THUNDER BAY -- Nancy Martin and Team Saskatchewan got off to exactly the start they were hoping for at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts on Friday evening.
Martin and her rink of third Chaelynn Stewart, second Kadriana Lott and lead Deanna Doig roared out to a 5-1 lead and never looked back on their way to a 10-6 win over Northern Ontario’s Krista McCarville in the tournament’s opening draw from Thunder Bay.
The win was even more impressive given the circumstances, as McCarville, third Andrea Kelly, second Kendra Lilly and lead Ashley Sippala were the definitive favourites playing in front of 2,430 fans at Fort William Gardens.
Martin didn’t let the moment get to her, though, as after blanking the first end she’d score three in the second and after holding McCarville to one in the third added a deuce in the fourth for a quick 5-1 lead.
McCarville put her Scotties veteran savvy to good use over the next three ends and clawed her way back into things, scoring two in the fifth, holding Martin to one in the sixth and picking up another deuce in the seventh to cut Saskatchewan’s edge to 6-5.
The teams then exchanged single points the next two ends, setting Martin up with the hammer coming home. She’d make perfect use of it, scoring three to finish off the 10-6 win.
Stewart curled 83 per cent to lead the team, while Lott shot 74 per cent, Martin 70 per cent and Doig 65 per cent.
Other first draw results saw Canada’s Rachel Homan defeat P.E.I.’s Jane DiCarlo 13-4, Alberta’s Kayla Skrlik defeat New Brunswick’s Melissa Adams 8-4 and B.C.’s Corryn Brown roll past Alberta’s Selena Sturmay 11-4.
The rest of Martin’s round robin schedule for the week is as follows:
Saturday, Feb. 15
6 p.m. -- Jane DiCarlo (P.E.I.)
Sunday, Feb. 16
1 p.m. -- Corryn Brown (B.C.)
Monday, Feb. 17
8 a.m. -- Melissa Adams (New Brunswick)
6 p.m. -- Rachel Homan (Canada)
Tuesday, Feb. 18
1 p.m. -- Kayla Skrlik (Alberta)
Wednesday, Feb.19
8 a.m. -- Julia Weagle (Nunavut)
6 p.m. -- Selena Sturmay (Alberta)
Thursday, Feb. 20
Off
Be sure to keep and eye on www.curling,ca for regular updates and catch all the action from the Scotties on TSN,
