The BC Host team crowned National Champions

The BC Host team won the all BC final of the 2010 Canadian National Wheelchair Curling Championships at the Kelowna CC this afternoon.

Gary Cormack (skip), Rich Green (3rd), Vince Miele (2nd) and alternating leads Corinne Jensen and Samantha Sui had the best record in the round robin, with their only loss to Nova Scotia. They also beat BC in the 1 vs 2 game in a testament to the depth of talent among wheelchair curlers in BC.

In the battle of Torino gold medalist 4th rock throwers, Gary Cormack's 63% shooting out-shone BC's Gerry Austgarden, and picked up a team that was outscored at every other position. He also saved them from disaster and a possible early exit in the second when his last rock came through a narrow port for shot with BC were lying 6.

You can read our notes as the play happened, on our blog.

Full results are available on our Nationals page.


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We are at the Kelowna Curling Club for Gold Medal Game in the Wheelchair Nationals. We'll be updating this post as the stones are played, so keep refreshing your browser for updates.

BC HOST will have hammer against BC. Both teams have Torino gold medalists throwing 4th stones. In the round robin, BC HOST beat BC 7-1.
Team lineups today:

Team BC

(Photo: Dave O’Byrne for CCA)

Lead – Alison Duddy has been curling for one year.  Her home club is the Quesnel Curling Club.

Skip and 2nd stones– Whitney Warren represented BC in the 2004 – 2009 Nationals, earning 3 Gold and 2 Silver medals.  He is a NCCP coach, and the only person to have played in all seven Canadian Wheelchair Curling National Championships.

Third – Frank LaBounty is a Silver medalist in the 2004, 2007, 2008, and 2009 Nationals.  With Warren, he curls out of the Prince George Golf and Curling Club.

4th stones – Gerry Austgarden  throws 4th stones for the team.  He has medaled in the 2004, 2005, and 2006 Nationals representing BC.  He has represented Canada at the World Wheelchair Curling Championships in 2007 and 2008, and won Gold at the 2006 Paralympics in Torino.  He curls out of the Kelowna Curling Club.

The team is coached by Al Moore.

Team BC HOST

(Photo: Dave O’Byrne for CCA)

Skip – Gary Cormack curled Third in the 2003 and 2004 Nationals, winning a Silver in 2004.  In 2006, he played Second for BC at the Nationals, where they won Gold, and went to the Paralympics in Torino for Team Canada, where he won Gold.  He played in the World Wheelchair Championships in 2007 and 2008, finishing fourth both times.  He curls out of the Cloverdale Curling Club.

Third – Rich Green curls out of the Marpole Curling Club in Vancouver.

Second – Vince Miele represented BC at the 2008 Nationals, where they won Gold.  He curls out of the Marpole Curling Club.

Leads – Corrine Jensen curls out of the Juan De Fuca Curling Club in Victoria.
Samantha Siu won Gold at the 2006 Winter Games.  She curls out of the Richmond Curling Club.

The team is coached by Len Stewart.

The teams were piped in, and the game will get underway in just a few minutes.
BC Host will start with the hammer.

BC got into the house early, sitting three before Vince Miele doubled out two with his second stone.
Frank's attempted draw hits his front stone, pushing it in for shot. 
Rich Green flashed on his first rock. 
Frank flashed on his second.
BC sitting 2, Gerry guarding.  good weight but it didn't curl enough to fully bury shot stone.
Cormack tries to hit and stick on the shot stone in the back, but hits and rolls out.
Austgarden draws into the top 12 behind cover.
Cormack got out a little wide on his attempt to remove an opposition stone in the wings.  He hits on the outside of it.  There's a measure...BC steals one.

Score: BC 1 – HOST 0 after one.

