CALGARY, November 16….There was just no stopping the A-train, as in Alberta, at the Canadian Mixed Curling Championship.

Friday afternoon, the host province, skipped by Dean Ross, eked out a 5-4 decision over Ontario, in front of a partisan crowd at the Calgary Curling Club, to win a leading ninth Mixed title for Alberta since the event began in 1964 in Toronto.

Early on, it looked like it was going to be a blowout for the Ross squad, who had finished the round robin in first place with a 10-1 mark in earning a bye to the final, losing only to Manitoba in Draw 8 in an extra end.

Representing the Calgary Curling Club, the Albertans blanked the first end, took one in the second, one in the fourth and stole a deuce in the fifth for a 4-1 lead at the break.

But Ontario, skipped by three-time Canadian senior champion Bob Turcotte, who was representing the Scarboro Golf & Country Club, rallied in the second half, responding with a pair in the sixth to cut the margin to 4-3.

Alberta blanked the seventh, but Ontario stole one in the eighth end to knot the affair at four.  After a blanked ninth end, Ross, with hammer, was able to count the winning point in the 10th, without throwing his final rock.  Unfortunately for Turcotte, his last brick picked halfway down the ice, as the skip was attempting an outturn draw to backing.

“It's been 32 years (of curling), I guess.  It's nice to finally get something out of all those years,” said the 44-year-old Ross, a golf course superintendent at Harvest Hills Golf Course in Calgary.

It was the first Mixed win for Ross, second Tim Krassman and lead Susan Wright, the wife of Ross, but the second Mixed title for third Susan O’Connor, who also played third for Alberta’s Kevin Koe when capturing the 2000 Canadian Mixed in Lethbridge, ironically the last time the province had hosted the championship.   O’Connor was also the third on Cheryl Bernard’s team at last year’s Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Lethbridge.

“I'm extremely, extremely happy for the rest of the team, and Dean in particular,” said O’Connor. “He really deserves this, and he played phenomenal. I hope when he looks back on this, he's not going to think that we won because of a pick. I hope he looks at his first shot in 10 and thinks, 'That was the shot that won us the championship.' It's a tough way to win, and in a way, I wish he would have had to throw his last shot because he would have made it. I know he would have made it. He made them all week.”

Wright has represented Newfoundland at three Scott Tournament of Hearts, in 1991, 1999 and 2000, while Krassman, who curls out of the Medicine Hat Curling Club, is a former two-time provincial junior champion.

Ross, who curls out of the North Hill Curling Club, enjoyed a significant 92%-75% edge over Turcotte in shooting percentage, while the team percentages were almost even, with Ontario holding a slight 86-85 advantage.

In addition to winning the Canadian title, two members of the winning team will now represent Canada at the inaugural 2008 World Mixed Doubles Championship, March 9-15 in Vierumäki, Finland.   The team will decide amongst themselves who goes.

“I have no idea,” said Ross, about who they'll select.  “Like I said before, I've been avoiding it since last spring (when winning the provincial) and I'm still kind of avoiding it, I guess. We'll sit down and figure it out.”

About his last stone, Turcotte said, “The line was perfect, the sweepers said the weight was perfect.  What do you do? All of a sudden, it just goes sideways. It's a shame for both teams because we lose on the pick and they can't cheer because they feel bad for us.”

-30-