A big step forward!

Teams Peterman/Gallant, Weagle/Epping advance at Mixed Doubles Trials

LIVERPOOL, N.S. — Two teams took a huge stride toward playing in Saturday’s gold-medal game at the 2025 Canadian Mixed Doubles Curling Trials with playoff wins Thursday night at Queens Place Emera Centre in Liverpool, N.S.

Team Jocelyn Peterman/Brett Gallant (Chestermere, Alta.) and Team Lisa Weagle/John Epping (Ottawa/Toronto) claimed victories in the Page 1-2 qualifying round, and will go head to head Friday at 7 p.m. (all times Atlantic) in the Page 1-2 playoff.

From there, the winner will advance to Saturday’s 2 p.m. gold-medal game, while the loser drops into the semifinal Saturday at 10 a.m.

Team Peterman/Gallant stretched its win streak to eight with an 8-4 win over Team Rachel Homan/Brendan Bottcher (Beaumont, Alta./Spruce Grove, Alta.), while Team Weagle/Epping was a 10-5 winner over Team Brittany Tran/Rylan Kleiter (Calgary/Saskatoon).

It’ll be a rematch of a New Year’s Eve round-robin game in which Team Peterman/Gallant prevailed 6-3, thanks largely to a steal of two in the fifth end.

“We had a great game with them in the round robin and we expect them to play great in this game,” said Peterman. “We just need to keep doing our thing.”

Against Team Homan/Bottcher, it was Peterman who delivered the knockout punches; she made a wonderful angle-raise double takeout to score three in the first end, and then made a nose double for three more in the third to take a 6-1 lead, and that was more than enough.

Team Weagle/Epping, meanwhile, were down early after Tran made a brilliant long raise double takeout for three in the second end, but Team Weagle/Epping instantly replied with a three of their own in the third, and then Weagle made a precise draw to bite the button in the fifth for a pair to break a 4-4 tie and propel the Ontario duo to victory.

“It’s pretty exciting. I’ve never been in this position; my Trials record (over his career) so far hasn’t been very good,” said Epping with a laugh. “So it’s nice to have this opportunity, especially with Lisa. We’re playing really well right now so hopefully good things to come.”

Weagle and Epping will need to figure out a way past the unbeaten Peterman and Gallant.

“I mean, obviously, they’re playing great,” said Epping. “They haven’t lost a game and just beat one of the other top teams in the event. They’re playing fantastic, so we’re going to have to be on our game. But if we play like we did tonight, I think we have a good chance.”

Team Homan/Bottcher and Team Tran/Kleiter will be back on the ice Friday at 2 p.m. in the Page 3-4 qualifying round. Team Homan/Bottcher will battle Team Jaelyn Cotter/Jim Cotter (Vernon, B.C.), while Team Tran/Kleiter is up against Team Jennifer Jones/Brent Laing (Barrie, Ont.).

The two winners will play in the Page 3-4 playoff Friday at 7 p.m. for a spot in Saturday’s semifinal.

The winning team on Saturday will represent Canada at the 2025 World Mixed Doubles Championship April 26-May 3 in Fredericton, N.B.

That event also will decide most of the countries that will compete at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, and if Canada qualifies for the Games, it will be the Trials winner in Liverpool who will wear the Maple Leaf in Italy.

Live scoring, standings and statistics for the 2025 Canadian Mixed Doubles Trials are available by CLICKING HERE.

Streaming for the Trials will be available on Curling Canada’s YouTube channel.

Ticket information for the 2025 Canadian Mixed Doubles Trials is available by CLICKING HERE.

This story will be posted in French as soon as possible at www.curling.ca/2025mixeddoublestrials/nouvelles/?lang=fr