END 2
Corrine Jensen throws top four behind her centre line guard. 
Whitney Warren follows her down, tapping the HOST stone out and sitting shot top 8.
Vince Miele crashes on a front stone, blocking up the centre.  HOST needs the centre open.
BC asks for one in the top of the rings, but it comes to the back 8.  BC is lying 2 for now.
Gary asks Vince to peel the centre line guard, and he does.
Frank Labounty freezes to his own stone top 8, and BC is sitting 3.
Green tries to freeze to the shot stone in the back 8, but his rock is through the house.  BC still lies 3.
Labounty throws a stone just into the top 12, guarding shot stone, and BC now lies 4.
Rich Green attempted a draw, and rubbed off a front stone.  He slides into the 8ft to sit shot.
Gerry comes in off a BC stone in front of the house and rolls to the top of the button for shot.  It’s buried.  BC is sitting 3.
There are five red stones in the house, and one yellow HOST stone exposed, sitting third shot.  Looks like Cormack is trying to hit some of the red BC rocks out front to cut them down.
With a two-handed throw, Gary hit a red stone into the house, removing his own yellow.  BC now sit five.
Gerry puts his second rock in the top 12.  BC sits 6.  There are two red stones either side of center line, top 12.  If Cormack hits one of those on the inside, he should bounce forward to cut down the end to maybe two.
But what do we know?  He came through the narrow port to hit and stick on shot stone for one.  That ties it up.
Score: BC 1 – HOST 1 after two ends.

END 3
Jensen puts up a tight centre line guard.  BC puts up a long corner.
Jensen’s come around is short.
Duddy is also short, but tight to the rings.  Nobody’s in the house.
Whitney tried to tap up his own, but comes up short.  Six stones in front of the house and none in.
HOST makes contact on the tap attempt but they tap it out the back.  BC tries a tap – tap, and jam on a stone at the back of the house.  BC are sitting shot, biting the back 12.
BC put another stone into the rings and are now sitting two.  Their draw attempt is successful and they now have three of their red stones in the rings, to sit 3.
HOST attempts a draw and redirects off a BC stone in front, jams on a BC stone.  They are shot, full 8, covered.
Frank doubles out two HOST front stones to open up the front.
Cormack tries to clear off second shot stone from the top 12 and roll behind cover.  He just pushed it over and rolled out.  That opens up the front even more.
Gerry tries to clear and does.  Shot stone is on the tee line, full 8 and now exposed.
Cormack wants to draw top 8 to protect his shot stone.  He’s biting the 8, but we can’t tell if that is second shot or not.  He needed to split the rings, but that is on the same side as shot.  There is a double there for four.
Gerry’s hit jams on the stone behind it.  There’s going to be a measure.  He takes one.
Score: BC 2 – HOST 1 after three.

END 4
Duddy’s first stone is out the back.  Jensen puts up a centre line guard.   Duddy’s second attempt is short of the house.  Jensen’s come-around attempt is right on the button, and buried.  HOST is lying one.
Whitney Warren tries to follow Jensen down, but he crashes on the centre line guard.
Cormack asks Vince Miele to come through the port and he does, sharing the button with Jensen’s stone.
Whitney removes them both and sticks to count 1 for BC.
Vince comes through the port again to remove the BC stone, and rolls away.  The house is empty.
Frank tries to come into the house and crashes on the guard.  The whole front of the house is now blocked up.  Cormack has to deal with a red BC stone front of the house to take away a chance for them to tap up.  Rich Green slides right through the port without making contact, and out the back.
Frank makes the tap, into the top 12.  Cormack asks for a hit.  Green hits the stone thin and removes it but also rolls out.  The house is empty again.
Gerry’s draw comes through the port to sit for shot top 8 just off centre line.
Cormack uses a two-handed delivery for his takeout attempt, crashes on the guard and rolls out.  BC still counts one.
Gerry tries to come in but slides out the back.
Gary’s hit attempt is wide and out the back.  BC steals 1.
Score: BC 3 – HOST 1 heading to the break.

END 5
Duddy comes in, putting it right on the button.
Cormack asks Jensen for a hit. It doesn’t curl at all and just slips by, stopping back 8 for second shot.
Duddy freezes to her rock.  BC lies 2.
Jensen is asked to come down to it, but she is short, just in front of the house.
Whitney’s guard is not over the hogline, and they remove it.
Vince clears the front.
Whitney adds another stone to the pile in the 4 foot.  BC lies three, frozen to each other.
Vince hits, removing one, separating the other two, and stopping in the top 8.  It looks like BC is still lying 2.
Frank Labounty makes a fine shot, clipping the yellow HOST stone, removing it and staying in for BC to lie 3.
Green removes one, pushes another to the back 12 for third shot, and HOST is now second shot in the back 8.
Frank picks that second shot out and sticks.  BC lies three again.
Rich Green’s takeout attempt is a bit wide, pushes a HOST stone under cover, and sails out the back.
Gerry guards.  BC still counting three.
Gary removes one and rolls to bite the 4ft for second shot.
Gerry tries to remove that second shot, skinnies off the inside and rolls out.  No change in the house.
Cormack has an outturn draw into the 4ft to count two.  And it stops just short of perfect.  He takes one.
Score: BC 3 – HOST 2

