A late collapse has Thunder Bay’s Krista McCarville in tough at the Ontario Scotties Tournament of Hearts.
McCarville(4-3) gave up a three-ender in the eighth end Thursday night against Ottawa’s Rachel Homan (6-1), then a steal of three more in the night, turning a 6-3 lead into a 9-6 loss in a hurry.
The two-time defending champions from Thunder Bay looked to be in complete control of the match through five ends, up 5-2 at the midway point before disaster struck.
The news was equally shattering for the city’s other two entrants at the Thornhill, Ont. event. Ashley Kallos (3-4) fell 7-5 to Sudbury’s Tracy Horgan (5-2), while Marlo Dahl’s rink (2-5) dropped an 8-6 decision to Susan McKnight (5-2).
McCarville is in a two-way tie with Lisa Farnell for the fourth and final playoff spot at the week-long event, heading into Friday’s final day of round-robin competition. She takes on fellow Fort William Curling Club mate Kallos in the afternoon draw and finishes with London’s Marika Bakewell in the evening game.
A pair of wins clinches at least a tiebreaker for the Thunder Bay skip. Kallos is still in the running for a spot as well, but would need Bakewell and McCarville to lose at least once game apiece.
