Draw 10

Although the playoffs have kicked off for some of the early qualifiers at the 2023 BC Senior Men’s and Women’s Curling Championships, there were still a few qualifying spots left for teams to claim.

For the men, the A- vs. B- Qualifier games were played during the morning draw with Team Craig (Duncan, Nanaimo, Comox) taking on Team Koyanagi (Royal City), and Team Wright (Kelowna, Comox) facing off against Team Buchy (Kimberley, Kelowna, Castlegar).

In the Team Craig and Team Koyanagi match up, it was a great game that demonstrated sharp shooting from both teams. In the fourth end, Team Craig was able to clear the house of a bundle of Team Koyanagi rocks to open it up for their last shot, but came up short on the draw. This put the momentum in Team Koyanagi’s hands headed into the break. Despite a big score of three in the seventh end by Team Craig, the team from Royal City was able to grab the win 8-6.

In the Team Wright and Team Buchy game, it was all Team Wright for the first half of the game as they held Team Buchy to just a single point in four ends. Team Wright kept the pressure on and a steal of one to make the score 7-2 after seven ends was enough for Team Buchy.

As those playoffs games played on, two men’s C-Qualifier spots were still up for grabs with Team Sutton (Victoria) duking it out with Team Greenlaw (Osoyoos, Marpole, VCC, Duncan), and Team Longworth (Vernon) meeting Team Nichol (Castlegar, Fruitvale, Grand Forks, Nelson).

Team Sutton and Team Greenlaw had a tie game going through the early ends with Team Sutton slowly gaining momentum as the game went on. A string of steals through ends five, six and seven propelled Team Sutton to a 6-2 win. Team Sutton would enter the playoffs as a C-Qualifier.

Team Longworth showed up strong against Team Nichol, scoring nine points through four ends. This prompted early handshakes from Team Nichol, with the final score being 9-2. Team Longworth would continue on to the playoff games in the afternoon.

With the playoff picture fully set, Team Sutton and Team Craig will have an all-Island game at 2:00pm this afternoon. Right next to them will be Team Longworth and Team Buchy. As winners, Team Koyanagi and Team Wright will play at 7:00pm tonight for a direct trip to the championship final.

One women’s game was also on the ice this morning for a B-Qualifier spot in their page playoff. Team Cowan (Royal City, Vancouver) was coming off an A-Qualifier loss and looking to earn their playoff spot against Team Arsenault (Vernon, Parksville). Lots of pressure from Team Cowan sealed their spot in the playoffs with a 6-2 win.

Team Arsenault will have one more chance to qualify for the playoffs against Team Mychaluk (Langley, Royal City, Parksville).

Draw 11

Team Sutton (Victoria) just qualified for the playoffs through the C-Event in the previous draw and were ready to get their playoff run going against A-Qualifier Team Craig (Duncan, Nanaimo, Comox). In this all-Island affair, a big score of five for Team Craig in the third end helped boost them to an eventual 12-3 win after six ends.

In the other men’s playoff game, C-Qualifier Team Longworth (Vernon) was ready to take on B-Qualifier Team Buchy (Kimberley, Kelowna, Castlegar). This game also ended early with Team Longworth sealing the deal with a score of four in the seventh, taking the win 8-3.

Team Craig and Team Longworth will play in their next playoff game at 7:00pm this evening. The men’s playoffs for Team Koyanagi (Royal City) and Team Wright (Kelowna, Comox) also continue.

The last two women’s playoff spots were up for grabs in this draw, with Team Fedoruk (Victoria) and Team Richter (Penticton) going after one spot, and Team Arsenault (Vernon, Parksville) and Team Mychaluk (Langley, Royal City, Parksville) going after the other.

Team Fedoruk and Team Richter met previously in the event with Team Fedoruk having won that game 6-2. With a thrilling eighth end, Team Fedoruk would come out on top again, 7-5.

Team Arsenault and Team Mychaluk had their first meeting in this event. This game went all the way to an extra end after a back and forth battle through eight ends. Team Arsenault was able to expertly place their stones in the extra end to steal the win, 9-6.

Team Fedoruk and Team Arsenault will play each other next at 7:00pm this evening in the Page 3v4 game. Team Gushulak (Royal City, Kelowna) and Team Cowan (Royal City, Vancouver) will also be back on the ice for their Page 1v2 game.

Draw 12

It was all playoff games at the Langley Curling Centre for the 2023 BC Senior Men’s and Women’s Curling Championships.

In the women’s playoffs, Team Gushulak (Royal City, Kelowna) and Team Cowan (Royal City, Vancouver) met for the Page 1v2 game. Team Gushulak opened the game with a deuce after a rare missed hit by Team Cowan. Team Gushulak would run their opponent out of rocks in the eighth in to earn their spot in the final, 5-3.

The women’s Page 3v4 game was also being played between Team Fedoruk (Victoria) and Team Arsenault (Vernon, Parksville), who both qualified earlier this afternoon. Team Arsenault got the momentum going early with a big score of four in the first end. However, Team Fedoruk bounced right back in the fourth with a score of four right back, followed by a steal of two. This back and forth game ended with a 10-7 win for Team Arsenault.

Team Arsenault will move on to Sunday morning’s semi-final against Team Cowan.

The men’s playoffs continued as well with Team Koyanagi (Royal City) taking on Team Wright (Kelowna, Comox) and Team Craig (Duncan, Nanaimo, Comox) taking on Team Longworth (Vernon).

Team Koyanagi and Team Wright were playing for a direct entry to Sunday’s championship final. As expected for two teams in this position, it was a close game. In the end, it was Koyanagi’s two deuces that sealed the deal for them as they snagged their spot in the championship final tomorrow afternoon at 2:00pm. The final score was 5-3.

Team Craig and Team Longworth were playing for a spot in Sunday’s semi-final. A deuce in the fourth end, followed by a steal in the fifth end made all the difference for Team Craig as they won the game 6-2. Team Craig will move on to Sunday morning’s semi-final against Team Wright.

Check the live scoring updates: Men’s, Women’s

Watch the even live on the Curl BC YouTube channel: Curl BC – YouTube

This event is supported in part by grants from the Province of British Columbia and Hosting BC.