ALBERTA SLIDES INTO MIXED SEMIS

ALBERTA CLAIMS LAST PLAYOFF SPOT IN DRAMATIC LAST DRAW  

After 53 round robin games, not much had been decided. What we did know, however, is which four or five teams had a chance to play for the Canadian Mixed Championship in Saturday’s semis and final. 

Entering the last draw on Friday, teams from Manitoba, Nova Scotia, and Saskatchewan knew that they’d fill three of the four spots in the semifinals. All that was left to be decided was the fourth team, and in which order the top three would rank. 

Of the four games in play on 18^th draw of the week, three had implications on the final four rankings. Alberta needed a win to claim the fourth spot on their own. Quebec needed a win, and Alberta to lose if they were going to make it through. Meanwhile, the top three teams could finish in any order depending on their individual outcomes. 

When the dust settled, answers were finally provided. 

Starting with fourth place; Alberta’s Kurt Balderston locked down the spot before his game was over. Nova Scotia’s Owen Purcell defeated Quebec’s Don Bowser in six ends (more on this later), which meant that win or lose, Alberta was through. 

“I can honestly say that I didn’t look too closely at the leaderboard,” said Balderston, whose game was two sheets over. “I thought maybe in the back of my mind that certain games mattered, but I just wanted to win the game I was playing.” 

Balderston went on to win on the last shot over Newfoundland and Labrador’s Trent Skanes, so they would have claimed the spot either way. 

“I think we’re feeling pretty good, playing free and easy, not feeling any pressure,” said Balderston. “We’re playing better as the week goes on, and we’ll be ready to go tomorrow.” 

With the fourth place berth, Balderston, Janais DeJong, Daylan Vavrek, and Stephanie Malekoff (playing out of Grand Prairie, Alta.) will take on the number one seed in the semifinal on Saturday morning, but who would that be? 

Coming into the draw, Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan were tied at the top of the table with 8-1 records. Saskatchwan’s Jason Ackerman held the head-to-head tiebreaker and would have the advantage if the records remained tied. 

After Purcell’s Nova Scotia squad posted their victory, Team Saskatchewan and Team Manitoba (skipped by Ryan Wiebe) were still tied at 4, following the sixth end. 

After overcoming an early deficit, Ackerman and his team from the Highland Curling Club in Regina also pulled off a dramatic last rock win, scoring two in the eighth to claim the victory and the number one spot in the playoff seeding. 

After all that, your semifinals are set: Saskatchewan (1) will face Alberta (4). Nova Scotia (2) will face Manitoba (3).  

Games will begin at 10:00 am ET and will be streaming live on http://youtube.com/CurlingCanada . Scores and results are available at http://curling.ca/scoreboard .