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Peterman ready to take on the world

The bus didn’t always take Jocelyn Peterman home from school.In the winter her stop was the Red Deer Curling Centre. When she was five she joined her first team and participated in league play.Her dad, Lowell Peterman, was the ice maker for the Red Deer Curling Club as Jocelyn learned the sport. Lowell now makes the ice at the Innisfail Curling Club.
2016 Scotties Tournament of Hearts
Alberta second Jocelyn Peterman in the championship game

The bus didn’t always take Jocelyn Peterman home from school.

In the winter her stop was the Red Deer Curling Centre. When she was five she joined her first team and participated in league play.

Her dad, Lowell Peterman, was the ice maker for the Red Deer Curling Club as Jocelyn learned the sport. Lowell now makes the ice at the Innisfail Curling Club.

“I was at the curling club pretty much every day,” said Peterman. “I would take the bus there instead of home. I was there all the time. I was in a league when I was five and it has been going ever since then.

“It was a family thing, everybody did it and I grew to love the sport at a pretty young age.”

The 22-year-old Calgary resident has had a whirlwind year that so far has included a berth in the Scotties Tournament of Hearts, winning the tournament over perennial favourite Jennifer Jones who won last year’s Scotties.

“I’ve been dreaming about playing in that event since I was really young. It was pretty fun to be on the hometown team,” said Peterman.

“My teammates had all played at pretty big events before as the hometown team, they warned me about the crowd.

“That’s first time we beat Jones, the whole stadium erupted. It was pretty cool.”

The win put the rink featuring skip Chelsea Carey, third Amy Nixon, lead Laine Peters and second Peterman into the Women’s World Curling Championships, set to start on Saturday.

Nixon, Peters and Peterman played with Heather Nedohin last season. When Nedohin retired at the end of last season, the remaining three game Carey a call.

Carey had lost the 2015 Alberta Scotties to Val Sweeting in Lacombe. But her new team got past Sweeting in Alberta and beat Jennifer Jones’ rink twice including in the 1-2 page playoff. In the gold medal final, they beat Northern Ontario 7-6.

“We definitely weren’t the favourites even to win the province,” said Peterman. “That was exciting to win that. It’s been a surreal experience ever since.

“It’s crazy for me. I’m only 22 and I’ve been dreaming about this for a long time. It’s surreal that its happening right now, representing Canada is pretty cool.”

It was just five years ago that Peterman and her junior curling team of Britanny Tran, Becca Konschuh and Kristine Anderson left Red Deer to practice and train in Calgary. They won the 2012 Canadian Juniors, the year after they left Red Deer.

Peterman said the team took a few days off after the Scotties win and has been at the rink ever since getting prepared.

They head to Swift Current, Sask., where the championship is being held, on Wednesday to start their preparation. The championship starts on Saturday.

Teams at the worlds include Eve Muirhead’s rink out of Scotland, Ericka Brown’s rink out of the U.S., Anna Sidrova’s rink out of Russia and Binia Feltscher’s rink out of Switzerland.

mcrawford@www.reddeeradvocate.com