Young Annandale curlers in the money at Toronto 'spiel
January 05, 2009
AJAX -- Although no Annandale curlers won the first prize of an all-expenses paid trip to Switzerland, all fared well at the Dominion TCA Junior/Bantam Bonspiel in Toronto recently.
Three Toronto curling clubs played host to the Dominion Toronto Curling Association event on Dec. 29 and 30. Annandale's junior women's team, skipped by Lesley Pyne, lost in the second event quarter-finals. With Pyne were Suzanne Miller, Laura Hickey and Katie Hickey. Jennifer McGhee coached the team. The Annandale junior men's team of Michael Bryson, James McPherson, Sandy Martin and Josh Hall was runner-up in the third event, collecting $440 in prize money. Susannah Moylan coaches the Bryson rink. An Annandale bantam entry skipped by Ben Bevan finished as runners-up in the third event. Bevan and teammates Chris Avery, Jake McGhee and Carter Adair all earned a gift from the prize table for their efforts. Jennifer McGhee serves as the coach of the Bevan team. Meanwhile, several Annandale curlers participated in the Dominion bonspiel with out-of-town teams. Annandale's Chantal Lalonde and Tracy O'Leary joined Danielle Inglis of Burlington and were winners of junior women's fourth event, collecting $380 in prize purse. Stacey Hogan curled on the Laura Crocker team from Scarboro Golf and the junior women's entry lost in the second event semifinal. Joan Moore joined the Carly Howard rink out of Midland and was bantam girls' second event runners-up. The Howard team also curled in the Zone 10 playdowns for bantam girls, winning the 'A' side. The rink now advances to the regionals in Markdale on Jan. 17 and 18. --- Annandale has four teams entered in the venerable TCA Energizer Men's bonspiel (aka Canada Life Bonspiel) this month. The Energizer 'spiel is one of the world's oldest continuous curling events, which runs at GTA curling club from Jan. 10 to 17. Annandale skips Arthur McCrorie, Glenn Bull, Dale Patterson and Brian Hawke are listed and eligible for the early-bird draw. With Hawke in the senior event are Jim Easson, Wes Stitt and Mark Scanlan. Also in the senior event is Patterson and teammates Ron Zuber, Dave Walmsley and Ron Reeve. In the open event, Bull will compete and his team of Al Waters, Byron O'Donnell and Jim Barrett. McCrorie is also entered in the open event, but says his team will withdraw as two members will be away during the event, so if you are interested in participating, give McCrorie a call.--- Rob Lobel's Whitby rink, that won the 'A' side of the draw at the TSC Stores Tankard Zone at Annandale, will also advance to the Provincial finals. Lobel won the regional playdown at St. George's curling club in Toronto. Greg Timbers' Uxbridge rink also competed at regionals with Annandale member Warren Leslie along with Barry Acton and Kent Cochrane. The team was sidelined with an 0-2 record.--- The first bonspiel on the Annandale club calendar is the Day Ladies Freeze Bonspiel on Jan. 21. Annandale has two teams entered in the Fairfield Marriott Challenge Zone playdown in Uxbridge on Jan. 10. Chris Van Huyse, Andrew Klein, Rob Bushfield and Tyler Anderson will play along with Annandale's Adam Sonley, Blair Metrakos, Steve Smith and Tim LaRoche. Two zone-winning teams head directly to the provincials in Brighton and Trenton on Jan. 23 to 25, where 32 teams will meet. Each team is guaranteed three games.--- The march for another crack at the Tim Hortons Brier for Team Glenn Howard continued on the weekend. Howard, with Pickering resident Richard Hart at vice and Brent Laing and Craig Savill, won the 'A' side of the Regional TSC Stores Tankard in Elmira on Jan. 3 and 4. They now advance to the provincials in Woodstock from Feb. 2 to 8. One winner from the 10-team field at provincials will represent Ontario at the Tim Hortons Brier in Calgary from March 7 to 15.