John Morris often counts on Vernon’s Jim Cotter for clutch shots in major curling competition.
Cotter delivered once again Monday night as the Vernon-based rink ambushed Jamie Murphy of Halifax 9-3 in Draw 2 of the 2017 Home Hardware Road to the Roar Pre-Trials in Summerside, PEI.
Morris, a Calgary firefighter, scored five in the fifth end thanks to a delicate hack-weight tap from last-rock thrower Cotter. Tyrell Griffith of Kelowna throws lead rocks for the Morris foursome with Catlin Schneider of Saskatchewan playing second. Regular lead Rick Sawatsky of Kelowna is on injured reserve.
Morris takes on Mark Bice of Sarnia, Ont. in the fifth draw this afternoon. Bice lost 9-2 to Glenn Howard of Etobicoke, Ont. in the opening draw.
Regardless of what unfolds over the next six weeks, Howard is headed to Pyeongchang, South Korea, for the 2018 Winter Olympics; he’s also coaching Eve Muirhead’s women’s team that will curl for Great Britain at the Five Ring Circus.
There are 14 men’s rinks in the event with the top-two advancing to the Canadian Curling Trials, Dec. 2-10 in Ottawa.