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SLAM! Sports 2000 in Review A LOOK BACK INTERACTIVE CONTESTS ALSO ON SLAM! 
| Sunday, February 27, 2000 Law wins her first national titlePRINCE GEORGE, B.C (CP) -- Home-province favourite Kelley Law captured the Canadian women's curling championship with a 9-4 win Sunday over Ontario's Anne Merklinger. "I've never had a feeling like this," said Law. Law, lead Diane Nelson, second Georgina Wheatcroft, and third Julie Skinner formed their team before the season began and their experience rating made them serious Scott Tournament of Hearts contenders. But it was still somewhat of an upstart squad in a field that included powerhouses Merklinger and Connie Laliberte of Manitoba. The Richmond Curling Club foursome finished the round robin 7-4 and needed to win three playoff games including a tiebreaker to meet top-seeded Merklinger, who went 10-1 in the round robin. "Each one of the playoff games was sudden death and we just went in there and did it," said Law, who won her last six games. Merklinger suffered her second championship game loss in the last three years. Law will represent Canada at the world championship in Glasgow, April 1-9. Her team also earned one of 10 berths available in the Canadian Olympic curling trials next year, and it also will return to the Scott next year in Sudbury, Ont., as Team Canada. "It's such a big year to win with the Olympic trials spot," said Law. "It's just a dream come true." British Columbia hadn't won a Canadian title since Skinner did it in 1991 under her maiden name of Julie Sutton. Law's victory sent the 4,006 at the Multiplex into wild jubilation. The last team to win a Scott Tournament of Hearts in its home province was Ontario's Marilyn Bodough in 1996. Ontario dominated the round robin but seemed unable to adjust to changes in the ice in the final after a day off Saturday. "We didn't bring our best game to the table," said Merklinger. "B.C played great. Every time we got something going, they took it away from us." In the seventh end, Ontario could not finish drawing behind guards or get rolls behind cover. With Law laying four, Merklinger wrecked on a guard with her first shot. Merklinger could not get a hit and roll behind cover with her last shot. Law made her takeout but lost a measurement ruling and took her three for a pivotal 7-4 lead. "We suffered a little in our draw weight consistency," said Merklinger. "There were some paths that fooled us." Ontario's problems continued in the eighth and ninth ends when it surrendered consecutive steals to put the game out of reach. Ontario scored its first pair to tie the game 4-4 in the sixth end when Law missed a tap-back on the edge of a button and left a wide-open hit for two. After trading singles in the first four ends, the game opened up in the fifth. Merklinger was light on a draw with her final shot, allowing Law a steal of two for a 4-2 lead. Skinner made excellent shots early in the game, outcurling Ontario third Theresa Breen 81 per cent to 58 in the game. Law, who gave birth to her second son, Cameron, four months ago, began the week by winning a Ford Taurus in the Hots Shots skills competition with Skinner finishing third. Law hadn't made the playoffs in two previous appearances as a skip. She took last season off before assembling her new team. Skinner scaled back her curling schedule after her last Scott appearance in 1993, but returned to the competitive scene this season in the new position of third. Wheatcroft won a Canadian and world championship as third for Pat Saunders in 1987. Notes -- Sherry Anderson, Saskatchewan's alternate and former provincial champion, filled in as colour commentator for CBC in place of an ailing Sandra Schmirler . . . The final attendance figure for the 2000 Scott Tournament of Hearts was 58,784 which puts it fourth overall. The record is 154,688 set by Regina in 1998. |