As the reigning 2008 Canadian junior women's curling champion, there was never much doubt that Winnipeg's Kaitlyn Lawes was going to be regarded as the premier junior women's skip in this province this winter.
But what is a little surprising is that the early reviews suggest the Lawes team might also be one of the best female teams -- period -- in Manitoba right now.
Kaitlyn Lawes throws a rock in Selkirk Monday night during the McMillan Insurance Curling Classic final against Kristy Jenion. The Lawes team fell 6-4.
Playing with a new junior foursome, Lawes steamrolled through some of the best competitors in Manitoba over the weekend to advance to Monday night's final of the McMillan Insurance Classic in Selkirk against Kristy Jenion.
The Selkirk event is the first stop on this winter's Manitoba Curling Tour and the fact Lawes advanced to the final suggests that not only is her new junior team already a threat to repeat as provincial junior champions, they might also give the women a run -- at least for their money.
Lawes said her team -- which has a new front end in Laryssa Grenkow and Breanne Meakin because Elisabeth Peters and Sarah Wazney from last year's championship squad are now too old to play junior -- will not challenge for a provincial women's berth this winter.
Lawes explained that Meakin, at 18, is too young to compete in the playdowns and the team has decided to curl on the women's cash circuit and restrict their playdowns play to juniors rather than find a replacement for Meakin just to play women's zones.
Lawes said the team is sticking with that plan, despite its early success in the women's game.
"I do think about that. I do think we could try to compete with these teams," said Lawes, 19. "But the timing is a bit off for us. We're all university students and if we had more time, I think we might try."
The prospect is particularly appealing this year, with reigning provincial champion Jennifer Jones not curling in the Manitoba playdowns because she already has her nationals berth as the 2008 Canadian women's champion.
While they won't curl in the playdowns, Lawes said the team will play in more women's bonspiels as part of a busy schedule that sees the foursome play eight events before December.
"Our main focus is junior, but we're able to compete against the women in some bonspiels," said Lawes, "so hopefully we'll make a little extra money along the way to help pay for our season, because it is pretty pricey."
Among those women's events is the upcoming $60,000 Women's Classic at Fort Rouge where the Lawes team will face a 32-team field that just might prove to be the toughest assembled anywhere in the world this winter.
Lawes was asked if her team's good enough to make the playoffs at Fort Rouge.
"I don't see why not. Anyone can beat anyone on a given day in this sport. But we'll have to play really hard -- there are all the top teams there."
With Jenna Loder returning from last year's squad to play third again, Lawes said the challenge so far has been blending the back end with a new front end.
"We're finding our chemistry is working really well, we're having a good time and we've been having some good games so far."
Lawes captured a disappointing bronze at the World Juniors in Sweden last March and she's hopeful that loss will do for her team this year what two previous losses in the provincial finals did for her team last year.
"That just made us stronger. You have to learn how to lose before you win. And once you get that drive, you want to keep working at it -- hard. You want to accomplish more and more.
"Right now, I really want to be a world champion."
PREVIOUS
