NORTH BAY, Ont. — When the North Bay Memorial Gardens had emptied out and with the midnight hour approaching, two members of the Canadian team returned to the ice for a late-night practice session.
Their perfect round-robin record at the world women’s curling championship didn’t matter. Skip Jennifer Jones and lead Dawn McEwen wanted to come out and throw a few more stones.
It certainly wasn’t required for the top-ranked team in the world, especially with an early alarm clock beckoning. But it does speak to the drive and work ethic of Jones and her Winnipeg team.
“She’s always seeking perfection but she inspires that within her athletes as well that play for her,” said national team coach Elaine Dagg-Jackson.
Canada returned to the ice Thursday and extended its winning streak to nine games with an 8-7 win over Russia’s Victoria Moiseeva.
Jones had the hammer in the final end and drew to the four-foot ring for the win. The stone was a little heavy out of her hand but slowed down just in time.
“That wasn’t my best game for sure but we made some big shots and managed to score more points than them and pull out a win,” Jones said.
Canada remained in first place at 9-0, just ahead of Olympic champion Anna Hasselborg of Sweden.
Both teams secured playoff spots in the morning draw. Hasselborg held off Japan’s Tori Koana 6-4 to improve to 9-1 in round-robin play.
South Korea’s EunJung Kim dropped an 8-6 decision to Switzerland’s Binia Feltscher to fall into a third-place tie with Russia at 6-3.
Canada’s latest victory capped a tough three-game stretch that included wins over South Korea and Sweden.
“I think it’s really good that Team Canada gets challenged,” Dagg-Jackson said. “We don’t to be walking through this thing.”
Jones was scheduled to play Italy’s Diana Gaspari on Thursday night.
Late-night practice sessions are usually an opportunity for team alternates to throw or match stones with the coaching staff. Sometimes roster players will come out to tinker with things.
McEwen threw about a dozen stones and talked with Jones before leaving the ice with more confidence, Dagg-Jackson said. Against Russia, McEwen led the Canadians by shooting 95 per cent.
Russia had a 90-89 edge in overall shooting percentage and gave Canada all it could handle.
“To be honest it seems like every team is playing really well against us,” Jones said. “You don’t really look at who you play, we just want to play as well as we can heading into the playoffs.”
Round-robin play continues through Friday night. The top six teams will advance.
After Canada opened with a single, Moiseeva had a chance for a deuce in the second end but settled for one when her split attempt was thick.
Canada moved ahead with a pair in the third end but Moiseeva came back with a single in the fourth and stole a point in the fifth when Jones ticked a guard.
The teams exchanged three-point ends after the mid-game break. Jones drew the button in the sixth but was heavy with a freeze attempt in the seventh to let Russia draw for three.
Canada used a hit to score one in the eighth, missing out on a second point after a measure. Russia used hammer to pull even in the ninth before the tense final end.
“They’re not taking unnecessary risks, they’re trying to take advantage of opportunities when they present themselves,” Dagg-Jackson said of the Canadians. “But they’re not getting into a panic or worrying too much if they don’t get those extra points.
“As long as you’re in a position to win the game, it’s good, it’s fine.”
The top two seeds will qualify for the semifinals while the remaining playoff teams will meet in qualification games Saturday morning.
American Jamie Sinclair blanked Denmark’s Angelina Jensen to move into fifth place at 5-4. The Czech Republic’s Anna Kubeskova fell to 5-5 after dropping a 3-2 decision to Germany’s Daniela Jentsch.
China’s Yilun Jiang beat Italy 7-5 in the other afternoon game. Japan was in seventh place at 4-5 and China was tied with Switzerland at 4-6.
Denmark (3-7), Scotland (3-7), Germany (2-7) and Italy (2-8) rounded out the 13-team standings.
The medal games are set for Sunday. Ottawa’s Rachel Homan won gold at last year’s world championship in Beijing.