THUNDER BAY – Krista McCarville says winning her way to the Scotties Tournament of Hearts never gets old.
It doesn’t get any easier, either.
McCarville needed a draw to the four-foot on her final stone on Sunday to make it happen for the 11th time.
Not surprisingly, she made it, staring down the ice on Sheet 4 at the Port Arthur Curling Centre, as the rock slid toward it’s target at the perfect pace, on the perfect line, straight at the target she’d set in her mind.
When it stopped, she leapt in the air, punched her fist skyward, and was the Northern Ontario champion for the seventh time, earning her 12th trip to the Scotties, which will be staged next month at Fort William Gardens.
This win might have meant the most of them all, she said.
“One hundred per cent,” McCarville said, after battling back to defeat the Sudbury rink skipped by Ottawa native Emma Artichuk, an up-and-coming foursome nearly pulling off an upset, instead having to settle for silver in a 6-5 loss.
“The whole entire year we’ve just been dreaming we could represent Northern Ontario at the Scotties in our hometown. As time goes on, you get more and more nervous, and everyone seems to think that we just have a bye to the Scotties. But we don’t. There were so many great teams this year. We knew we had to play well, we knew we had to battle, so the minute that I won, it was just so exciting.”
Third Andrea Kelly, who joined McCarville’s team last season in an attempt to get the veteran skip a Scotties title after two runner-up finishes, most recently in 2022 at the Gardens in front of mostly empty stands, said they definitely had their work cut out for them all week long.
“We came up against some really good competition and I think we gained a lot more than just winning the provincials this week. We gained a lot of learning together, persevering and getting through some really tough situations,” Kelly said.
“I think that will help us carry through to the Scotties.”
Artichuk took an early 2-0 lead, tapping back her own stone in the first to score a pair, and try as they might, McCarville, Kelly, second Ashley Sippala and lead Sarah Potts, just couldn’t get back to even ground.
McCarville had a draw for two in the second, but came up short and settled for one. Down 3-1 in the fourth, she was light on her first and was left with a hit for one, Artichuk making a hit to sit shot stone on her final throw.
It was more of the same in the sixth, McCarville held to one and left trailing 4-3.
Things started to turn around in the seventh, when McCarville buried a stone, threw up a guard and orchestrated a steal, Artichuk tapping her own stone too far. McCarville stole another in the eighth and managed to hold her opponent to a single in the ninth, taking hammer to the 10th, tied 5-5.
Things looked like they might go sideways for the hometown favourites, when Kelly’s second shot spilled two McCarville rocks, sitting one and two in the four-foot, but McCarville recovered with an angle that opened the house. Artichuk was long on her draw and McCarville made the shot for the win.
It was a tough result, but a good lesson to learn, Artichuk said, her team consisting of lead Lauren Rajala, second Jamie Smith and third Megan Smith.
“The game was back and forth the whole time. It really was anyone’s game. I’m just really proud of how my team played and the whole week,” she said.
The Scotties open on Feb. 14.
