The Brent Gedak rink, competing out of the Estevan Curling Club, took top spot at the 2016-2017 Travelers Curling Club Championship men’s title on Monday evening at the Power Dodge Curling Centre.
The game was something of a nail-biter, as Gedak scored two in the eighth end with a draw to the four-foot to secure a 3-2 victory over Sheldon Obst, competing out of the Tartan Curling Club in Regina.
The Gedak rink advanced to the national championships in Kingston, Ontario, in November.
Gedak bounced back from the disadvantage of not having the hammer until the sixth end, playing four blank ends before they started putting stones into play against Obst’s rink, which leveraged the early game advantage of the hammer in the first four ends. Obst used its advantage to gain one point over Estevan in the fifth end. The situation reversed in the sixth end, with Estevan’s play earning them one point.
“Not having the hammer until the sixth end was a problem. We were weak on our draws earlier in the game, and we couldn’t get any guards up,” said Gedak. “They weren’t going to play around, so they just hit everything they could, and once we got things moving and got some guards in play, our game got a little better.”
Eventually, more stones came into play, and Gedak started to break Obst’s guard and bury stones deep enough to overcome Obst’s attempts to crowd the house with their own rocks. This wasn’t enough to keep Obst from scoring a point in the seventh end, however, when they used a series of their own precise draws that sunk deep enough into the house to disrupt Gedak’s game.
“They’re very good shooters, they’re very energetic and there to win. I was a little surprised they didn’t want to get into it a bit earlier, but they had the hammer,” said Gedak. “Luckily we were able to get a guard in play and force them with a couple in play, and they had to take their rock.”
Things took a turn for the intense in the eighth end, when Gedak, aiming for two points, made a draw to the eight-foot, narrowly averting a Regina guard. After an ineffective last draw from Obst, Gedak’s final draw had local fans on the edge of their seats, and ended up scoring the crucial two points to push the local rink to victory.
“There was an opportunity to make a really good come-around in the eighth. We had to come around one of their rocks, and one that was a little bit buried on the T-line and the edge of the four,” said Gedak. “It was just the right way, at the right sweep. We got it at the right time and locked it in there.”
With a chuckle, Gedak said, “I think the adrenaline was going on our sweepers in the eighth, and I think that last shot was in control. It stopped fairly easily. With the emotion of the provincial finals, everyone gets excited.”
Other members of the Gedak rink are third James Gordon, second Wade St. Onge and lead Ryan Hansen.
The dynamic of the women’s final was far more intense from the get-go, with North Battleford’s Kristi Florek earning a 6-4 victory over Moose Jaw’s Elaine Osmachenko. The women’s game differed from the men’s game, since the former jumped right into the action, putting numerous stones into play as early as the first end.
“It’s a great feeling. We’ve been here quite a few years in a row, so it’s nice to finally make it to the finals,” said a jubilant Frolek.
The intense exchanges between Florek and Osmachenko led to the latter picking up two points in the first end, responded to by a point for Florek in the second, thanks to a strong guard.
Osmachenko scored one in the third and sixth ends, while Florek scored one in the third and stole one in the sixth, leaving Osmachenko with a 4-3 lead. Florek pushed for the lead in the seventh end, scoring two, followed by a stolen point in the eight end, after Osmachenko knocked out one of Florek’s stones, but slid further out of the house they could afford to.
Frolek noted that there were no turning-point moments for her team and it remained a close game to each end.
“Our goal was just to keep building our ends, and keep playing our game, in the hope that in the end, we’d win the game” she said. “Our playing like that was deliberate. That’s the way we play. We don’t play open ends, and what you saw was what we like to do.”
Other members of Florek’s team were third Nicole Beausoleil, second Christy Walker and lead Kristi Bird.
