The first draw at the annual Solo Liquor Stores Mixed Bonspiel is 7 p.m. Thursday at the St. Albert Curling Club.
The finals of the 24-rink competition is 2:30 p.m. Sunday.
This year’s theme is High School Graduation 2016 and Alumni.
Last year, Greg Pasichnuk of Manning blanked the Forbes rink, skipped by Emile Nickel of the Avonair, 8-0 in the A final.
Pasichnuk, third Karen Stephen, second Evan Asmussen and lead Kristina Hadden banked $745 while going 5-0 of the 28-rink spiel.
The Jiffy Lube Alberta Scotties starts today for the defending champion Val Sweeting rink, with Paul Kane High School teacher Lori Olson-Johns at third.
The winner of the 12-rink provincials at the North Hill Curling Club in Calgary advances to the Scotties Tournament of Hearts Feb. 20 to 28 in Grande Prairie.
Last year at the Tournament of Hearts, Olson-Johns was honoured as the second team all-star third based on shooting percentages in the round robin. Olson-Johns was graded at 82 per cent in her third Tournament of Hearts and the first with Sweeting, Dana Ferguson and Rachel Brown.
The 2015 Tournament of Hearts finalists are third on the World Curling Tour women’s money list at $65,428.
Next year the St. Albert Curling Club is hosting the Alberta Scotties for the first time since 1984 when Connie Bennet of Calgary was crowned the champion.
The Edmonton Black Gold Rush plays the Montreal Mission twice Saturday in the National Ringette League.
Game times are 9:45 a.m. at Go Auto Arena and 5:45 p.m. at Riviere Qui Barre Arena.
The Rush, a first-year NRL team with a strong St. Albert connection, is last in the four-team western conference at 5-7-2 and the Mission is second in the 11-team eastern conference at 16-1-2.
Four of the NRL’s top five scorers are Mission players. Julie Blanchette is the points leader with 96 in 19 games and Catherine Cartier is second in goals with 41 in 17 games.
Danielle Pronovost of Stony Plain leads the Rush in scoring with 15 goals and 27 points in 14 games and Lauren Henderson of St. Albert is second in points with 21 in 14 games.
The Mission and Edmonton WAM!, the first-place team in the west at 12-2-2, have games scheduled Sunday at 9:15 a.m. at Stu Barnes Arena in Spruce Grove and 2 p.m. in Leduc.
