Tournament frontrunners Rachel Homan and Kerri Einarson kicked off the 2025 Montana’s Canadian Curling Trials in Halifax with convincing victories on Saturday. Homan, hailing from Ottawa and a two-time Canadian and world women’s champion, secured a 16-5 win over Kate Cameron of St. Adolphe, Manitoba, after scoring three points in the third end and stealing four more in the fourth.
Einarson, representing Gimli, Manitoba, started strong with steals of two in the first end and four in the second, ultimately defeating local favorite Christina Black 12-5. Einarson expressed excitement about facing Black in the opening draw to prevent them from gaining momentum and support from the crowd.
In other Saturday matches, Kaitlyn Lawes of Winnipeg triumphed 7-4 over Corryn Brown of Kamloops, British Columbia, by stealing two points in the third end and one in the ninth. Selena Sturmay of Edmonton also secured a victory, stealing two points in both the third and seventh ends to beat Kayla Skrlik of Calgary 8-2.
In the men’s division, the first draw saw Mike McEwen’s Saskatoon team narrowly defeat Jordon McDonald from Winnipeg 6-5. McEwen made a crucial draw to the eight-foot in the 10th end to secure a game-winning deuce. Brad Gushue of St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, started with an 11-5 win against Rylan Kleiter of Saskatoon, while Matt Dunstone of Winnipeg defeated John Epping of Sudbury, Ontario 6-3. Calgary’s Kevin Koe also clinched a close 6-5 victory over defending Canadian men’s champion Brad Jacobs, also from Calgary.
The winners of the men’s and women’s competitions at the Canadian Curling Trials will earn the opportunity to represent Canada at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina, Italy.