Image credit: CFJC Today/Anthony Corea

By Marty Hastings

ON PEBBLED ICE

For Brown rink, B.C. title victory was cathartic, first for Fisher; pregnant skip feeling good ahead of Scotties

Jan 31, 2025 | 6:40 PM

KAMLOOPS — Samantha Fisher seemed temporarily transfixed on the framed heart presented to her during the ceremony that followed Team Brown’s victory at the B.C. Women’s Curling Championship last weekend in Langley.

Coach Jim Cotter — a perennial provincial champion on the men’s side — noticed her gaze and recognizing the moment gave her a little pat on the shoulder.

“I tried not to think about it too much before the game and during the game, but when we finally won and the game was over, it was just kind of a bit surreal, at first,” Fisher said.

“The girls just had the best reaction and that really got my heart rate going. It’s been a long time since Corryn, Erin and I won provincials together (2015 in the junior ranks), so to have that group hug again and know we did it – it was just awesome.”

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Team Brown will compete at the national Scotties Tournament of Hearts, which is scheduled to get underway on Feb. 14 in Thunder Bay, Ont.

The tournament will mark the fourth Scotties appearance for Team Brown, but only the third for Fisher, who was on curling hiatus when the rink claimed its only other women’s B.C. title in 2020.

“Being there when Sam got to win her first was really special and we had a large group of friends and family there, so to do it in front of them was also very cool,” Pincott said.

“It definitely feels like a bit of a weight lifted in a way, a sense of accomplishment after having the disappointment the last couple years and really continuing to work at it even after coming up short a couple of times.”

Tormenting heartbreak was endured in 2023, when Team Grandy edged Brown 10-9 in an extra end in the provincial final to advance to nationals, which were held that year in Kamloops.

Grandy prevailed 11-3 over Brown in the 2024 provincial final, another tough pill for the Kamloopsians whose appearances at the 2021 and 2024 national championships were not earned on the back of B.C. titles.

“Curling sometimes feels tough,” Pincott said of the back-to-back soul crushers. “As much as you love it, sometimes it doesn’t love you back.”

Skip Clancy Grandy left her team prior to the 2024-2025 season, but it remains among the best in B.C. under Kayla MacMillan, the former third who took over skip duties and throws fourth for the Victoria-based quartet.

The teams met for a third consecutive year in the provincial final last weekend and Brown felt equipped to sweep away invasive doubts, thanks in part to sports psychologist Tracey Bilsky.

Brown said she adopted trigger words and actions, along with routines, to stave off negative thoughts, while Fisher leaned heavily on visualization techniques before and during the tournament.

“We were anticipating potentially playing them in a pressure situation,” Pincott said. “It always feels good when you beat a good team and that’s a phenomenal team. It’s good to have two teams like that in the province. We push each other a little bit to potentially get better.”

Second Sarah Koltun — who is set to become a 10-time national Scotties participant — hopped into the Brown lineup in time for the 2024-2025 campaign after a lengthy tenure with Team Galusha of the Northwest Territories.

Outsider status on a team that is essentially a family brings chemistry concerns, but the addition has proved astute.

“It is without a doubt a little bit easier to come out of a territory,” Koltun said. “There is less competition up there, so it’s also a little bit validating to also get a provincial title under my belt.

“I like to think one of my strongest aspects as an athlete is I’m a great teammate and I really tried to find out where I could support these girls and fill some missing gaps and try to get them to the next step because we all wanted to get there.”

The skip Brown revealed this week she is an expectant mother and will be about six months pregnant during the national Scotties.

“I have every intent to play every game I can and I felt really good at provincials,” Brown said. “There were some things moving around in different ways than before, but I feel really good and I’m really excited for the opportunity to play.”

Kristen Ryan, who skipped her Maple Ridge-based rink to a semifinal exit last weekend at provincials, has been added to the Brown roster as a fifth for the national Scotties.

“Rachel Homan plays lights out when she’s pregnant,” Pincott said. “Maybe there is something there because Corryn played awesome all week.”

Added Fisher: “Corryn was shooting lights out at provincials. I think we hope she keeps going with that and we’ll do what we can to support her.”

Team Brown reached the Championship Pool at the 2020 Scotties in Moose Jaw, Sask., but fell short of the playoffs and placed sixth, its best finish to date at nationals.

No B.C.women’s provincial championship took place in 2021 amid the pandemic. Brown was named to represent the province at nationals (based on its standing as reigning champion) and posted a 4-4 record in the Calgary bubble to fall short of the playoffs.

Brown recorded a 4-4 record at the Scotties last year in Calgary, where it qualified as a Wild Card team on the back of its position in CTRS standings.

World No. 1 Homan (Team Canada) is among challengers in Brown’s pool at the Scotties this year, along with Krista McCarville, whose Northern Ontario rink will have strong support in Thunder Bay.

“Now, we want to put on a show at the Scotties and see where that takes us,” Koltun said.