MOOSE JAW, Sask. – Canada’s Rachel Homan defeated Saskatchewan’s Stefanie Lawton 7-5 to win the bronze medal Sunday afternoon at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts.
Homan hit a draw to the four-foot for the victory to cap a mixed week for the two-time champions. The Ottawa team is trying to find its groove this season after the departure of longtime coach Earle Morris and the addition of second Joanne Courtney.
“We’re building and we’re fast-tracking as much as we can,” Homan said. “I think we proved this week that we’re on the right track. Winning that bronze was really special for us.”
On Saturday, Lawton beat Homan 8-7 in the three-four Page Playoff game before losing the semifinal to Alberta’s Val Sweeting, who will face Manitoba’s Jennifer Jones for the gold on Sunday night.
READ MORE: Alberta beats Saskatchewan 7-6 in Scotties semifinal
The partisan crowd of 3,576 at Mosaic Place tried its best to support Lawton in her quest to win a medal for the first time in four career Scotties appearances.
She made a nice draw for one in the eighth and stole another point in the ninth but couldn’t pull even.
“It wasn’t the game that we wanted out there,” Lawton said. “The girls played hard. I just wish I would have started a little stronger and maybe thrown a few more draws throughout the game.”
Jones is a four-time Scotties champion and the reigning Olympic champion. Sweeting lost to Homan in last year’s gold-medal game in her first appearance in a Scotties final.
The champion will represent Canada at the March 14-22 world women’s curling championship in Sapporo, Japan.
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