SYDNEY, N.S. – Krista McCarville needed 11 ends to dispatch of long-time rival Tracy Fleury, but a hit-and-stick for a pair in the extra end sent her Thunder Bay rink into the championship round at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts.
The veteran skip, taking part in her seventh national women’s curling championship, made a near perfect draw in the 10th end, facing a pair of Fleury stones hugging the four-foot, to hold her opponent to a single and send the match into an extra frame.
McCarville and teammates Sarah Potts, Jen Gates and Kendra Lilly, earned one of four Pool A spots in the next round with their 7-5 win over Fleury, who will take on B.C.’s Sarah Wark (4-3) in Thursday’s tiebreaker to decide the fourth and final spot.
She’ll be joined in the next round by Alberta’s Chelsea Carey, who crushed Quebec 12-2 to finish pool play undefeated at 7-0, and Ontario’s Rachel Homan, who edged Wark 8-6 on Wednesday to finish at 5-2, tied with McCarville for second.
It was Fleury (4-3) who struck first against Team Northern Ontario, scoring a pair in the second to take a 2-0 lead.
McCarville got one back in the third, then after blanking the fourth end, stole singles in the fifth, sixth and seventh to take a 4-2 lead.
Fleury evened the match in the eighth with a deuce, then forced McCarville to take a single in the ninth and a 5-4 lead, sacrificing hammer at the same time.
In other Draw 13 play, host Nova Scotia downed Nunavut 11-1 to finish at 2-5.
In Pool B play on Wednesday night, Prince Edward Island will look to improve its 5-1 record against Saskatchewan (4-2), while Jennifer Jones’ Team Canada squad (4-2) will take on the Casey Scheidegger 5-1 wild-card team. The Northwest Territories, skipped by Kerry Galusha, remains in the playoff hunt too and plays winless Yukon (0-6) in their final round-robin match.
