Stoughton perfect through prelims, McEwen strong

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This article was published 05/11/2011 (5376 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

JEFF STOUGHTON’S crew was the only rink to escape undefeated throughout round-robin play at the GP Car & Home World Cup curling bonspiel in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.

The Winnipeg skip finished 5-0 after doubling Toronto’s John Epping 6-3 and dumping Vernon, B.C.’s Jim Cotter 6-2 in seven ends on Friday.

Stoughton blew things open against Cotter by stealing two on the fifth end to go up 5-1.

Defending champion Mike McEwen of Winnipeg and Edmonton’s Kevin Martin both fell from the ranks of the unbeaten with losses in Friday night’s final draw.

McEwen lost a wild 9-8 extra-end affair to previously winless Rob Schlender of Edmonton. Schlender opened with four on the opening end and McEwen responded with three on the second to set the high-scoring affair in motion. McEwen’s second triple on the sixth gave him his only lead of the match, at 7-6. Schlender’s deuce and McEwen’s single forced an extra end and Schlender utilized the hammer to triumph.

McEwen had earlier Friday thumped Saskatoon’s Steve Laycock 7-2 in six ends, thanks largely to deuces on the first, second and fourth ends. Martin, who defeated Dale Matchett of Bradford, Ont., 4-1 in the seventh draw, also fell in an extra end on the ninth draw. Like Schlender against McEwen, Niklas Edin (3-2) also used last-rock advantage to triumph over Martin 3-2.

Stoughton, McEwen and Martin all advance to Saturday’s quarter-finals along with Brad Gushue of St. John’s, Glenn Howard of Coldwater, Ont., and Edmonton’s Kevin Koe.

Edmonton’s Randy Ferbey, who had been rolling along at 3-1 entering Friday’s late draw, was reduced to a Saturday tiebreaker by a 5-4 loss to Matchett. Ferbey will take on Edin, while Epping will tangle with Greg Balsdon of Kingston, Ont. The winners of the tiebreakers will move onto the quarter-finals. The final set is for Sunday.

— Postmedia News