SUNDRE – The Sundre High School senior girls’ curling team might not have qualified for provincials following a challenging run at zones, but the squad nevertheless came away from the competition with invaluable life experience, their coach said.
“One of the things that you have to sort of put into perspective is that all five girls have jobs,” said Svend Nielsen, adding scheduling times to practise is no easy feat.
Skip Jordyn Roberts, lead Aimee Walton, second Raelyn Davidson, third Jade Griffin and spare Kate Finley – who split the lead position role – were among six teams competing at zones, which were hosted on Feb.10-11 by Chestermere in Airdrie, said Nielsen.
“They have been sort of playing half of the season,” he said, adding some of the rinks at zones had been practising more extensively since September.
Making an already challenging situation even more difficult was an unfortunate happenstance with Roberts falling under the weather, he said.
“Our skipper was ill all day Saturday,” the coach said, adding the rink had three games that day.
“If we would have had a healthy squad, we would have gone onto provincials without too much trouble, that’s for darn sure,” he later added.
“Our skipper has the skills to call the game that needs to be called,” he said. “It’s just a matter of execution, I guess you could say.”
Despite their skip being set back by illness, the girls nevertheless finished second in their pool and just barely came up short in the semi-final, which they lost to Airdrie by one point on the last rock, he said.
Playing in the bronze medal game against Cochrane was another uphill battle, but a close match that might have gone either way.
“We lost it on the very last rock as well,” the coach said.
“As I told the girls, there’s only one silver lining in it: we don’t have to go to St. Paul’s for provincials,” he said, laughing. “It wasn’t necessarily high on anybody’s chore list.”
Levity aside, the coach said the main constraint was limited available time to practise as the girls – who are in grades 11 and 12 – attempt to carefully balance a juggling act that includes maintaining their academic performance while holding down part-time jobs and still finding not only the time to curl but also to enjoy their personal lives.
“It’s a difficult situation,” he said. “But on the other hand, I certainly respect the girls for having jobs and all doing well school-wise as well.”
And from a point of view, the girls won regardless of whether they took home medals or trophies in the sense they take away invaluable experience that they’ll carry into adulthood, he said, adding along the way, they made lifelong connections and memories.
“It certainly generated friendship with all the families involves,” he said.
Win or lose, they also learned plenty about teamwork and the importance of supporting one another, he added.
“The team aspect is a learning thing, and probably something they can take with them down the road,” he said.
While the season is now essentially over for the team, a couple of the girls might yet be back on the ice next month to play in the Sundre Curling Club’s open mixed bonspiel, he said.
“What next year holds in store, who knows,” the coach said.
The high school’s physical education program, through athletic director Ashley Bellamy, has been introducing players to the sport, he said.
“There might be some new curlers coming out of that,” he said.
Nielsen said he has over the span of some 45 years always enjoyed the opportunity to work with and mentor young people in sports, whether in soccer, curling, or team handball.
“And it’s extremely rewarding to see what they take home; and not just in the aspect of their sport, but (also) the development of their life skills, I think has got to be one of the things that I appreciate the most,” he said.
