MCUR | Voyageurs Earn Split at Day 1 of OUA Championships
The Laurentian Voyageurs men's curling team took to the ice for Day 1 of the OUA Curling Championships in Guelph on Friday, with the goal of qualifying for the national U SPORTS tournament on the line. Day 1 of the competition saw Laurentian lined up to play two round-robin matches against the Queen's Gaels and the host Guelph Gryphons.
In their first match of the championships, the Voyageurs faced the Queen's Gaels, aiming to get off on the right foot and secure a win in Draw 1. Unfortunately for Laurentian, the first end didn't go according to plan. The Gaels, starting with the hammer, took immediate advantage, scoring three points in the first end. Laurentian responded by getting on the board in the second end, but Queen's scored in both the third and fifth ends, taking a 5-1 lead into the sixth. To their credit, the Voyageurs fought back, scoring one in the sixth and then stealing a point in the seventh, making it a 5-3 game going into the eighth and final end. However, it was not to be, as the Gaels scored the final point in the last end, and the Voyageurs lost 6-3 in Draw 1.
The second match of the day saw Laurentian take on the host Guelph Gryphons. With both teams having lost their first match of the day, it was crucial for both to come away with at least a split on Day 1 to stay in contention for a spot in Championship Sunday. The start of the game was extremely cagey, with the first three ends being blanks. Guelph then managed a crucial one-point steal in the fourth end to take the first points of the game. Laurentian, however, remained unfazed. After giving up that steal, they used the hammer to score three points in the fifth end and then stole a point in the sixth, taking a 4-1 lead into the final two ends. The Voyageurs seemed in control until the seventh end, needing only to maintain the status quo to secure their first win of the tournament. However, Guelph, determined to get a win of their own, scored a massive three points in the seventh end, tying the game at 4-4 going into the final end. The eighth and final end was tense, but with skip Olivier Bonin-Ducharme leading the way, the Voyageurs fended off the late comeback attempt, scoring two points to win the match 6-4 and earning a 1-1 split on Day 1 of the OUA Championships.
Laurentian will round out the preliminary round on Saturday with two more draws, facing the Trent Excalibur and the TMU Bold, as they look to secure a spot in the top 8 and a quarterfinal berth on Sunday.
- Andrew Lemieux