Newfoundland and Labrador keeps it close at wheelchair curling nationals

Newfoundland and Labrador’s Joanne MacDonald is staying close to the undefeated leaders after posting a 10-6 win over Saskatchewan in Draw 4 action at the Canadian Wheelchair Curling Championship in Ottawa.

Newfoundland and Labrador skip Joanne MacDonald (Photo Morgan Daw)

Trailing 6-4 in the seventh end against Saskatchewan’s Darwin Bender, MacDonald made a perfect hit-and-roll to lie buried. Bender wrecked on his first shot and came up short on his second to allow Newfoundland a steal of three. Newfoundland stole another three in the eighth to win 10-6 Quebec’s Benoît Lessard remains undefeated and tied with Northern Ontario at the top of the standings, both with 4-0 records after Draw 4. Playing against New Brunswick’s Michael Fitzgerald, Lessard scored a five-ender in the sixth, and that was enough to give Quebec the win over New Brunswick by a score of 8-4. Northern Ontario’s Gino Sonega stayed at the top with Quebec after defeating Ontario’s Ken Gregory in the traditional battle of Ontario, the John McCrae Cup, by a score of 8-5. In other action, a close score at the break between Nova Scotia’s Trendal Hubley-Bolivar and Manitoba’s Chris Sobkowicz was blown wide open when Manitoba scored four points in each of the fifth and sixth ends. Nova Scotia conceded with the score 12-3. And Alberta’s Bruno Yizek took control against British Columbia’s Gary Cormack in the third end, scoring a deuce and stealing the next four ends. British Columbia conceded with the score 8-1. Draw 5 will get underway at the RA Centre in Ottawa on Wednesday morning at 10 a.m. EDT. Teams at the Canadian Wheelchair Curling Championship will compete in a round robin from March 25-29, leading to the Page playoffs on Saturday, March 30. The semifinal will be played at 10 a.m. EDT and the final at 3 p.m. EDT on Sunday, March 31. Draw results and other event information will be available at www.curling.ca and https://www.curling.ca/championships/wheelchair