Jolene Campbell guided Team Saskatchewan to an 8-5 victory over British Columbia's Taylor Reese-Hansen in the fifth draw of the Scotties Tournament of Hearts. The win evens Saskatchewan's round-robin record at 1-1 after an opening loss. Campbell, competing as skip for Saskatchewan for the first time in a decade, shot 81 percent in the bounce-back performance.
At the Paramount Fine Foods Centre in Mississauga, Ontario, Jolene Campbell and her Regina-based rink of third Robyn Silvernagle, second Rachel Big Eagle, and lead Dayna Demmans rebounded from an 11-3 opening loss to Nova Scotia's Taylour Stevens. The 44-year-old Campbell, who previously won the Scotties as an alternate with Amber Holland's 2011 championship team and skipped in 2016, threw the hammer effectively in the afternoon draw on Sunday.
The game remained close, with Saskatchewan securing a triple takeout by Silvernagle in the ninth end to limit B.C. to one point. Campbell then made a hit in the 10th with the hammer coming home to seal the victory. Team Saskatchewan improved to 87 percent as a unit, up from 63 percent in their opener, with Silvernagle leading the back end at 89 percent.
"We just wanted to come out and throw the rock like we're real curlers again," Campbell said. Silvernagle, in her fourth Scotties appearance and a 2019 bronze medalist, praised the team's chemistry: "I think if we just keep building off of this game... it's a curling game and you never know who could win."
Campbell and Silvernagle, who briefly teamed up in 2017-18, edged Jana Tisdale 4-3 at provincials to qualify. "We're very like-minded... it's almost like a sisterhood between the two of us," Campbell noted. The win marks Campbell's first as Saskatchewan skip since 2016, when she finished 6-5.
Other fifth-draw results included Manitoba's Kaitlyn Lawes defeating Ontario 11-6, Canada's Kerri Einarson beating Nova Scotia 9-6, and Quebec's Jolianne Fortin topping Yukon 10-5. Pool A standings after five draws: Canada and Manitoba 3-0, Nova Scotia 2-1, Saskatchewan 1-1. The tournament runs through February 1, with the winner representing Canada at the world championship in Calgary.
