Laurentian curlers miss nationals

The OUA Curling Championships wrapped up at the Guelph Curling Club earlier this week, but unfortunately for the Laurentian University curling teams, the provincial playdowns marked the end of the season.

The Lady Vees, led by skip Kendra Lilly, finished in fifth spot, while the Voyageurs just missed a chance at the CIS nationals with a fourth place finish.

The Lady Vees finished the competition with a 5-4 record and improved on last year's performance.

"The girls did a great job this week and showed very well for Laurentian," Jan Pula, head coach of Laurentin curling said. "We were right in the thick of things after a bit of a slow start and I am proud of the girls for the way they played."

The Voyageurs, led by skip Tyler Stewart, were pushed to the bronze medal final after the undefeated Laurier Golden Hawks stole the victory 5-4 on the last rock of the semifinal match.

The bronze medal game had Laurentian facing off against the Guelph Gryphons. In the fifth end, the Gryphons were able to capitalize on a couple key misses by the Laurentian foursome and scored a four-point end and were able to control the remainder of the game to a 9-3 victory.

"The team played well all week and they lost a tough one this morning in the semis in a well-played game by both teams," Pula said. "We made a great run and the team should be proud of their performance this week.”