Northern Ontario defeated the Northwest Territories 7-6 to progress to the main draw of the 2015 Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Moose Jaw.
Tracy Horgan skipped Northern Ontario to victory in a pre-qualifying final which. under revised rules, decided the remaining place in the main draw.
The NWT, led by Kerry Galusha, trailed 6-2 with six ends complete but narrowed the gap to 7-5 after nine, only to come up just short in the 10th end – ending their participation in the tournament.
“We did the best we could,” said the team on its Facebook page. “We have had a wicked season and we knew people were cheering hard for us today.”
The contest was far closer than the opening pre-qualifying round-robin game between the two, a 10-5 defeat for the NWT in which Galusha said her team had looked like ‘beginners’.
Chin up @TeamGalusha you did #NWT proud. Can't imagine how this feels. #relegation #worst #feeling #ever #curling
— Tom Naugler (@tntnaugler) February 14, 2015
Absolutely no disrespect @TeamHorgan, but 3 teams from Ontario at the #STOH and not one rep from the territories. Absolutely BS. @CCACurling
— Shannon Tatlock (@shannontatlock) February 14, 2015
Couldn't be more proud of the ladies from Team NWT! Always classy and gracious even in the face of defeat. Love you @TeamGalusha! #STOH2015
— Vanessa Gagnon (@nessincalgary) February 14, 2015
Ceremony #selfie with @TeamGalusha! #STOH #curling pic.twitter.com/hV2dI9npxK
— Team Jennifer Jones (@TeamJJonesCurl) February 14, 2015
