Switzerland's Silvana Tirizoni in action during the round robin session 1 match between Switzerland and Japan of the Women's World Curling Championship at Goransson Arena in Sandviken, Sweden, Saturday, March 18, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/TT News Agency via AP-Jonas Ekstromer
SANDVIKEN, Sweden – It was mixed results for Canada on Tuesday at the world women’s curling championship with a narrow loss to undefeated Switzerland and a comfortable win over winless New Zealand.
Kerri Einarson’s squad from Gimli, Man., opened its day with a 7-6 defeat at the hands of three-time defending champion Silvana Tirinzoni.
The Swiss skip had her squad ahead 6-4 following a three-point fifth end and a steal of one in the sixth.
After a blank seventh, Einarson scored one in the eighth and tied the match 6-6 with a steal in the ninth.
With the hammer in the final end, Tirinzoni scored one to cement the win and improve to 6-0.
Einarson and teammates Val Sweeting, Shannon Birchard and Briane Harris, rebounded with a 10-4 win over New Zealand’s Bridget Becker.
The Canadians broke open a 2-2 tie with three points in the third end.
Leading 6-4 after six ends, Canada scored two in the seventh, and the teams shook hands after a Canadian steal of two in the eighth.
The results left Canada at 5-2 through 11 draws heading into games Wednesday against Germany and South Korea.
New Zealand fell to 0-7.
The top six teams in the 13-team field qualify for the playoff round. The final is scheduled for Sunday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 21, 2023.