END 6
Jensen puts up a long corner.  Duddy comes  in to the edge of the 4ft.  Jensen makes the hit to sit shot and nudge the BC stone to the back 8.  Duddy taps it back.
Vince picks a HOST stone out and rolls out.
Whitney puts his on the top 12,and it looks like the double is there.
Vince was a little wide on his takeout attempt and sails out the back.
BC calls time out.
Whitney throws a centre line guard.
Rich Green hits it, and pushes it into the house.  Another goes out the back, but the situation in the house remains unchanged.  BC lies three.
Frank puts up another guard.
Rich Green was light on his attempt to come through the port.  He crashed on the front guard and sits in front of the house.  BC still lies 3.
Frank draws in to the top 8.  BC sits 4.
Gary Cormack doubles out the two red stones to lie shot.  Great shot!
Gerry tries to come through the port and hit shot stone.  He crashes on the front stone and rolls out.  Shot stone is now exposed, however.
Gary’s guard attempt overcurled and shot stone is still exposed in the top 4.
Gerry tries to come through the port, but he’s short.
HOST steals one to tie it up at 3 after six ends.

END 7
Jensen puts up a centre line guard.  Duddy’s come-around gets to the top 12 but it looks like it’s exposed.  Jensen’s takeout attempt is wide and sails through.  Duddy tries to come around, ticks the centre line guard and ends up in front of the house.
Vince crashes off one guard, crashes off the other and sits in front of the BC stone in the 12 foot.  BC is shot.
Whitney tries to come in and is about 6 feet short of the house.  Vince tries to tap his yellow onto yellow onto red to remove the red BC stone but he flashes.
Whitney will try to draw in.  He is heavy, and out the back.
Rich is asked to tap yellow – yellow – red.  He makes it and sits in the 12ft for shot.
Frank goes after the shot stone on the 12 ft, but it overcurled and he hit it on the outside, pushing shot stone back 12 behind the centre line guard.  HOST lies one.
Rich Green draws to the top 12 to lie two.
Frank removes the centre line guard.  HOST lies 2, both in the open now.
Gary puts up a long guard to guard second shot.
Gerry will try to come through the port and pick out shot stone, top 12.  He ticked it and ticked second shot, rolling the edge of the back 12.  HOST sits 2.  They call time out.
Gary draws through the port to the top 8, partially behind the long guard.
Gerry tries to draw in but comes up twelve feet light.  HOST takes three.
Score: HOST 6 – BC 3 after seven ends.

Here we go to the 8th end:
Jensen puts up a long centre line guard.
Duddy’s come-around is top 8.
Cormack asks Jensen for a hit; she’s through the house.
Duddy’s come-around attempt crashes on the stone out front.  BC still lies one.
Vince’s attempt to peel the guard flashes.  Whitney comes into the top 8.  BC lies 2.  Vince tries to hit and roll.  He removes the red but rolls out himself.  BC is lying one.
Whitney’s attempt to come in is heavy and slips out the back.
Cormack wants Green to peel the guard.  He does, and rolls away.
Frank draws to the top 12,  BC lies two, both in the open.
Green removes one and rolls away.  BC lies one.
BC calls time out.

BC are sitting shot stone biting the 8ft, two feet off centre line.  They have three red stones left, and they have to score three to tie.  So they will draw around their shot stone.
Frank is light, stopping in front of the house.  It’s also in front of shot stone in the top 8/top 12.
Gary removes that red stone in front of the house.  BC lies one.
Gerry is light, stopping in front of the house.
Cormack puts up a front stone, just a foot, not even, off centre.
Gerry has a fancy split to tie the game and force an extra, coming in off the short stone Gary just left for him.
He hit his front stone and punched it through the house.  That leaves BC lying just one, and BC HOST win 6-4.