'We believe in ourselves': Team Black riding momentum to Scotties success

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — Christina Black’s eyes lit up as she thought about her first-ever Scotties Tournament of Hearts, 11 years ago, back when the Nova Scotia skipper was playing third for Mary-Anne Arsenault and first competed on the stage she’d dreamt of playing on since she was eight.

“I remember everything — it was awesome,” Black said with a big grin, shortly after her Team Nova Scotia earned its fourth win at this edition of the national championship. “My biggest memory is definitely the Wednesday, when we beat Jennifer Jones and then Rachel Homan in the same day — that was a crazy day,” Black added, laughing. “I’ll never forget that one.”

The 38-year-old, a two-time bronze medallist here, is hoping that she, third Jill Brothers and the front end of Jenn Baxter, Karlee Everist and Marlee Powers can create an even more unforgettable day at the Scotties in what is Black’s sixth appearance here, and eighth for Brothers.

“We believe in ourselves — we know we can win,” said Black, whose team is now 4-1 at the Paramount Fine Foods Centre, with three round-robin games to go before playoffs open on Friday. “We’re playing great, so it’s just like, keep it together, keep doing all the things we’re doing. That’s all we can do, and then good things will happen.”

Team Black sits in second place in Pool B, blemish-free aside from an extra-ends loss to Manitoba’s Beth Peterson, who has a perfect record. The top three from each pool move onto the playoffs, and next up for Team Black is New Brunswick Tuesday night, then PEI on Wednesday before they close out round-robin play against Team Alberta’s No. 2-seeded Kayla Skrlik.

In their Tuesday morning draw, Team Black earned a convincing 8-4 win in nine ends over Northern Ontario’s Krista Scharf, a two-time silver medallist here.

“The score was close for the most part, but I liked the fact that it kind of felt like it wasn’t close, it felt like we had the momentum,” Brothers said, when it was over.

“We’re feeling pretty confident,” added Black, whose team curled 88 per cent in their latest game. “I’m feeling good about the ice, what it’s doing, and what draw weight’s like. So that makes it good.”

Black made a boatload of good draws Tuesday morning, first in the second end against Scharf to score a deuce, then she buried another draw to sit shot rock in five to earn a steal of one, taking a 4-2 lead into the break. During that break, Team Black chatted and laughed and snacked on Sour Patch Kids. As coach Stuart MacLean pointed out: “They’re having fun.”

“Everything’s ticking,” Brothers added. “It’s great.”

This Team Black is coming off a busy and eventful November that saw them make the final of Canada’s Olympic Trials, where they lost in a best-of-three final to world No. 1 Team Rachel Homan, on home ice in Halifax.

Since then, Black and her teammates are getting recognized a lot more by people who watched them go on that run at home. “I love it — it’s fun,” the skipper said. "People notice us and they’re paying more attention. Regular people that may not be the biggest curling fans, but locals at home that are fans of us now, people being like, ‘Wow, you guys are doing so good.’”

“It hit a peak then,” MacLean added of the fame that came with their performance at Olympic Trials, where the team upset Canada’s second-ranked Kerri Einarson to crack the final. “The attention is still continuing, but it’s not new and distracting, I guess, is the best way I can put that. It’s great, but it’s not all of a sudden brand new and it’s not throwing anybody off.”

While they’re getting used to being recognized for their fine play on ice, recovering from Trials did take time. Team Black played an event a week later, but it wasn’t until after the Christmas break that Brothers said she felt truly recharged, both physically and mentally. “You’re still running into people and they’re like ‘That was so amazing!” the third said, of the weeks that followed Trials.

The holidays also meant a forced break for Team Black, since curling clubs were closed. Coach MacLean said that was a surefire way to get all five players to take a rest, a team whose love of curling he describes as: “Off the charts.”

“Hard work is the biggest thing,” MacLean added, of what makes Team Black special. “All five of them work hard, and they want to work really hard.” They also do so together, practising at least two days a week as a full unit, which is something many of the other top teams in the country can’t do, since they’re divided geographically.

“They’re very easy to coach because they’re so dedicated and hard-working,” MacLean added.

And while they came close at Olympic Trials, the dream for this team has always been to win the Scotties, which comes with a trip to world championships, set for March in Calgary this year.

At the 2025 edition of the national championship, Team Black finished a win away from the final. They lost by one point in the semifinal to four-time winners, Team Einarson, who are 5-1 here so far.

“Last year felt pretty great,” Brothers said. “And last year, this team coming together, it's more work than I've ever put in with a team, so I think that speaks to the fact that we can make these jumps.”

This Scotties field is as open as it’s been in years for a team to make a jump, since Team Homan, five-time winners, are preparing for the fast-approaching Olympics. Either Team Homan or Team Einarson have won the Scotties in each of the last six years.

“There’s some space, right? There’s some space on that podium,” Black said, with a laugh. “So, why not us?”