CREDIT: FANSHAWE ATHLETICS
Fanshawe’s men’s and mixed curling teams swept their way to gold at the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association championships, hosted by Fanshawe in St. Thomas. The women’s team claimed a bronze medal.

The Fanshawe men's and mixed curling teams both took home gold at the OCAA provincial championships held from February 13 to 17 in St. Thomas. The women also put on a strong performance, capturing bronze.

The teams' outstanding performances didn't go unnoticed. The OCAA awarded mixed skip Peter Mulders and men's skip DJ Ronaldson co-athletes of the week. Mulders also received accolades at the tournament as he was named First Team All-Star.

Skip DJ Ronaldson said the men's team had a rough start. “Early on, the ice was acting funny ... it wasn't very predictable, so we were getting a lot of bad breaks here or there and I just didn't feel comfortable throwing. I was missing a lot early on, and by the fourth game, I finally settled my nerves and I started making shots. That built my confidence, and when I started to make more key shots, the other guys started to follow suit.”

The team gathered momentum and went on to win their next four games. They struggled with their final round-robin game, losing 8-5 to St. Clair.

Their 5-3 record after the round robin left them tied with three other teams: Fleming, St. Clair and Humber.

They edged St. Clair 5-4 in their first tiebreaker held at 10 p.m. on February 16. They went on to defeat Fleming in their second tiebreaker on February 17 and headed into the semi-final.

It was a close match against Sault College as Fanshawe finished only one point ahead with a 6-5 win. Ronaldson remembered a key moment in that game, “In the fifth end I had to draw to the 4-foot against a couple to get my two points, which gave us a lead over the Soo … it gave us the control back after that point.”

The final match-up was an easy one for Fanshawe. Although Confederation tied for first place in the round robin with a 6-2 record, Fanshawe dominated the gold medal game with a 7-3 win.

“We played a really, really good final,” said Ronaldson. “Always the goal is to score two when you have last rock advantage, and when they have last rock advantage you always want to force them to take one point, and that's exactly what we did. We were able to score three points in the third end, so that gave us a big, big boost, and we just kept it clean.”

It was the second time Fanshawe has won the men's title over the past three seasons, and it was an especially meaningful win for Ronaldson. “I've been in that final now three years in a row and at different positions, actually. The first year I was playing second, and then last year I was playing third, and we actually lost the final. This year, being skip is a huge accomplishment for me just 'cause I proved that I could do it as a skip not only as a second and third.”

Capturing gold was also meaningful for Fanshawe's mixed team skip, Peter Mulders. “St. Thomas curling club is my home club and for the championships to be held in front of my home-town crowd, friends, family, the community and people I know from the club, to me it was very important because it was my home town and where I play every day,” he said.

The mixed team had an outstanding performance as they went 7-0 in the tournament.

It was a great moment for Mulders to share with head coach Barry Westman, who he's known since his time in Little Rocks, a local program that teaches young children the sport.

“Shirley and Barry were my original coaches from when I was a young. I've played with them, against them, I've played their children. They've watched me grow over the years, and to finally be with them where they are coaching me. I got to take knowledge from them and apply it to the competition.”

It was the mixed curling team's first championship win in 26 years, though unfortunately for the mixed teams there is no national championship as most schools can't field a men's, women's and mixed team.

Fanshawe's men's and women's teams, however, will head to the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association National Championships in Edmonton on March 21.