The high school team of Alysha Buchy, Julia and Kira Dereniwsky and Haylie Farquhar have returned from provincials in Kamloops, and while their trip didn’t translate into results they wanted, they all cherished the experience of their first major competition.
The four had a record of two wins and five losses, but they gave it their best shot in every game as they played against some pretty tough teams, said coach Tom Buchy.
“They played really hard and the one thing that really impressed me, was that they never gave up when they were down,” said Tom Buchy. “They never showed any discouragement or anything, they were always very positive and every shot they tried their best.
“I was so impressed with how they battled hard with each shot and just tried their best and the outcome is what it is.”
The girls lost their first four games, but won the fifth at a score of 9-4 over College Heights Secondary School, which finished tied for third in the tournament.
The girls then won their second game in a row, with a 9-3 victory against St. Thomas Moore out of Vancouver, before wrapping it up with a loss to South Kamloops Secondary.
It was the first time the team has played in a tournament setting where they played a couple games in one day of competition.
“It was tough, and there wasn’t a lot of time to recover after games, but it was just a different experience and it was fun,” said Julie Dereniwsky, a Grade 11 student who plays third.
“Even though we did play really well as a team, it’s still difficult, because lots of teams have been practising many years together, so it’s just one of those things to think about—even though we practice every week or so, there are still other teams that do this everyday.”
Julia’s younger sister, Kira, agreed.
“It was interesting, because most teams practice all year-round, but we just practice in the winter,” Kira said. However, despite that, Kira said the team was able to compete with everyone else.
Even though they faced some tough teams, it was a good experience and the team learned a lot about what it takes to compete at the provincial level, said skip Alysha Buchy.
“We learned lots about the ice and how much rotation you have to throw and our team worked really good together,” Alysha said. “Even if we were down in a game, we just tried to stay positive.”
Grant Farquhar, who coaches alongside Tom Buchy, said the tournament was a good way for the girls to meet other curlers in their age category—as they compete in the mixed adult league in Kimberley—and build some camaraderie with other high school teams.
Farquhar’s daughter, Haylie, plays lead for the Selkirk team and enjoyed the atmosphere at the tournament and the chance to get to know some of the girls from other schools.
“We learned a lot of new stuff and it was really cool, especially in the opening ceremonies, to stand there with all the other teams—to me it felt like I was in the Olympics,” Haylie said.