Team Fessler qualified for entry into the Saskatchewan Junior Women’s Championships at the last of three qualification bonspiels this past weekend in Outlook by winning all four of their games to take the A event.
Team Fessler, with coach Wade St. Onge, skip Karlee Fessler, third Rachel Ryan, second Laurel Oberkirsch and lead Rachel Kramer, won their first game 9-0 over Lauren Thies of Regina on Friday morning before taking their second game 10-8 over Neudorf's Krystal Englot in a back-and-forth game on tricky ice conditions that afternoon.
On Saturday morning, the team of Weyburn and Estevan girls, who curl out of the Weyburn Curling Club, won the A semifinal 8-6 over Ashley Thevenot of Saskatoon in their second consecutive game coming back from a two-point deficit after the fifth end break. Later that day they defeated Swift Current's Mcayla Krauchek by the score of 7-4.
Both Team Fessler and Team Krauchek started out cautiously with three blanks to begin the game. After Krauchek hit and stuck for one in the fourth Team Fessler had a chance for a short runback for six in the fifth end, but her final stone over-curled slightly giving Krauchek a steal of one for a 2-0 lead.
However, Team Fessler regrouped and came back with a deuce in the sixth to tie the game. The seventh to ninth ends saw many rocks in play and some dramatic shots from both sides resulting in a 4-3 lead for Team Krauchek going into the tenth. With hammer, Team Fessler curled a near-perfect end and Krauchek’s attempted last rock freeze against five glanced off a Fessler counter and rolled too deep giving Fessler four points for the win.
St. Onge said this result was an impressive achievement for a team that was only put together this year and was curling in just their second event together. He said the team is also relatively young and inexperienced, with Karlee having only curled in junior play-downs before and the other curlers aged 16 or 17 years old in a division that is comprised of under 21 curlers.
Most who are involved with junior women’s curling expected the other three qualifiers to be Ashley Thevenot of Saskatoon and Eva Grabarczyk and Jade Kerr of Regina, with the fourth qualifier being up in the air, noted St. Onge.
He said for them to not only be that fourth team, but to do it by going undefeated through the A event was incredible. St. Onge added they are a very special group who bonded almost immediately at their first practice together and their chemistry has been great.
St. Onge said the girls are always laughing and joking and staying loose even in very tense situations with everyone always being positive towards each other regardless of what happens. He said this contributed a great deal to their success this past weekend.
The provincial championships will be held Jan. 2 to 6 in Saskatoon.
