Tracy Fleury, Peter de Cruz secure playoff spots with victories at National

Dec 13, 2019 | 5:22 AM

CONCEPTION BAY SOUTH, N.L. — Tracy Fleury maintained her perfect record at the National curling tournament on Thursday and secured a playoff berth with a 7-4 victory over Edmonton’s Kelsey Rocque.

Fleury (3-0), from East St. Paul, Man., scored a deuce in the seventh end to break a 4-4 tie before adding to her lead with a single in the eighth.

The loss eliminated Rocque (0-3) from playoff contention.

Winnipeg’s Jennifer Jones (1-2) remained in the mix for a spot in the quarterfinals with a 9-2 win against Scotland’s Eve Muirhead (2-1).

Kerri Einarson of Gimli, Man., scored a 7-2 victory against Japan’s Satsuki Fujisawa (2-2). Einarson (2-1) stole a combined five points in the fifth, sixth and seventh ends to earn her second win of the tournament.

On the men’s side, Switzerland’s Peter de Cruz (3-0) secured his spot in the playoffs by defeating Winnipeg’s Mike McEwen (1-2) by a score of 6-4. 

Also, Scott McDonald of Kingston, Ont., played the role of spoiler on Thursday night. McDonald (1-3) edged Regina’s Matt Dunstone 4-3 to cap off his tournament. Dunstone (0-3) will not advance to this weekend’s playoffs.

Round-robin play continues on Friday. The quarterfinals and semifinals are Saturday followed by the championship draws on Sunday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 12, 2019.

 

The Canadian Press