CHESTERMERE, Alta. 鈥� Calgary鈥檚 Kevin Koe, Regina鈥檚 Matt Dunstone and Scotland's Bruce Mouat joined Brad Gushue of St. John's N.L., and Sweden's Niklas Edin in the men's playoffs of the Grand Slam of Curling's National on Friday.
Koe advanced with a 6-5 win over Switzerland's Peter de Cruz, Dunstone downed Glenn Howard of Penetanguishene, Ont., 7-2 and Mouat thumped countryman Ross Whyte 8-2 in Friday's B-qualifiers.
The $300,00 National featuring 16 men's and 16 women's teams is a triple knockout of three brackets.聽
Teams need to win three games in order to make the playoffs. Each loss drops a foursome to a lower bracket. Three losses eliminates teams from contention.
Gushue, a three-time 91原创 champion, and five-time world champion Niklas Edin had already advanced out of the men's A bracket with 3-0 records at the Chestermere Recreation Centre.
Howard, de Cruz and Whyte need victories in Saturday's C event to avoid elimination.
Earlier, Switzerland's Yannick Schwaller ousted Winnipeg's Jason Gunnlaugson 7-6 and Winnipeg's Mike McEwen bounced defending champion Brad Jacobs of Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., 4-3 in an extra end.
Winnipeg's Braden Calvert was eliminated in a 5-4 loss in an extra end to 91原创 champion Brendan Bottcher of Edmonton.
On the women's side, Edmonton's Laura Walker and Ottawa's Rachel Homan staved off elimination Friday with a third win to make playoffs.
Homan got by Hollie Duncan of Woodstock, Ont., 7-5 in an extra end, while Walker defeated Corryn Brown of Kamloops, B.C., 6-1 in the C bracket. Russia's Alina Kovaleva eliminated Winnipeg's Jennifer Jones 8-6.
So Homan, Walker and Kovaleva join B qualifiers Kelsey Rocque of Edmonton and Sweden's Isabella Wrana and Anna Hasselborg, as well as Tracy Fleury of East St. Paul, Man., and Switzerland's Silvana Tirinzoni who came out of the A bracket with 3-0 records.
Competition continues through Sunday.
This report by The 91原创 Press was first published Nov. 5, 2021.聽
The 91原创 Press
