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Day 2 from Sudbury!
Day 2 Updates from CCAA and U SPORTS Curling Canada College and Universtiy Championships
LEADERS EMERGE AT THE 2023 CCAA CURLING CANADA CHAMPIONSHIPS
Women’s Championship
After an exciting opening round comeback, the Red Deer Queens found themselves on the other side of the equation to start day two, as the Niagara Knights stormed back in an exciting tilt. The Queens led 6-2 in the back half of the contest but the Knights scored six over the final four ends to claim the 8-6 victory and remain undefeated.
A late surge by the Concordia Thunder kept their record clean as well, persevering 8-5 over the Fanshawe Falcons. The SAIT Trojans fought hard to stay in their match with Humber, but the Hawks maintained their lead on route to a 9-5 win. Augustana came out firing on all cylinders, toppling the Sault Cougars 21-2.
The Women’s evening draw had Concordia and Niagara trying to maintain their unbeaten streaks, but SAIT and Augustana took them to the limit. The Thunder were down late to the Trojans, and it took a CUE single in the ninth and a steal in the tenth to earn them the 7-6 win. Conversely, Niagara saw their two-point lead slip away late when Augustana notched a pair in the ninth. However, the Knights endured and claimed the final end for an 8-6 victory.
The Humber Hawks put together a second straight showing of strength and skill, beating their OCAA rivals the Fanshawe Falcons 9-3. While the Red Deer Queens bounced back from their morning loss with a 20-1 victory over the Sault Cougars.
Men’s Championship
Sault versus SAIT was the highlight of the Men’s first draw of the day. Tied 3-3 at the break, Sault took a single in the sixth but gave up three to the Trojans in the seventh. The Cougars responded immediately with four to reclaim the lead. The Trojans got one back in the ninth and nearly stole another in the tenth, but the Cougars held on for the 8-7 win.
The other three matches were close early, but the Concordia Thunder (11-4 over Fleming), Humber Hawks (8-4 over Augustana) and Mohawk Mountaineers (10-1 over NAIT) dominated the back half of their contests.
The Men’s evening draw featured late-game drama across several sheets. The Mohawk Mountaineers appeared to be cruising to another victory, until the SAIT Trojans slammed the brakes in the eighth. Down five with three ends to play, the Trojans scored four in the eighth, stole one in the ninth and another two in the final frame for an incredible 9-7 come from behind victory.
The Concordia Thunder and Augustana Vikings needed extra ends to decide their contest. CUE held a sizeable 7-3 lead after eight, but Augustana responded with four over the last two ends. Holding the hammer in the 11th, the Thunder rolled to a hard fought 9-7 win.
Not to be outdone, the Sault Cougars found themselves in another nail-biter, when the NAIT Ooks staged a rally after falling behind 7-2. The Ooks scored three in the sixth and stole another in the seventh to pull within one, but Sault held on to win 9-6. Along with Sault, Humber maintained their unbeaten record by defeating the Fleming Knights 11-2.
Standings After Day Two
| Women’s Teams | Record | Men’s Teams | Record |
| Niagara Knights | 3-0 | Humber Hawks | 3-0 |
| Concordia Thunder | 3-0 | Sault Cougars | 3-0 |
| Red Deer Queens | 2-1 | Mohawk Mountaineers | 2-1 |
| Humber Hawks | 2-1 | Concordia Thunder | 2-1 |
| Augustana Vikings | 1-2 | NAIT Ooks | 1-2 |
| Fanshawe Falcons | 1-2 | SAIT Trojans | 1-2 |
| SAIT Trojans | 0-3 | Augustana Vikings | 0-3 |
| Sault Cougars | 0-3 | Fleming Knights | 0-3 |
More Information:
Championship Websitehttps://www.curling.ca/2023college/
Live Scoringhttps://www.curling.ca/scoreboard/#!/competitions/8168
Photoshttps://ccaasportsacsc.smugmug.com/2023-CCAA-Curling-Canada-Championships
DAY TWO OF THE U SPORTS/CURLING CANADA CHAMPIONSHIPS SAW ALL 16 TEAMS IN ATTENDANCE PLAY TWO GAMES AS THE COMPETITION KICKED INTO HIGH GEAR.
On the women’s side, the field remains wide open as every team made their way into the win column and only one team remains perfect after three games while, on the men’s side, some separation is beginning to show, as there is a single undefeated team with a pair of squads looking for their first wins.
Stealing was the name of the game in the morning draw as the Victoria Vikes stole twice in the game, once in the fifth end and again in the tenth end, to secure a 6-4 win over Dalhousie. Laurentian had steals in both the fourth and fifth end, and once more in an extra end, after a measurement, to down UPEI 5-4. TMU stole seven points in their game against Memorial on their way to a 12-2 win while Alberta, down 7-5 after eight, stole a single in nine and two in the tenth end to come back and beat McMaster 8-7.
In the afternoon draw, a pair of teams made sure that they remain with the field as both McMaster and Memorial found the win column for the first time. The Marauders tamed the UPEI Panthers by a 7-2 score while the Sea-Hawks grounded the UVIC Vikes 9-5. The Dalhousie Tigers scored in the second, third, fifth, sixth, and seventh ends, while holding the TMU Bold to singles in the first and eighth ends as they cruised to a 7-2 win. In the final game on the ice, after falling behind early, the Laurentian Voyageurs used big scores of three in the eighth and four in the tenth to power past the Alberta Pandas, 11-6. The Voyageurs are now the only team remaining with an unblemished record with four round robin games to play.
On the men’s side, the afternoon draw was highlighted by an absolute shootout as the Dalhousie Tigers outlasted the Queen’s Gaels 12-11 in extra ends to hand the Gaels their first loss. UNB and Laurentian both got back to .500 as the former kept Calgary winless with a 7-4 triumph while the later left Saint Mary’s looking for their first win with a 9-4 victory. The final game of the draw saw Laurier jump out to a 6-1 lead and cruise to an 8-5 win over Alberta.
In the evening draw, it was predominantly matchups of intra-conference foes. In the battle of Alberta, it was the Golden Bears keeping the Calgary Dinos winless, taking the game 8-3 on the strength of a pair of three-enders. In a matchup of two OUA teams, it was the hometown Voyageurs downing the Gaels 8-4 thanks, in large part, to a 4-point fourth end. In the all-AUS showdown, Dalhousie stole one in the final end to remain unbeaten with a 7-6 win, keeping Saint Mary’s winless in the process. In the only cross-conference game of the night, the UNB Reds used steals in the seventh and eighth ends to propel them to a 9-8 win and hand the Laurier Golden Hawks their first loss.
Action resumes tomorrow as all 16 teams will once again hit the ice for two games.
WOMEN’S STANDINGS
1 Laurentian Voyageurs 3-0
2 Dalhousie Tigers 2-1
3 Alberta Pandas 2-1
4 McMaster Marauders 1-2
5 Prince Edward Island Panthers 1-2
6 Toronto Metropolitan University Bold 1-2
7 Memorial Sea-Hawks 1-2
8 Victoria Vikes 1-2
MEN’S STANDINGS
1 Dalhousie Tigers 3-0
2 New Brunswick Reds 2-1
3 Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks 2-1
4 Alberta Golden Bears 2-1
5 Laurentian Voyageurs 2-1
6 Queen’s Golden Gaels 1-2
7 Saint Mary’s Huskies 0-3
8 Calgary Dinos 0-3