CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. — P.E.I.’s Suzanne Birt rink bounced back in a big way Thursday night at the 2019 Scotties Tournament of Hearts.
After losing 9-8 to British Columbia’s Sarah Wark on a measurement in the afternoon, Birt, third stone Marie Christianson, second stone Meaghan Hughes and lead Michelle McQuaid defeated Alberta’s Chelsea Carey 10-6. The loss dropped Carey to 7-2.
The P.E.I. representative from the Charlottetown Curling Complex entered Friday’s play in the Canadian women’s curling championship 6-3, and in a three-way tie Northern Ontario’s Krista McCarville and the wild-card’s Casey Scheidegger rink.
The 16 teams are divided into two eight-team pools. After playing a round robin within their pool, the top four teams in each eight-team pool advanced to the championship round, which began on Thursday and will determine the four teams for the Page playoff system that begins on Saturday.
On Friday afternoon, the Birt rink dropped a tight 7-6 decision in an extra end to Rachel Homan's Ontario squad. That dropped P.E.I. to 6-4 but the Birt foursome are still alive going into Friday night's game against McCarville and Northern Ontario .
Against Alberta, with the teams tied 2-2, P.E.I. scored four in the fifth end to open up a 6-2. P.E.I., which would widen that lead to 9-4 after eight ends, would not relinquish the lead.
Against B.C., with P.E.I. lying three, Birt had the hammer shot, and needed to grab a piece of the button to count one and break an 8-8 tie. However, after the rock went just a little too far, a measurement determined British Columbia’s rock was shot rock. That decision gave B.C. a 9-8 win in the opening game of the championship round for both teams.
B.C. went into Friday’s action 5-4 after losing to 8-6 to Saskatchewan on Thursday night.
Tiebreakers, if necessary, will be played this morning.
The Page playoff system also goes today with the 3-vs-4 game at 2:30 p.m. and 1-vs-2 at 7:30 p.m.
The semifinal goes Sunday at noon with the championship game taking place at 6 p.m.