And if you’re a fan of curling at all, you’ll want to check this out.
A total of 20 teams from throughout the province -- including a host of former provincial and national Scotties champions -- will take to the ice beginning with the first draw at 5:30 p.m. on Friday.
Leading the way will be two-time Scotties Tournament of Hearts champion Chelsea Carey, who will be taking the ice with her first-year Saskatchewan-based rink. Carey represented Team Canada at the 2020 Scotties Tournament of Hearts in the Friendly City, and they play their first game against Moose Jaw’s Lorraine Arguin at 9 p.m. Friday.
Speaking of the 2020 Scotties, North Battleford’s Robyn Silvernagle will also be in action with her new rink, having represented Saskatchewan in the tournament at Mosaic Place. Silvernagle duels fellow perennial provincial Scotties contender Mandy Selzer in her opener at 9 p.m.
Multiple-time provincial champions Michelle Englot and Sherry Anderson will also take the ice. Englot takes on the Emily Haupstein junior foursome -- including Moose Jaw’s Skylar Ackerman at third -- at 5:30 p.m. Friday, while Anderson’s senior foursome will duel Stacia Wisniewski at 9 p.m. Friday.
Of course, it would be remiss to forget Penny Barker, as the 2017 Scotties provincial champion and Moose Jaw skip is holding a hot hand after a solid showing at the Home Hardware Olympic Curling Pre-Trials last week. Her first game is 9 p.m. Friday against Hanna Johnson.
Moose Jaw’s Candace Newkirk will be playing alongside Sherrilee Orsted and play at 9 p.m. on Friday against Kristy Watling.
Teams will play in five round-robin pools, and in addition to games Friday, there will be draws at 10 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 5 p.m. on Saturday. The playoffs will begin Sunday morning and the championship final is set for 4 p.m. Sunday.
Given the high profile and high calibre of the event, admission is being charged. The cost is $6 for a draw pass or $30 for the weekend. Tickets can be purchased at the box office ahead of the draws or online by visiting SaskTix at https://bit.ly/3wdGNzx
For a complete rundown of all the teams and draw times, as well as regular score updates, be sure to visit www.curlsask.ca throughout the weekend.
