Slider Denise Riu watches her stone after releasing it at the 14th annual Mac Jones Sticks vs. Sliders competition at the Cape Cod Curling Club. The sliders won by nine points.
Kathy Teixeira was among the 24 sliders who teamed up to defeat the stick curlers.
Paul Sofuolis, who recently changed from sliding to using a stick, prepares to deliver a stone at Sticks vs. Sliders.
Slider Denise Riu watches her stone after releasing it at the 14th annual Mac Jones Sticks vs. Sliders competition at the Cape Cod Curling Club. The sliders won by nine points.
Kathy Teixeira was among the 24 sliders who teamed up to defeat the stick curlers.
Paul Sofuolis, who recently changed from sliding to using a stick, prepares to deliver a stone at Sticks vs. Sliders.
The competition on the ice was over. All that was left for the 14th annual Mac Jones Sticks vs. Sliders competition at the Cape Cod Curling Club in Falmouth was making the final results official.
Gabriele Bruce did the honors. “I think [the results show] any day anyone can beat anybody, one way or the other,” she told the assembled crowd. “So, the total score for the stickers is 128, and the sliders got 137.”
The premise of the Mac Jones Sticks vs. Sliders contest—the brainchild of legendary Cape Cod stick curler Leonard (Mac) Jones—is simple: six teams of stick curlers wage a two-day battle against six teams of slide delivery curlers in a points contest to determine the superior way to deliver a curling stone.
The nine-point victory was revenge for the sliders. Sort of. Last year the stick curlers delivered a 28-point thumping of their sliding brethren.
Bill Gallagher, who skipped a stick delivery team, said of this year’s close score, “Over the past six draws, over 2,200 stones were thrown…there was a nine-point difference. That’s amazing.”
It was all sliders after one day of this year’s competition, which ended on Saturday, November 12. The stick curlers staged a furious comeback the next day but “just couldn’t get it done,” said Meghan Lino, another stick delivery team skip.
Jeanie Yaroch, who skipped a team for the sliders, echoed Bill’s observation: “Over 2,200 rocks were thrown and the differential came down to nine…that’s parity! The rivalry continues.
“There were unpredictable heroes and unexpected scores. Just goes to show you that…with any given group of curlers, magic can happen.”
So the sliders now have bragging rights. They have every reason to be proud of their accomplishment, even if their margin of victory was as slim as the distance between two stones that need to be measured.
Hang onto that feeling, sliders. It will only last a year.
Not that there’s any bias in this space.
The six winning Mac Jones Sticks vs. Sliders teams, from skip to lead (rosters might not reflect lineup shuffling):
One day after Sticks vs. Sliders wrapped up, the club welcomed the Senior Women’s Friendship Tour sponsored by the United States Women’s Curling Association and Curling Canada.
The Cape was one of nine tour stops to host the four teams composed of 16 curlers from 12 different clubs in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Ontario. Those 16 women faced off against 16 from Cape Cod in a friendly competition brimming with fun and camaraderie.
The bonding extended beyond the ice; the Canadian women stayed at the homes of their Cape counterparts on Saturday night and were shown more Cape Cod hospitality between draws on Sunday.
“The friendship and good humor were genuine. Anytime there’s a bagpiper on the ice I get the chills, but this was really special,” said Jeanie, who skipped one of the Cape teams in the competition. “This was about women, about life and fun and friendship throughout the decades and, of course, about curling.”
Initiated in 1990, the exchange tour began on a three-year rotation between the United States and Canada. This year’s US tour was delayed one year due to the pandemic. Women must be at least 50 years old to participate.
While the stick curlers and sliders were duking it out on the Cape Cod Curling Club ice, several of the younger curlers affiliated with the club were participating in competitions in other states.
In Blaine, Minnesota, Marius Kleinas and Anna Cenzalli were playing in the Curling Stadium Contender Series.
Marius, playing lead for a team skipped by Ethan Sampson, advanced to the semifinals. Had his team made it to the final, it would have faced a team skipped by eventual event champion John Shuster, who led Team USA to a gold medal at the 2018 Olympics.
Anna played lead for a team skipped by Stephanie Senneker. The team did not qualify for the playoffs but posted a respectable 2-2 record.
Meanwhile, Anna’s brother, Nicholas, skipped a team that reached the championship game before falling in the Blazing Leaves Cashspiel at the Nutmeg Curling Club in Bridgeport, Connecticut.
The Cape Cod Curling Club will be hosting the Compassionate Care ALS charity curling event on Saturday, November 19. The event will feature novice curlers (no veterans allowed) facing off in a friendly competition for a good cause, with all proceeds going to Compassionate Care ALS in West Falmouth. The action starts at 9 AM, with the finals starting at 3:30 PM. Come on down and watch the fun, or donate directly to Compassionate Care ALS at curling.ccals.org, where you can also view the 15 teams that will be participating.…Cape Cod Curling Club members Todd Benedict, Richard Lousararian, Steve O’Neil and Larry Riccitelli participated in the Ross Tarlton International Bonspiel that wrapped up on Saturday at the Utica (New York) Curling Club. The annual competition pits 16 men’s teams from the eastern United States against 16 teams from Ontario, Canada, with the winner determined by total stones. Ontario won this year’s event but the Cape Cod quartet acquitted itself well, posting a 3-1 record. Also representing Cape Cod at the event was the team of Mike Minior, Tom Azarovitz, Steve Mojo and Dick O’Connor.
All events are at the Cape Cod Curling Club unless otherwise indicated. Visit capecodcurling.org for more information.
Bonspiel: A curling tournament. Bonspiels can be open or in-house. The Cape Cod Curling Club hosts several open bonspiels (Bogspiel, Open Doubles Bonspiel, SummerSpiel) and in-house bonspiels (The Great Gobble Spiel, Chrismix, Scrod Bonspiel, Club Championship) each season. Club members also participate in bonspiels at other curling clubs around the United States and in other countries.
Jim Woodworth is a copy editor at the Enterprise and a member of the Cape Cod Curling Club. He can be contacted at woodworth@capenews.net. For more information about the Cape Cod Curling Club, visit www.capecodcurling.org.
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