Einarson leads Team Canada to fourth consecutive Scotties curling title

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This article was published 26/02/2023 (954 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

KAMLOOPS, B.C. — Two legends from Manitoba, battling for not only the top prize in Canadian women’s curling, but also a place in the record books.

It’s the type of script that comes around once in a lifetime.

And when the final credits rolled on the 2023 Scotties Tournament of Hearts on Sunday night in Kamloops, B.C., it was Kerri Einarson from Gimli and her Team Canada teammates — third Val Sweeting, second Shannon Birchard and lead Briane Harris — embracing on the ice in celebration of a fourth consecutive national women’s curling championship.

Einarson downed fellow Manitoban and six-time Canadian champion Jennifer Jones 10-4 in what had been a tightly contested final until a hit for five in the ninth end blew it open.

Team Einarson, which also features alternate Krysten Karwacki and coach Reid Carruthers, is just the second to win four Scotties in a row. The great Colleen Jones of Nova Scotia pulled off the four-peat between 2001 and 2004.

Jones fell short of becoming the first player to win a seventh Canadian crown.

“It was pretty cool that we had some records to set and we both met in the final. That’s pretty special. We’ve played Jen numerous times (this season), so we knew it was going to be a really good game,” said Einarson.

“Before this event, I told my husband, ‘I want to four-peat,’ and he was like, ‘Don’t worry, you will.’ We knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but we played phenomenal all week and had to battle hard for it.”

Einarson will represent Canada at the women’s world championship in Sweden later this month, and return to the 2024 Scotties in Calgary wearing the Maple Leaf once again as defending champions.

“These girls are like my sisters. We spend so much time together. I don’t have any siblings since my brother passed, but I feel like these girls are my sisters,” said Einarson.

Her brother, Kyle Flett, was killed in a snowmobile accident at age 20 in 2006.

“(My teammates) are absolutely amazing. We have so much fun, even off the ice. When we’re out here playing and enjoying ourselves and laughing, that’s when we play our best and that’s what is so amazing about this team.”

Jones was joined in the spotlight by a remarkable foursome of 20-somethings — third Karlee Burgess, second Mackenzie Zacharias and the platoon of Lauren Lenentine and Emily Zacharias at lead — who played brilliantly all week long.

Jones, who has only lost four of her 10 Scotties finals appearances, was not at her best on this night, shooting a game-low 69 per cent.

“I’m disappointed. I really wanted to do this for them and give them the feeling of winning the Scotties,” said Jones.

“But I think we really have a good perspective and we had fun in that game, and you can take that away. And then for my kids, (Isabella, 10, and Skyla, 6), they’re old enough to really remember this and I really wanted to win for them as well.”

The last time Jones won the Scotties was 2018 when she got the best of Einarson — who played with Selena Njegovan, Liz Fyfe, and Kristin MacCuish at the time — in the final. Birchard got a call from Jones to fill in at third for that event as Kaitlyn Lawes was playing mixed doubles at the 2018 Olympics.

Now as a five-time champion, Birchard, 28, only trails Jennifer Jones, Colleen Jones, and Jill Officer for most career Scotties titles.

“It’s absolutely incredible. It was kind of a parallel to 2018 with Kerri versus Jen, so I was having some flashbacks out there and I think it’s just absolutely insane that we’ve been able to do this four years in a row as a team,” said Birchard.

“I’m just so proud of my teammates.”

Lenentine matched Harris as they both curled at 97 per cent. Mackenzie, who skipped the team (former world junior champions) before Jones jumped on board this past offseason, shot 88 per cent. Burgess was at 79 per cent.

Einarson was too sharp to overcome, shooting 89 per cent.

“It’s a tough one to lose. We are pretty young and I’ve actually never gotten a silver medal before, so this is the first one. But I’m just super grateful to even have the opportunity to play in this tournament, never mind this game,” said Mackenzie, 23.

“It’s been a dream come true. The fans were incredible, we’re so grateful to have our families here and I just can’t say enough good things about this event and being able to play this game. Unfortunately, it didn’t go our way today, which is just the way it is, but hopefully we get another chance to be here.”

Mackenzie also hopes this exact same five-person team takes another crack at it next year, but Jones isn’t ready to commit to 2024.

“We made a one-year commitment to each other to make sure that we wanted to do this. So, we’ll sit down and see where we’re at, and I’ll sit down and talk to my mom and see if she’ll continue to watch the kids. You know, there’s just other things that are involved other than my desire to keep playing,” said Jones.

The teams traded single points through the first four ends, although Jones missed an opportunity for a multiple score in the third end when she couldn’t execute a delicate hit with her final stone.

Einarson got another major break when Jones made a rare unforced error, coming up light on a last-rock draw against two, handing the reigning champs a 4-2 lead at the fifth-end break.

Singles were swapped in the sixth and seventh ends, giving Einarson a 5-3 advantage going to the eighth.

Jones was left with a low-percentage double-tap to score a deuce but had to settle for just one, trimming the lead to 5-4 but surrendering the hammer going to the ninth.

And it ended in grand fashion with a massive count to clinch the title.

“We knew they were a really good team and had to stay strong until the end,” said Sweeting. “We just kind of took the opportunities as they came. I’m just super proud of our resiliency out there and not sweating it if a shot didn’t work out. We were just in a really good rhythm.”

Harris, who’s pregnant and due to give birth in June, brought her A-game all week and fully expects to play in Sweden.

“It’s obviously not easy curling and being pregnant. Any of the other girls could attest to that, but I think I have it in me to play next month,” said Harris.

“The sooner the better so the less big I’ll be, but yeah, I’m feeling good right now. Good enough to play, anyway.”

Earlier in the day, Einarson upended Krista McCarville of Northern Ontario 7-5 in the semifinal. It was a rematch of the 2022 championship game in Thunder Bay, Ont.

Einarson went 8-0 in the round-robin before falling to Jones in a playoff game Friday. The team rebounded to beat Nova Scotia’s Christina Black in the 3 vs. 4 Page playoff game Saturday and then got past McCarville.

Einarson won bronze at last year’s world championship but said she’s determined to bring home a different colour this time.

“We’re gonna do our very best to bring gold back to Canada.”

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @TaylorAllen31