CCAA Sports Info

The 2023 CCAA Curling Canada Championships began Wednesday evening at the Gerry McCrory Countryside Sports Complex in Sudbury, ON. Day One was highlighted by a spirited Opening Ceremonies, which also included student-athletes and teams from USPORTS and served as an intermission between the women's and men's first draws

Women's Championship

The women's competition began with four competitive contests, with every sheet featuring at least one lead change. Two of the matchups were particularly exciting as the Fanshawe Falcons held off the Sault Cougars and the Red Deer Queens stormed back to topple the Humber Hawks.

Trading points across every end, the Falcons and Cougars were tied at the halfway point and again after seven. Fanshawe earned a single in the eighth and stole another in the ninth to earn a slight lead. Sault continued to battle but could only muster a single point in the final frame, sealing the 8-7 victory for the Falcons.

Red Deer held an early lead in their contest with the OCAA Champions, but the middle portion of this contest belonged to Humber. Down 5-2 after seven ends, the Queens earned a pair in the eighth then stole another two in the ninth and a single in the 10^th to claim a 7-5 victory over the Hawks.

In the other matchups, the Niagara Knights used some high scoring ends to hold off the SAIT Trojans 8-6 while the Concordia Thunder shook off an early deficit to the Augustana Vikings on route to a 6-2 win.

Men's Championship

The Mohawk Mountaineers began the men's side of the championship with a statement opening end worth seven points. Their opponents, the Fleming Knights battled on valiantly, winning a few subsequent ends, but the deficit proved too tough to overcome. Mohawk claimed the match 11-4.

The other three matchups were more methodical and closely contested, at least through the first half of each. Humber stole three in the opening end of their game against SAIT, but the Trojans battled back, and things were knotted up 5-5 after eight. Humber then posted a crucial three points in the ninth and took the match 8-5.

The Sault Cougars and Augustana Vikings traded points and blank ends with neither taking firm control of the match through six. The tide turned when Sault scored two in the seventh and stole another two in the eighth.  Augustana got one back, but the deficit proved too much, and the Cougars held on for a 6-4 victory.

Edmonton rivals the NAIT Ooks and Concordia Thunder, who know each other very well, were tied at two after five. However, the Ooks then went on a run scoring three in the sixth, two in the eighth and another in the ninth to clinch the win 8-4.