Kaitlyn Lawes' Manitoba team secured a spot in the Scotties Tournament of Hearts final with a dominant 10-2 victory over Kerri Einarson's Team Canada on Saturday. The unbeaten rink, now 10-0, will face the winner of the semifinal between Einarson and Selena Sturmay. Lawes, a veteran curler, marked her 100th career Scotties win in the process.
MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — In a decisive all-Manitoba matchup at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts, Team Kaitlyn Lawes crushed Kerri Einarson's Team Canada 10-2 in the Page 1-2 playoff game, earning a direct berth to Sunday's national women's curling championship final.
Lawes' rink, consisting of skip Selena Njegovan, second Laura Walker, and lead Kristin Gordon, took control early with a score of four in the first end. Lawes sealed the momentum with a precise draw for four on her last rock after her teammates navigated tight ports. Einarson, a four-time Scotties champion, managed only two points and conceded after eight ends.
"Been a while," Lawes said of her return to the final, last appearing in 2015 as third for Jennifer Jones' winning rink. "Scotties is tough... Really, really just thrilled to have this opportunity."
This marks Lawes' 100th career win at the Scotties, capping an unbeaten 10-0 run after a challenging quadrennial. The team, which includes an Olympic gold medalist in Lawes from 2014 and mixed doubles gold from 2018, has persevered through close losses, including missing playoffs in 2023 and 2025, and a provincial final defeat to Beth Peterson in January.
"This team has been through a lot over these last four years, becoming moms together," Lawes said, fighting back tears. "We've hung in there... Just so proud."
Njegovan echoed the sentiment: "It just seemed like everything clicked this week... It's been kind of a magical run so far."
Einarson, undeterred, looks ahead to the semifinal against Alberta's Team Selena Sturmay, who advanced with an 8-4 win over Nova Scotia's Team Christina Black. "We've been in this position before," Einarson said. "We're just going to come out strong tomorrow."
The final, set for 7 p.m. ET on Sunday, will determine Canada's representative at the March world women's championship in Calgary. Two-time defending champion Rachel Homan is absent, preparing for the Winter Olympics.
