NIPIGON – Former finalist Dylan Johnston opened with a win on Wednesday night top open his run at the Northern Ontario men’s curling championship.
Johnston closed out a 9-7 win over Sudbury’s Jordan Chandler, scoring one in the 10th with the hammer to put the match away.
The Thunder Bay skip, who lost the 2017 final on home ice to Sault Ste. Marie’s Brad Jacobs, scored deuces in the first and third to go up 4-1, then traded three-point ends with his opponent to lead 7-4 at the break. Chandler stole one in the ninth to cut the gap to 8-7, but couldn’t manage a steal in the 10th and dropped to 0-2.
Thunder Bay’s Mike McCarville also found his way into the win column, breaking open a 4-4 match in the eighth, when he scored a single, adding steals in the ninth and 10th to win 7-4 over fellow Lakehead curler Trevor Bonot.
Tanner Horgan of Sudbury improved to 2-0 with a 5-3 win over Dustin Montpeillier, while four-time defending champion Jacobs slammed Sudbury’s Robbie Gordon 10-4. Gordon fell to 0-1. Jacobs is seeking his ninth title in 10 years.