Team Clendenan

It would be unrealistic to hit a home run the first time you swing a baseball bat, but being told that you’ll potentially need thousands of swings before you’ll ever see the ball go over the fence doesn’t seem to have any impact on a true competitor’s willingness to pick up the bat and try anyway. In their minds, what do you have to lose? If you never step forward, you’ll always be in the same place so Team Clendenan excitedly grabbed their baseball analogy and their curling gear and headed to the Junior Regionals in Gravenhurst.

There were a lot of firsts in this adventure. It was the first time that all but one of the girls had ever been to the Gravenhurst host club, it was the first time any of them had been to the Regional level in the Junior age bracket, it was the first time they had played 10 ends in competition and it was the first time the competition used seeding instead of standard brackets to determine who played whom. It was not, however, the first time Team Clendenan had faced their first opponent – WALSH – and with a solid 10-4 win, the purple crew definitely made good on a big step forward. In game two, pace of play was matched until the sixth end but a crucial mistake allowed GREENWOOD to punish with a 3 pointer that snowballed into a 7-2 spread and ultimately a disappointing loss. The sudden death 3rd game against FULLERTON (double knock out format) was shaky but the girls kept the rocks in their favour for quite a while. Unfortunately the misses started to out count the made shots and the lead was eroded by the eighth end. Team Clendenan fought back and the teams were tied in the ninth but there wasn’t enough control to stop the opposition from inching ahead with hammer in the tenth for the 7-6 win.

Making it to Junior Provincials would have been a stretch but participation in each of the bonus events like this one are perfect opportunities to learn and prepare for the Provincial run in their own age category. It wasn’t Team Clendenan’s best weekend in as far as performance but the girls continue to prove that they will grab the bat and swing no matter what the odds. If you consider that “After the game, the king and the pawn go into the same box” (Italian Proverb) the future victor will more likely be determined by tenacity than title. Fingers crossed that Purple will one day Reign!