs. Sask.
B.C. vs. Alberta
N.L. vs. Manitoba
N.S. vs. P.E.I.
NWT vs. Quebec
Friday, March 22
10 a.m.
Sask. vs. Alberta
NWT vs. N. Ontario
N.B. vs. Manitoba
N.S. vs. Quebec
B.C. vs. N.L.
P.E.I. vs. Ontario
7 p.m.
N.S. vs. Manitoba
P.E.I. vs. N.L.
Ontario vs. Quebec
N. Ontario vs. Alberta
NWT vs. Sask.
N.B. vs. B.C.
Rinks
P.E.I. (Rod MacDonald)
N.L. (Glenn Goss)
Que. (Robert MacLean)
Alta. (Wade White)
N. Ont. (Bruce Munro)
B.C. (Craig Lepine)
Man. (Bob Sigurdson)
Ontario (Howard Rajala)
Sask. (Gord Bell)
N.B. (Wayne Tallon)
N.S. (Alan O’Leary)
NWT (Glen Hudy)
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Women’s Schedule
Saturday, March 16
10 a.m.
NWT vs. N.L.
Alberta vs. P.E.I.
N.S. vs. N. Ontario
B.C. vs. N.B.
Manitoba vs. Ontario
Sask. vs. Quebec
6:30 p.m.
Opening ceremonies
7:30 p.m.
N.B. vs. Manitoba
B.C. vs. N.S.
Sask. vs. N.L.
P.E.I. vs. Quebec
NWT vs. Alberta
N. Ontario vs. Ontario
Sunday, March 17
2:30 p.m.
N.B. vs. Ontario
N.S. vs. Quebec
N.L. vs. Alberta
7 p.m.
B.C. vs. P.E.I.
NWT vs. Sask.
Manitoba vs. N. Ontario
Monday, March 18
10 a.m.
Quebec vs. Alberta
Ont. vs. N.L.; N.S. vs. N.B.
2:30 p.m.
NWT vs. N. Ontario
Manitoba vs. P.E.I.
B.C. vs. Sask.
7 p.m.
Quebec vs. Ontario
N.L. vs. N.B.
Alberta vs. N.S.
Tuesday, March 19
10 a.m.
B.C. vs. NWT
N. Ontario vs. P.E.I.
Manitoba vs. Sask.
2:30 p.m.
Alberta vs. N.B.
N.S. vs. Ontario
N.L. vs. Quebec
7 p.m.
Sask. vs. P.E.I.
NWT vs. Manitoba
B.C. vs. N. Ontario
Wednesday, March 20
10 a.m.
N.S. vs. N.L.
Quebec vs. N.B.
Ontario vs. Alberta
2:30 p.m.
B.C. vs. Manitoba
N. Ontario vs. Sask.
NWT vs. P.E.I.
7 p.m.
B.C. vs. Ontario
NWT vs. Quebec
P.E.I. vs. N.B.; N.S. vs. Sask.
N.L. vs. N. Ontario
Alberta vs. Manitoba
Thursday, March 21
Noon
N. Ontario vs. Quebec
Ontario vs. Sask.
B.C. vs. Alberta
N.L. vs. Manitoba
P.E.I. vs. N.S.
NWT vs. N.B.
8 p.m.
Sask. vs. Alberta
N.B. vs. N. Ontario
Quebec vs. Manitoba
NWT vs. N.S.; B.C. vs. N.L.
P.E.I. vs. Ontario
Friday, March 22
2:30 p.m.
Manitoba vs. N.S.
P.E.I. vs. N.L.
NWT vs. Ontario
N. Ontario vs. Alberta
N.B. vs. Sask.;
B.C. vs. Quebec
Rinks
P.E.I. (Nola Murphy)
N.L. (Laura Phillips)
Alberta (Deb Santos)
N.S. (Colleen Pinkney)
N. Ont. (Vicky Barrett)
N.B. (Heidi Hanlon)
Manitoba (Lois Fowler)
Ontario (Judy Oryniak)
Sask. (Cathy Inglis)
Quebec (Catherine Derick)
B.C. (Karen Lepine)
NWT (Ann McKellar Gillis)
