Carman’s Shaela Hayward secured her second consecutive title at the Co-ops of Manitoba U20 Junior Provincial Curling Championships, narrowly defeating Heather’s Cassidy Dundas 8-7 in the final held Sunday night at the Brandon Curling Club.
Hayward and her team—comprised of Grace Beaudry, Keira Krahn, and Emily Ostrowsky—had an impressive performance throughout the tournament, finishing with a record of 6-1.
The championship final was a thrilling contest that featured multiple lead changes. In a dramatic finish, Hayward found herself down 7-6 but held the hammer. With her final shot, she executed a remarkable angle runback double kill, earning two points and sealing her victory at 8-7.
“This was definitely our best event all year as the whole lineup was playing great, and I’m very proud of how the team performed,” said Shaela Hayward. “The final game was unbelievable. We have had close games with the Dundas team all year, and I expected nothing less than that dramatic finish. It’s super exciting to win provincials, and we can’t wait to represent Manitoba at the Canadian Juniors.”
For Hayward and her squad, winning the provincial title was a culmination of their successful season thus far.
“Our goal all year was to win provincials, so we went in knowing we could win,” said Hayward. “This is Emily and Grace’s first provincials win, and I am just so proud and excited to be able to do this with this team.”
Hayward and her team will go on to represent Team Manitoba at the upcoming 2025 New Holland Canadian U20 Curling Championships in Summerside, Prince Edward Island, from March 22-30. A consolation for the losing Dundas team is that they will also join Hayward at Nationals as Team Manitoba 2.
In the Manitoba junior men’s final, Virden’s Jace Freeman emerged victorious with a 6-4 win over Morden’s Noah Sugden. Both Freeman and Sugden will also be heading to Nationals.
“Our goal going into Nationals is to represent Manitoba well on and off the ice. We want to take in the whole experience and play our best. Making the playoffs and going from there would be ideal.”
