Both the Tracy Fleury Idylwylde Curling Club rink, as well as the Thunder Bay squad skipped by Krista McCarville, advanced to the quarter-finals of the Asham U.S. Open of Curling in Blaine (Minnesota) this past weekend.
Unfortunately, neither would get any further, as Sherri Middaugh bounced back from earning a final eight berth in the "C" draw, reeling off six straight wins to garner top spot.
Curling with Jennifer Wylie, Jenna Walsh and Amanda Gates, Fleury kicked off the event with a pair of wins, beating Cristin Clark (Seattle, WA) 5-1 and Shannon Birchard (Winnipeg) 6-2.
A 6-3 setback against Alina Patez relegated Team Fleury to the "B" draw, as the Swiss rink bolted to a 5-0 lead after just two ends of play. The locals turned the tables on Manitoban Cassie Potter, recording a 6-3 win of their own, securing playoff qualifier berth #3 in the process.
Leading a foursome that also included Kendra Lilly, Ashley Sippala and Sarah Potts, McCarville was even more dominant out of the gates than Fleury, reeling off three straight wins and grabbing top qualifier honours.
McCarville blasted Potter 8-2, tripled hometown favourite Cory Christensen 6-2 and closed off the "A" draw with a 7-3 win over Julie Tippin from Woodstock.
It would be a different story in the playoff round, as McCarville overcame a 5-2 deficit after six ends against Middaugh, forcing an extra end with two in the seventh and a steal of one in the eight, before falling 6-5.
As for the Fleury crew, they never really managed to get on track, surrendering ends of one, two and four to trail 7-0 early to Nina Roth from Wisconsin, calling it quits in the fifth end, down 7-1.
Both rinks will now set their sights on the NOCA Scotties Women's playdowns from January 18th to the 22nd in Nipigon. Joining Fleury and McCarville, both of whom have previously qualified for nationals, are Larissa Mikkelsen (Port Arthur CC) and Hailey Beaudry (Fort William CC).
The teams will play a double round robin, with top two advancing to the final.
