Krista McCarville's rink riding high after Northern Ontario's strong Scotties start
Thunder Bay-based team currently sitting atop Pool B with 5-1 record after beating Team N.W.T.
Thunder Bay's Krista McCarville is praising her team's focus after a very strong start at this year's Scotties Tournament of Hearts.
Despite a tough draw to start out this year's Scotties — including games against former champions Jennifer Jones and Rachel Homan — McCarville's team finished the weekend with a 4-1 record and added another win Tuesday to move to 5-1.
As of Wednesday morning, McCarville and Jones were tied for first place in the tournament's Pool B.
McCarville's only loss came against Homan's rink in a 7-5 defeat Sunday night.
"I feel like our team is playing really well, and we are catching on to the ice even more every single game," McCarville said Tuesday. "I never really like to think too far ahead, because anything can happen."
"We have so many more games left. We still have three more games of our round robin here before we can go forward," she said. "What I can say is that we're playing well, and I feel like we're mentally focusing well and adjusting to the Scotties life again."
And Scotties life certainly isn't without its challenges. The tournament is a long one — running from Feb. 17 to 26 — and is being held in Kamloops, B.C. meaning there's a time zone adjustment to make, as well.
As for day-to-day life, McCarville said it's really eat-sleep-curl-repeat, with team meetings, practice, and other activities — such as interviews — mixed in.
And then there's the ice.
The Scotties are taking place in an arena, and McCarville said earlier that could be a challenge since her team doesn't get as many opportunities to play on arena ice as some of the others.
"There's been a lot of rain and, the weather has been quite damp," she said. "I think that might be affecting the ice a little bit."
It's required some adjustment: the team expects the ice to be faster in the mornings, "but in the evenings it's not quite as quick."
"There's a little bit of frost that creeps in," McCarville said. "So you just have to kind of watch the path that you're throwing and just manage it that way."
McCarville's team — which also includes Sarah Potts, Ashley Sippala, Kendra Lilly, and coach Rick Lang — will next hit the ice Wednesday with matches against Yukon at 4:30 p.m. ET, and Newfoundland and Labrador at 9:30 p.m. ET.