Championships Curling

Day two of the U SPORTS/Curling Canada Championships saw all 16 teams in attendance play two games as the competition kicked into high gear. 
 
On the women’s side, the field remains wide open as every team made their way into the win column and only one team remains perfect after three games while, on the men’s side, some separation is beginning to show, as there is a single undefeated team with a pair of squads looking for their first wins. 
 
Stealing was the name of the game in the morning draw as the Victoria Vikes stole twice in the game, once in the fifth end and again in the tenth end, to secure a 6-4 win over Dalhousie. Laurentian had steals in both the fourth and fifth end, and once more in an extra end, after a measurement, to down UPEI 5-4. TMU stole seven points in their game against Memorial on their way to a 12-2 win while Alberta, down 7-5 after eight, stole a single in nine and two in the tenth end to come back and beat McMaster 8-7.

In the afternoon draw, a pair of teams made sure that they remain with the field as both McMaster and Memorial found the win column for the first time. The Marauders tamed the UPEI Panthers by a 7-2 score while the Sea-Hawks grounded the UVIC Vikes 9-5. The Dalhousie Tigers scored in the second, third, fifth, sixth, and seventh ends, while holding the TMU Bold to singles in the first and eighth ends as they cruised to a 7-2 win. In the final game on the ice, after falling behind early, the Laurentian Voyageurs used big scores of three in the eighth and four in the tenth to power past the Alberta Pandas, 11-6. The Voyageurs are now the only team remaining with an unblemished record with four round robin games to play.

On the men’s side, the afternoon draw was highlighted by an absolute shootout as the Dalhousie Tigers outlasted the Queen’s Gaels 12-11 in extra ends to hand the Gaels their first loss. UNB and Laurentian both got back to .500 as the former kept Calgary winless with a 7-4 triumph while the later left Saint Mary’s looking for their first win with a 9-4 victory. The final game of the draw saw Laurier jump out to a 6-1 lead and cruise to an 8-5 win over Alberta.
 
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In the evening draw, it was predominantly matchups of intra-conference foes. In the battle of Alberta, it was the Golden Bears keeping the Calgary Dinos winless, taking the game 8-3 on the strength of a pair of three-enders. In a matchup of two OUA teams, it was the hometown Voyageurs downing the Gaels 8-4 thanks, in large part, to a 4-point fourth end. In the all-AUS showdown, Dalhousie stole one in the final end to remain unbeaten with a 7-6 win, keeping Saint Mary’s winless in the process. In the only cross-conference game of the night, the UNB Reds used steals in the seventh and eighth ends to propel them to a 9-8 win and hand the Laurier Golden Hawks their first loss. Action resumes tomorrow as all 16 teams will once again hit the ice for two games.
 
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WOMEN’S STANDINGS:
1 Laurentian Voyageurs 3-0
2 Dalhousie Tigers 2-1
3 Alberta Pandas 2-1
4 McMaster Marauders 1-2
5 Prince Edward Island Panthers 1-2
6 Toronto Metropolitan University Bold 1-2 
7 Memorial Sea-Hawks 1-2
8 Victoria Vikes 1-2

MEN’S STANDINGS:
1 Dalhousie Tigers 3-0
2 New Brunswick Reds 2-1
3 Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks 2-1
4 Alberta Golden Bears 2-1
5 Laurentian Voyageurs 2-1
6 Queen's Golden Gaels 1-2
7 Saint Mary's Huskies 0-3
8 Calgary Dinos 0-3