GOOD TIMES KEEP ROLLING!

Team Homan keeps rolling with dominant win at Scotties

Skip Rachel Homan has enjoyed a superb season on the frozen pebble this season, and has the trophies and cash to prove it.

But it’s likely she’d trade all those goodies from the Tour for another Canadian Women’s Curling Championship.

And from all appearances at the 2024 Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Calgary, the 34-year-old skipper has worked out all the kinks after bringing in a new player last season and ready to win The Big One.

Homan’s Team Ontario-Homan (6-0, Ottawa) kept humming like a well-oiled machine Wednesday with a comfortable 10-3 win over skip Clancy Grandy’s Team British Columbia-Grandy (5-2, Vancouver) at the WinSport Event Centre.

Homan, a former world champion and one of Canada’s most accomplished curlers, is appearing in her 10th Scotties, winning three of them. Trouble is she hasn’t won the Scotties since 2017 in St. Catharines, Ont. That is a drought she’s like to end this year.

There have been several reasons for the dry spell. One has been the excellence of defending champion Kerri Einarson, who has won four straight Canadian women’s curling titles with her team from Gimli, Man. There’s also been a bit of stop and go with the birth of three children along the way. Meanwhile, a lineup change or two has taken some adjusting. Tracy Fleury joined the team two seasons ago and, for a brief period, skipped the team.

But all appears settled these days and Team Homan is having a frolicking good time on the ice, making it to the final in five of its six Tour events and winning four of them, including the Grand Slam Co-Op Canadian Open in Red Deer, Alta., and Grand Slam Masters in Saskatoon, Sask. The team have lost all of five games all season.

The good times kept rolling in Calgary Wednesday as Homan and her superb lineup — vice-skip Fleury, second Emma Miskew, lead Sarah Wilkes, alternate Rachel Brown, and coach Don Bartlett — put away Team Grandy with ease.

After two opening blank ends, Team Grandy was thrown a lifeline in the third when it won a measure, reducing Team Homan’s potential score from three to two.

But on the very next end the roof fell in on Team Grandy when it gave up a steal of five. Grandy, facing a bundle of enemy stones in the four-foot behind cover, elected to negotiate a tiny port out front in an attempt to salvage something, but couldn’t wiggle her rock through.

“We were making some great shots, getting the angles and able to put some pressure on them,” said Homan. “We gave them a small port that she was very close to making the draw. The five was a big turning point.

“It (win) keeps us in control of our future. We’ll take this evening off and have two big games tomorrow.”

The win guaranteed Homan a playoff spot this weekend. The top three teams in each of Pool A and B make the playoffs. Making the playoffs is the first priority, but teams are also eyeing the No. 1 spot which gives them a big advantage in the sprint to the finish. Pool winners get a bye into the semifinals of the first round of the six-team playoffs.

It was a humbling defeat but Grandy said she’ll shake it off.

“You don’t want to drop a big one like that, but it’s more about what we need to move forward,” said Grandy, playing in her second straight Scotties.

She also stood by her decision to thread the needle with her final shot rather than try a tricky straight-back takeout to reduce the damage. 

“The straight-back, we risked giving up a three,” she said. “Against a team like that it’s a little bit too much. We made a couple of mistakes (that end) and then you’re facing pressure on the last.”

Skip Jennifer Jones also had a good afternoon. The six-time Canadian women’s curling champion rebounded from her first loss the night before to Team Homan before leading Team Manitoba-Jones (5-1, Winnipeg) to a 10-5 victory over Team Manitoba-Cameron (3-3, Winnipeg) skipped by Kate Cameron. The win sent Team Manitoba-Jones into the playoffs alongside Team Ontario-Homan.

In the other Pool B slate of games, Team Ontario (3-4, Ottawa), skipped by Danielle Inglis, rolled to a 10-2 win over Team Yukon (0-6, Whitehorse), skipped by Bayly Scoffin, and skip Heather Smith kept Team Nova Scotia (3-3, Halifax) within distance of a playoff spot with a 7-5 win over Team Northwest Territories (1-5, Yellowknife), skipped by Kerry Galusha.

Team New Brunswick (2-4, Fredericton) had the afternoon Pool B bye.

The 2024 Scotties Tournament of Hearts continues with a draw Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. (all times Mountain).

Live scoring, standings and statistics for the 2024 Scotties Tournament of Hearts are available at www.curling.ca/scoreboard/.

TSN and RDS2 will provide complete coverage of the 2024 Scotties Tournament of Hearts. CLICK HERE for the complete schedule.

Broadcast coverage for viewers outside of Canada is available on TSN’s YouTube channel, www.youtube.com/@TSN_Sports.

For ticket information for the 2024 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, go to www.curling.ca/2024scotties/tickets/.

This story will be available in French as soon as possible at www.curling.ca/2024scotties/nouvelles/?lang=fr