And so ends one of the longest curling seasons in recent memory.
But it got done and the last order of business came courtesy of the youngest group eligible for a national championship.
The Canadian U18 Curling Championships wrapped up in Oakville, Ont., on May 7 with the NWTSA国际影视传媒檚 boys entry hailing from the Yellowknife Curling Centre. Jullian Bowling and his rink of Adam Naugler, Shawn Dragon, Tasir Bhuiyan and Ian Gau finished with a total record of three wins and five losses over the course of the week, the final win coming against Prince Edward Island in the C playoff bracket.
Tara Naugler, the teamSA国际影视传媒檚 coach, said it was one of the best performances her boys have put forth.
SA国际影视传媒淚t came down to one shot here and there in a couple of our games,SA国际影视传媒� she said. SA国际影视传媒淲e couldSA国际影视传媒檝e beat Ontario, we had our moments against Quebec. We just needed to capitalize a bit more when we had the chance.SA国际影视传媒�
The boys began pool play on May 1 lost their opening two games before finding their stride and beating both of Newfoundland and LabradorSA国际影视传媒檚 outfits by scores of 7-3 and 7-5 respectively. That put them in the middle of the pack and a genuine shot and climbing up the leaderboard. Two narrow losses to Ontario 2 (6-4) and Manitoba 1 (8-7) meant they would enter the playoffs in the C bracket but it couldSA国际影视传媒檝e been a lot different.
SA国际影视传媒淲e were inches from playing in the B pool,SA国际影视传媒� said Naugler. SA国际影视传媒淲e had our opportunities to get higher up but it was a strong field. If you think about our jurisdiction, they played really well and I know theySA国际影视传媒檙e solid curlers. We know we can compete at this level and itSA国际影视传媒檚 all about belief.SA国际影视传媒�
The boys would square off with Quebec in their first playoff game, which ended in a 12-8 loss, but Naugler said it one of those back-and-forth games.
SA国际影视传媒淲e got three, they would get three, we would get another three, they scored four,SA国际影视传媒� she said. SA国际影视传媒淏y the time we got to the last end, we were playing to steal and we went for broke.SA国际影视传媒�
Quebec would end up scoring five to seal the deal but the NWT would end on a winning note by downing Prince Edward Island.
The U18 event was played for the first time in three years and suffered perhaps more than any other national bonspiel. ItSA国际影视传媒檚 been postponed twice, cancelled twice (including this yearSA国际影视传媒檚 original site of Timmins, Ont.) before the provincial and territorial association told Curling Canada to make the event a priority.
In summing everything us, Naugler said the week was reflective of what kind of season it was.
SA国际影视传媒淲e all had to adapt to changes and it was like that for everyone,SA国际影视传媒� she said. SA国际影视传媒淚t was a long season SA国际影视传媒� we had no ice for the entire month of April and so the two practice sessions we had before our first game was the first time on ice since the (Yellowknife) club closed. It made for some interesting curling in Oakville but the other teams were in the same boat we were.SA国际影视传媒�
With the business of on-ice curling now done, Nick Saturnino, president of NWT Curling, said itSA国际影视传媒檚 now time to focus on the off-ice business for next season.
SA国际影视传媒淲e have our spring planning meetings coming up in June,SA国际影视传媒� he said. SA国际影视传媒淲eSA国际影视传媒檒l decide where our championships will be and survey our athletes to get an idea of how they felt everything went this year. Next season, we have Arctic Winter Games, U18s and Canada Winter Games almost in one shot so itSA国际影视传媒檚 another busy one.SA国际影视传媒�
