Jones rebounds by hammering B.C.

Team Canada skip Jennifer Jones says her team never sets a goal coming into a competition in terms of wins and losses, but she did say they do aim at avoiding back-to-back losses. After dropping an 8-6 decision to the hometown favourites Monday night in front of a full house, the defending champs bounced back in style Tuesday morning, grabbing control against former champ B.C.’s Kelly Scott en route to an impressive 10-2 win to go to 4-2 on the week. Scott’s crew missed some key shots in the opening end and yielded a steal of four, gave up another in the second, and Jones controlled the game the rest of the way. ” We came out better, which we tend to do after a loss so that was good, but we got a few breaks early, obviously, so I felt bad for them,” said Jones. With the issue seeming decided, Jones says her club was able to work on a few things. “It’s never a problem to remain focused, but it did give us a chance to try a bunch of different shots and get some peels and (lead) Dawn (Askin) got some draws in there,” said Jones. “We’re out there doing what we love to do.” Jones’ former third Cathy Overton-Clapham of Manitoba was not so fortunate. With a chance to beat Nova Scotia’s Heather Smith-Dacey with her last stone in the 10th end, she missed her draw for two, sending the game to an extra end without hammer where Dacey-Smith made no mistake with her last rock — a draw to full eight-foot for an 8-7 win. For Overton-Clapham, it was a visibly tough loss sending her to 1-5, especially considering she had a 5-1 lead over the Bluenosers after four ends. “I’m disappointed,” said Overton-Clapham. “We just didn’t put enough good shots together in the back half . . . it was a struggle. “I had a shot for the win and I didn’t make it.” For Smith-Dacey, the win sends her crew to 4-2, but it was the way her team fought back that was the key, she said. “It shows a lot of character when you’re down 5-1 at the break and you just chip away. That’s what Mark (coach and husband Dacey) said — just keep chipping away and when the opportunity presents itself, that’s what you do.” Quebec’s Marie-France Larouche got back into the mix, squaring her record at 3-3 after a see-saw win over Newfoundlad/Labrador’s Stacie Devereaux. Larouche looked to have the game won, up 7-3 going into eight, but a combination of what she called “bad strategy” and some missed shots enabled Devereaux to pick a Quebec stone off the lid to score three. Larouche, unfazed, bounced back with three of her own in nine to seal the deal. “We had a very good ninth end, but I think (in eight) we missed a call too, the strategy was maybe a little bad,” said Larouche, while giving Devereaux credit team for bouncing back. “Her third and second made some great shots and a freeze, but we just stayed focused and came back. Territories skip Kerry Galusha continued her rebound from an 0-4 start with a 7-4 win over New Brunswick’s Andrea Kelly. Kelly had hammer down one in the 10th, but slid through the rings on a double-takeout try. Galusha, now 2-4, said the win was huge for her crew. “I’ve played Andrea Kelly. I think this is my fourth time, and I’ve never beaten her, so it feels good,” the Yellowknifer said. “I had a tick on my last stone and move it just a bit too far, otherwise she didn’t even have that double, but her shot tracked a bit, so I was happy to see it (slide through).” The marquee match-up headlines the afternoon (2:30 p.m. AT) draw as the undefeated (5-0) Ontario and Saskatchewan squads square off. Team Canada takes on Newfoundland/Labrador, P.E.I. plays Alberta and Quebec battles B.C.