Tiebreakers needed to complete Tournament of Hearts playoff picture
CBC
Kerri Einarson heads into the Canadian women's curling championship playoffs in command of her bid for a fourth straight title.
Bold tactics, precise shot execution, plus an understanding of changing ice conditions propelled the defending champion to a perfect 8-0 record in pool play for the second year in a row.
"It's tough. Every team out here is an amazing team and they work hard just like we do," Einarson said Thursday. "We knew that it wasn't going to be easy.
"We had some really good games and we really had to fight for it."
A pair of tiebreakers Friday morning were needed to determine the fifth and sixth entries.
Nova Scotia's Christina Black faces Kaitlyn Lawes's wild card 1 team in one game.
Quebec's Laurie St-Georges takes on B.C.'s Clancy Grandy in the other.
The victors move onto sudden-death afternoon games against Manitoba and Ontario.
Those winners meet Einarson and McCarville in the evening draw and the losers are eliminated.
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Northern Ontario and Manitoba both at 7-1, and Ontario at 6-2 emerged from Pool B.
Behind Einarson atop Pool A, a five-way race for the last two berths made for a dramatic Thursday evening draw.
When the dust settled, Quebec's 7-6 loss to Nova Scotia created a four-way logjam at 5-3 for second in the pool.
Black stole a point in the 10th end when St-Georges's attempted draw for the win was light.