Edmonton’s Team Serena Gray-Withers scored a significant early season victory on Monday, defeating Alberta rival Team Selena Sturmay, 6-5, in the final of the Saville Shootout.
Team Gray-Withers tied the game with a single in the eighth end before winning the bonspiel thanks to a steal in the extra end.
Gray-Withers, third Laura Walker, second Kaitlyn Lawes and lead Zoe Cinnamon just snuck into the playoffs with a 2-2 preliminary round record before defeating reigning Canadian champion Team Kerri Einarson in the quarterfinal and British Columbia champion Team Taylor Reese-Hanson in the semi-final.
Lawes, who announced she was stepping back from curling at the end of the 2025-26 season, was sparing for Catherine Clifford at this event.
Gray-Withers, 25, dropped last year’s Alberta final to Sturmay.
The rink from the Saville Community Sports Centre in Edmonton went out in the off-season and picked up veteran curler Walker to play second, replacing Lindsey Burgess.
Gray-Withers and Sturmay could very well meet in another provincial final later this season.
On the men’s side of the draw at the Saville Shootout, Germany’s Team Benny Kapp defeated Vernon, B.C.’s Team Jim Cotter.
Kapp’s rink won 5-4 thanks to a steal of one in the eighth and final end.
The 24-year-old Kapp, who has already represented Germany at five World Men’s Curling Championships as well as last year’s Olympics, is captaining the squad that was previously skipped by Marc Muskatewitz after he took a step back from competitive curling following the end of the quadrennial.
Calgary’s Team Kevin Koe, led by their 51-year-old skip, made the playoffs, but dropped a quarterfinal clash to Team Mitchell Kopytko of Kamloops.
Another new rink, Team Tyler Tardi of Saskatoon, went 4-0 in the preliminary round before falling to Team Kapp in the quarters.
Team Paetz not slowing down
With Swiss curling great Silvana Tirinzoni now retired from elite-level curling, Alina Paetz, Tirinzoni’s former fourth thrower, has taken over full skip duties with a new rink.
The six-time world champion and 2026 Olympic silver medalist hasn’t missed a beat.
Team Paetz won the Stu Sells Oakville Tankard on Monday afternoon after defeating Swiss rival - and the reigning world women’s champions - Team Xenia Schwaller in the final by a score of 6-4.
After dropping their opening game to Calgary’s Team Kayla Skrlik, Paetz and company reeled off three straight victories to punch their ticket to the playoffs where they topped Ontario’s Team Carly Howard in the quarters and Team Corrie Huerlimann of Switzerland in the semis.
This was the second win of the young season for Team Paetz after capturing the Euro Super Series last month.
The foursome also features third Selina Witschonke, who played lead on Team Tirinzoni, as well as second Stefanie Berset and lead Renée Frigo.
Veteran curler Sherry Middaugh, playing alongside daughters Kelly and Emily this season, made the semi-final where they lost to Team Schwaller by a score of 7-1.
On the men’s side, Danny Casper and his team from Chaska, Minnesota downed Winnipeg’s Team Jordon McDonald in the final, 9-5.
Team Casper put up a deuce in the seventh end and stole three more in the eighth for the victory.
They also earned wins over American rival Team John Shuster in the quarter-final and Brendan Bottcher’s new Edmonton-based rink in the semi-final.
Team McDonald eliminated Switzerland’s Team Marco Hoesli and Team Caden Hebert of Eau Claire, Wisconsin in the quarter-final and semi-final, respectively.
Casper, 25, and his young rink represented the United States at the 2026 Olympics in Italy.
The loaded field also included Italy’s Team Joel Retornaz, who lost to Team Bottcher in the quarters.
Reigning Canadian champion Team Matt Dunstone, Ontario’s Team John Epping, Team Scott Howard and Team Jayden King, Quebec’s Team Felix Asselin and Team Stefano Spiller of Italy all missed the playoffs.
Other events
Rice Lake Competitor Spiel
Men - Austin Kadlec
Women - Ann Podoll
