Switzerland’s Team Marco Hoesli pulled off a thrilling 8-6 victory over Canada’s Team Brad Gushue in an extra end at the KIOTI National on Friday night. This win keeps Hoesli’s team in contention for the playoffs.
In a nail-biting finish, Hoesli took two points in the extra end to edge Gushue. The Swiss team will now face Germany’s Team Marc Muskatewitz for the eighth and final men’s playoff spot early Saturday morning.
Muskatewitz also improved to a 2-2 record, remaining in contention after a 6-4 win over Switzerland’s Team Michael Brunner.
Meanwhile, Saskatoon’s Team Mike McEwen completed a perfect 4-0 run through round-robin play, securing the No. 1 seed for the quarterfinals with an 8-1 victory over Winnipeg’s Team Reid Carruthers.
McEwen was looking forward to facing his longtime pal Carruthers. Despite Carruthers’ lineup changes, McEwen’s team dominated the game, scoring three points in the second and fourth ends and stealing two in the fifth.
In other games, Switzerland’s Team Yannick Schwaller ended on a high note with a 5-3 decision against Scotland’s Team Ross Whyte.
The stage is set for an exciting playoff round. McEwen will meet the winner of the tiebreaker match in the quarterfinals, while Gushue plays Calgary’s Team Brad Jacobs. Scotland’s Team Bruce Mouat will face Team John Shuster of the United States.
Two women’s tiebreakers are also set: Halifax’s Team Christina Black vs. Team Eun-ji Gim of South Korea and Switzerland’s Team Silvana Tirinzoni vs. Team Seung-youn Ha of South Korea.
The tiebreaker round begins Saturday at 8:30 a.m. NT / 7 a.m. ET, followed by the women’s quarterfinals at noon NT / 10:30 a.m. ET. The men’s quarterfinals start at 4 p.m. NT / 2:30 p.m. ET, with the semifinals and finals set for Sunday.
