Team Romaniuk became the final team to qualify for the 2008 U.S. Men’s National Curling Championships after a 9-3 victory over Team Fenson in the final tiebreaker of the 2008 Challenge Round on Jan. 27 at the Eau Claire Curling Club in Eau Claire, Wis.
Team Romaniuk (Greg Romaniuk, Leon Romaniuk, Mike Calcagno, Doug Pottinger and Cory Yalowicki), which curls out of Seattle’s Granite Curling Club, finished in a 4-way tie for the last available spot in nationals, with a record of 3-4 in round robin play. With three teams already qualified, Team Romaniuk, Team Fenson, Team Wight and Team Beadle all finished with identical records, setting up two tiebreaker rounds on Sunday. In the first tiebreaker round, Team Romaniuk defeated Kent Beadle’s (Hudson, Wis.) team 8-2, while Eric Fenson (Bemidji, Minn.) defeated Bryan Wight’s (Canandaigua, N.Y.) team 6-1 to set up the final tiebreaker vs. Romaniuk’s squad, which Team Romaniuk won to secure the last spot at Nationals. Romaniuk (Snohomish) and his brother Leon Romaniuk (Kirkland), along with teammates Pottinger (Eden Prairie, Minn.),
Calcagno (Kirkland) and alternate Yalowicki (Bothell), will be one of 10 men’s teams competing for the 2008 U.S. Men’s National Championships, with the winner moving on to represent the U.S. at the 2008 World Men’s Curling Championship April 5-13 in Grand Forks, N.D. The Granite Curling Club will be represented by two teams at Nationals, as Jason Larway (Lynnwood) and teammates Collin Huffman (Seattle), Joel Larway (Mukilteo), Greg Persinger (Fairbanks, Alaska) and alternate Steve Demlow (Seattle) qualified earlier in the month.
Larway’s rink (Jason Larway, Colin Huffman, Joel Larway and Greg Persinger) finished 1-4 in the 2008 Capital One Grand Masters of Curling Tournament in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. The Masters of Curling is one of the four Majors that highlight the World Curling Tour season, and features the top teams from around the world, including former Olympic and World Champions from Canada.
Next month, Jason Larway and teammates Huffman, Joel Larway, Persinger and alternate Demlow will represent Washington in the United States Curling Nationals in Hibbing, Minn., February 16-23.
The winner of the U.S. Curling Nationals will move on to represent the U.S. at the 2008 World Men’s Curling Championship, April 5-13 in Grand Forks, N.D.
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