From left to right: Terry Devalter, Lyndon Sherwick, Drinnan Mack, Colby Sherwick, Ryker Miller

By Lisa Parent

U15 Medicine Hat curling team finds silver at provincial championship

Mar 8, 2024 | 4:49 PM

A young Medicine Hat curling team returned from Lacombe, Alta., with some accessories around their necks.

The team, made up of Lyndon Sherwick, Drinnan Mack, Colby Sherwick and Ryker Miller competed at U15 provincial championship last weekend, winning a silver medal.

Miller went 4-0 in the round robin and then squeaked by in the semi-final game.

In the final they played Lacombe’s Whitbread and lost 5-3.

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“[It was] disappointing at the time, but when you look back, second out of 20 teams is pretty good,” said third Colby Sherwick.

Skip Ryker Miller added: “It went pretty good, I’m proud. We won lots of games.”

“It was awesome, it was my first ever real, true experience with provincials,” said Drinnan Mack.

“[I] played really well and the team did too,” Mack added.

This was the last year the entirety of Team Miller could play U15 together. Next year the team will move up to U18, which will mean tougher competition.

“Well it is scary because we do a lot better in U15 than U18,” player Colby Sherwick said.

“You kind of can’t really expect to do that well, but you have to realize it’s a learning opportunity.”

With the Medicine Hat Curling Centre set to be fully operational by this fall, the team will have the advantage of home ice to practice on.

“Yeah, I definitely feel we have a better opportunity in U18 because traveling to Brooks twice a week really wasn’t the best thing for us, especially having no home ice,” Mack said.

With no home ice, Team Miller stood as Medicine Hat’s sole junior curling representation, apart from high school teams.

Team Miller’s coach, Terry Devalter, hopes next year junior curling starts to flourish once again in Medicine Hat.

“I’m hoping that their achievements are going to encourage others to come down and, if nothing else, at least try it, give it a go and see what happens,” Devalter said.

Team Miller’s last event of the season is the Marc Kennedy Junior Classic March 21 in Edmonton.

“We’re in U18 in that event, so I think if we could maybe get like two wins or so, I think that’d be pretty good,” Lyndon said.