We slide back onto the curling ice this week, hurrying hard to catch up on local league results and bonspiel action…
The Tuesday evening men’s league at the Nanaimo Curling Centre is split into three separate sections or squares of competition and the first of those squares was recently completed. Claiming first place in the A division was skip Frank Smith and his team of third Garry Smith, second Ken Wilson and lead Keith Clarke.
Winner of the B division was the Cullen foursome, consisting of skip Tim Cullen, third Mike Chahley, second Bill Shaw, lead Dean Mousseau and fifth man Ward Wiltsey. Cullen, Chahley, Mousseau and Wiltsey were in action for a highlight of the first part of the season, as the team scored a rare eight-ender in one of their games.
Still from Tuesday men’s league, the top team from C division from the first square was skipped by Fred Carter, along with third Howard Grant, second Gary Thiesson and lead Paul McDowell. In the league’s ìDî division, the winning team was that of skip Ron Kaneen, third Colin Kaneen, second Stan Wheat and lead Murray Renner.
The teams in the Thursday night men’s league play a 15-game round-robin to begin the season. At the halfway point, two teams were tied for first place in a very tight race. On top after seven games was skip Craig MacRae along with teammates Louis Cavezza, Paul Merkel and Tom Weinreich, together with skip Daryl Knievel and his team of Dan Schulz, Rod Edgeworth and Pat Holubowich.
The first square of the CIBC Wood Gundy men’s 55-plus league has now been completed. Winning the Nanaimo Chrysler Ltd. Trophy as top team in their division was skip Fred Withey and teammates George Taylor, Bill Millward and Garry Stuparyk. From the other division of play, the Quality Foods Trophy was claimed by skip Graeme Cave and his team of Ed Greskow, Gord Smeeton and Barry Marklinger. From the men’s 68-plus division, first square winners of the Petley-Jones & Co. Law Corp. Trophy was the combination of skip Merv Evans, third Henry Rempel, second Bert Murray and lead Marshall Keller.
Last week, 24 teams took part in the Nanaimo Open Master’s Cash Bonspiel. Bob Davies was the main organizer and my thanks to he and Ron Kaneen for passing along results from the very successful event.
When final games in the three-day competition had been completed, winner of A event and the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 256 Trophy was the Nanaimo team consisting of Denis Heppelle, Ed Stumborg, Bill Boyko and Barb Cox. Runners-up were the Jack Holden team from Comox, with third place going to Nanaimo skip Jill McGlenen and her team of Carol Tromans, Sharon Luttrell and Lois Powell.
The top team in B event, winning the Yasuko Kaneen Memorial Trophy, was presented to Ralph Hook’s Parksville foursome.
In C event, the top three teams were all from Nanaimo. The Alex Schroh Memorial Trophy went to Brian Scorer, George Duffell, Brian McRory and Merv Osler.
Local teams also swept the top three places in the bonspiel’s D event, sponsored by Lone Pine Horticulture in memory of Steve Stechishen. In first place was Joanne Phillips and her rink of Susan Barber, Shirley Sloan and Moira Ryan.
Whatever your sport, a reminder in closing to play your hardest, play fair, and show good sportsmanship.
Ian Thorpe writes about sports Thursdays.