Stepping off the ice minutes after clinching a fourth consecutive BC Scotties championship, Kelly Scott insists it doesn’t get any easier, or any less exciting.
“It feels great,” smiled the Kelowna curler after defeating Patti Knezevic of Prince George in Sunday evening’s championship game at the Cloverdale Curling Club. “Sasha (second Sasha Carter) just said it never gets old. Every single one of them is pretty special.”
The Scott foursome, which also included third Jeanna Schraeder and lead Sarah Wazney, was the team to beat over the seven-day provincial women’s curling championship. And although they did lose twice, they never lost their standing as the tournament favourites.
They were 7-2 (won-loss) in the round robin, winning their first five before losses to Allison MacInness of Abbotsford and the host club’s Marla Mallett.
Scott then edged Knezevic 8-7 Friday night to qualify for the final game.
In Sunday’s final, she scored first and held the lead throughout the 10 ends, building a 6-1 lead after four ends. Knezevic scored twice in the fifth to move to within 6-3, but Scott replied with two of her own, and a steal of one in the seventh for a 9-3 advantage.
The Kelowna crew made a rare mistake in the ninth, allowing Knezevic to steal one and move to within three at 9-6. But it only delayed the inevitable, and Scott ran the Prince George team out of rocks in the 10th frame to seal the win, and a trip to the Scotties tournament of Hearts Feb. 16-24 in Kingston, Ontario.
It will be the Scott team’s fourth appearance at the nationals, but the first with new lead curler Sarah Wazney, who stepped in to replace Jacquie Armstrong, who left the team last April.
“We’re excited we get Sarah back for the Scotties, that’s huge,” said Scott. “The commitment she put into the team, moving from Manitoba to Kelowna. She’s fantastic for our team. She fit in great, we just had to work out some kinks.”
Knezevic tied for first with Scott at 7-2 in the round robin, and 8-4 overall. Of the four losses, three were to the defending champion.
Her 8-7 playoff win in a semifinal Saturday night eliminated Marla Mallett of the Cloverdale club. Mallett, also 7-2 in the round robin, placed third.