Harnden falls to 1-2 at Brier after loss to Manitoba

NEWS RELEASE

CANADIAN CURLING ASSOCIATION

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Yukon/NWT Still Rolling HAMILTON -- They’ve never won a Brier before.

And they might not win this edition of the Tim Horton’s Brier.

But unlike many northern teams before them, this year’s edition of Yukon/NWT is not going to go down without a fight.

Skipped by Jamie Koe, the Yellowknife foursome -- third Kevin Whitehead, second Mark Whitehead and lead Brad Chorostkowski round out the squad -- won their third straight game here Sunday night, dropping BC’s Dean Joanisse 8-5.

The win improved Koe to 3-0, putting him in a tie for first-place with Ontario’s Glenn Howard as the only two teams still undefeated here at Copps Coliseum.

“It’s a good start -- you can’t complain when you win your first 3,” Koe said.

But he also suggested people shouldn’t be surprised at the early success of his team, which also had a solid performance at the 2006 Brier in Regina, where they finished a game out of the playoffs with a 6-5 record.

“We’ve all played down south,” Koe said. “We’ve all played these guys before.

“Even though we’re from the north, we focus on this event all year.”

In other games on Draw 5, Saskatchewan’s Pat Simmons outlasted New Brunswick’s Paul Dobson 6-5, Nova Scotia’s Mark Kehoe defeated Newfoundland’s Brad Gushue 8-5 and Manitoba’s Jeff Stoughton edged Northern Ontario’s Al Harnden 6-5.

Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta head into Monday tied for third at 2-1, followed by six teams -- BC, Newfoundland, Northern Ontario, Nova Scotia, PEI and Quebec -- at 1-2. New Brunswick is still looking for their first win at 0-3.

The Brier resumes Monday morning when Saskatchewan plays Alberta, Ontario plays Newfoundland, Northern Ontario plays BC and Yukon/NWT plays PEI.

Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Quebec and New Brunswick have the bye on Draw 6. ************************************************************