Charlottetown men, Western women win PEI Travelers Ch’ship

The Dennis Watts rink from the Charlottetown Curling Complex had to play in two finals today, against the previously-unbeaten Barry Cameron foursome from the Silver Fox Curling & Yacht Club in Summerside, but they won both, to capture the PEI Travelers Curling Club Championship men’s title at the Cornwall Curling Club. The women’s championship was won by the Sharon Horne team from the Western Community Curling Club in Alberton, who went undefeated in the competition, beating Charlottetown’s Tammi Cudmore rink 4-2 in the afternoon final. The Watts and Horne rinks will now advance to the national Travelers Curling Club Championship, Nov. 20-26 at the Kelowna Curling Club, featuring 14 men’s and 14 women’s teams from Curling Canada’s Member Associations — the 10 provinces, three territories and Northern Ontario.

Other members of the winning Dennis Watts men’s rink are third Erik Brodersen, second Andrew MacDougall, and lead Doug MacGregor. Completing the Sharon Horne women’s rink are third stone Bobbi-Jean MacMillan, second Alison Griffin, and lead Iva Griffin.

The runner-up Cameron team includes Paul Matheson, Darrel Thibeau, and Corey Montgomery, with Susan Dowling- Shaw, Anne Chouinard, and Karen Hardy rounding out the Cudmore squad.

In Tuesday afternoon’s first men’s final, Cameron had a 4-1 lead after six ends of play in the eight end contest. Watts scored a deuce in the seventh, and then stole a triple in the final end for the come from behind win. The rules specify that a team who goes  through round robin play undefeated and then loses in the final must be beaten twice, so a second “sudden death” final was played in the evening. This time, Watts took the lead early, stealing a single in the first end. Cameron responded with a single point in the second, with Watts blanking end three, taking a deuce in the fourth and stealing singles in the fifth and  for a 5-1 lead. Cameron took a deuce in seven, but ran out of rocks in the eighth, losing 5-3.

In the Tuesday morning semi-finals, Watts beat Bob Matheson and his Maple Leaf rink 8-6, while Cudmore edged Crapaud’s Julie Mutch rink 4-3 to advance to the finals against Cameron and Horne. Seven men’s and six women’s rinks, who won their respective club championships, took part in the championship.