Jean-Michel Menard's rink form Ste-Foy,
Que., scored one in each of the final three ends in a 5-4 win over
Pal Trusen of Norway, allowing North America to salvage a split of
the men's team matches and maintain a slim two-point lead at the
$120,000 Continental Cup.
North America leads Europe 62-60 after six draws. North America
entered Friday's competition with an impressive 24-point lead, but
Europe swept the women's team matches in the day's first draw, then
won four singles matches while tying another. Europe earned 45 of a
possible 60 points Friday to make this a close contest.
In other late draw matches, Olympic champion Brad Gushue of St.
John's, N.L., lost his second match of the day, 5-4 to David Murdoch
of Scotland. Meanwhile, Pete Fenson of the U.S., tied 3-3 with
Finland's Markku Uusipaavalniemi.
In the singles matches earlier Friday, Uusipaavalniemi edged
Gushue 22-20, in a rematch of the gold-medal game from the 2006
Turin Olympics.
The European men completed a sweep their singles matches, as
Scotland's Ewan MacDonald beat Maxime Elmaleh of Ste-Foy, Que.,
20-17, and Norway's Flemming Davanger beat Shawn Rojeski of the
U.S., 22-20.
The North American women fared better, with Kelly Scott of
Kelowna, B.C., hammering Germany's Andrea Schopp, 22-5 and Shannon
Kleibrink of Okotoks, Alta., tying Anna Svard of Sweden 21-21.
Switzerland's Mirjam Ott picked up Europe's only win in women's
singles competition, defeating Debbie McCormick of the U.S., 14-9.
In the early draw, Europe swept all three women's team matches.
Schopp stole one in both the eighth and final ends to edge
Kleibrink 6-5, Olympic gold medallist Anette Norberg of Sweden beat
Scott 9-5, and Ott edged McCormick 5-4, hitting and sticking with
her last rock in the eighth end for the win.
© The Canadian Press, 2007
