It’s a good time to be a Manitoba curling fan.
Canada’s Kerri Einarson and Manitoba’s Kaitlyn Lawes advanced into the Page 1/2 playoff game at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts after winning their qualifying games on Friday. Einarson beat Manitoba’s Beth Peterson 8-5, while Lawes beat Nova Scotia’s Christina Black 8-6 on her final throw.
“We’re just taking one game at a time,” said Einarson, a four-time national champion who is also from Manitoba. “We’re trending in the right direction, and we’re playing well, so we’ve just got to keep that going forward.”
Einarson or Ontario’s Rachel Homan have been finalists at the Tournament of Hearts each of the past nine years. Homan, the reigning national champion, is missing this year’s event because she’s representing Canada at the Milan Cortina Olympics.
As the last non-Homan champion, Einarson’s rink from Gimli is competing as Team Canada at this year’s tournament.
Lawes said that it “feels amazing” to face a provincial rival in a high-stakes playoff game.
“It’s been a goal of ours ever since the (Olympic) trials to try and win a Scotties,” she said. “We’re putting ourselves in a position to have that potential opportunity, and super proud of the team for fighting for every rock all week long.”
The two losing rinks will play again Friday night in the Page 3/4 qualifiers, with Black facing Taylour Stevens in an all-Nova Scotia matchup and Peterson meeting Alberta’s Selena Sturmay.
Einarson and Lawes will play Saturday evening, with the winner going to the final and the loser playing the winner of the Page 3/4 game in a semifinal.
As Peterson is still in the mix, it’s entirely possible to have an all-Manitoba semifinal and then an all-Manitoba final at the national women’s curling championship.
Einarson said it’s all thanks to six-time Tournament of Hearts champion Jennifer Jones, who dominated women’s curling in Manitoba for 34 years until she retired from play in 2024.
“It’s the Manitoba attack, I tell you,” joked Einarson. “Jennifer Jones set the tone for us, and if we wanted to beat her, we needed to play well.
“I think we’ve got to thank her for all of Manitoba’s talent and how we rise to the occasion. We just say just thank you Jen. Took me 20 times to beat her.”
With nearly 24 hours off before they meet in the Page 1/2 playoff, Einarson and Lawes both said they were looking forward to a mental reset.
“I think just getting some family time in and maybe having a drink,” said Einarson with a laugh. “Just relaxing. We play marbles, so we do that in the evening.”
Lawes said that after a brief break she and her team would start to strategize for their game against Einarson.
“We’ll just try and debrief the game and talk about what we need to do going forward,” said Lawes, adding that she’ll watch the evening games so she knows how the ice plays at that time of day. “I just want to put my feet up and enjoy this win now, but we’ll regroup and come up with a plan for the next game.”
Both Page 1/2 qualifiers on Friday afternoon came down to the 10th end.
Einarson and Peterson shook hands before Canada’s final stone after the Manitoba rink failed to clear the house. That missed opportunity gave Einarson a single.
“I think if we keep playing like that and taking advantage of our opportunities when they present themselves, I think we’ll have a really good show with it,” said Einarson.
Lawes had to dislodge a well-protected Black stone with her final throw of the game. She knocked that stone out of the house to score two and advance.
