Homegrown Blixhavn thrilled to lend a hand

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This article was published 12/01/2018 (3077 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

KILLARNEY — There is no hometown team for the fans at this week’s Manitoba Scotties Tournament of Hearts to cheer for but one of their own stepped onto the ice at the Shamrock Centre for Draw 6 on Thursday afternoon.

Lisa Blixhavn, who is serving as the fifth on Jennifer Clark-Rouire’s squad from the Miami club, last appeared at women’s provincials three years ago when she filled in for Kristy McDonald after second Leslie Wilson-Westcott sustained an injury in their opening game in Winkler.

McDonald and company reached the 2-vs.-2 Page playoff game, only to watch as Barb Spencer stole an 8-7 win with a single in an extra end.

Blixhavn was also the emergency fifth for Chelsea Carey’s Morden-based team at the 2012 edition in Portage la Prairie in which Carey reached the final before losing 6-5 to Winnipeg’s Jennifer Jones.

Seven years ago in Altona was the last time Blixhavn was on a four-person team, that year skipping a foursome from the Brandon club to a 3-4 record in her ninth straight Scotties.

She knew that once Clark-Rouire, third Lisa Deriviere, second Jolene Callum and lead Sydney Arna earned a spot to Killarney at a Scotties berth bonspiel in Beausejour in November, she’d be back playing — in place of Arnal, who had a previous commitment — at least a few games in Killarney.

Blixhavn knew it was coming and she described playing another Scotties in her hometown — she went 5-2 the last time Killarney hosted it in 2010, just missing the playoffs — as “fabulous.” She helped her teammates defeat a Wheat City foursome skipped by Tiffany McLean 8-3.

“It was fabulous, it was everything I’d hoped it would be,” Blixhavn said. “I just didn’t want to fall on my face in front of my fans and my family, and it’s a new position for me, I haven’t played lead at a provincial level.”

The 40-year-old filled in for Tanya Enns at lead during the 2011 mixed national curling championship in Morris when Manitoba skip Terry McNamee of Brandon reached the final before losing 4-3 to Robert Campbell from Prince Edward Island.

However, Blixhavn wanted to be ready for this week as a lead.

“I had an idea of what I was going to have to do and I wanted to make sure that I was prepared coming in to make sure the girls had everything they needed,” she said.

Blixhavn was also on the ice in the evening as Clark-Rouire fell 8-4 to Altona’s Mackenzie Zacharias to drop to 2-2.

She will be playing this morning against 2016 champion Kerri Einarson of East St. Paul and after that the team will take it one game at a time as to who will be at lead.

And the hometown favourite will have two very interested spectators in the crowd; that’s in addition to a Grade 3 class at Killarney School where Blixhavn is a student services teacher.

Her sons Evan, 7, and Charlie, 4, will be there to cheer on their mom. Maybe.

“They are very excited to have rink burgers and cinnamon buns, not so much about the curling right now,” Blixhavn said with a laugh.

Clark-Rouire said there was no uncertainty about the level of play Blixhavn would bring to the team at the Scotties and feels fortunate to have landed her to replace Arnal for a handful of games.

“She is valuable in so many different ways on the ice and off the ice. We were so lucky that she was A, available to play and B, wanting to play,” Clark-Rouire said. “She’s got such a wonderful personality … our nickname for her is the chameleon because she can play so many different roles and do so many different things for all of us.”

“We completely trust her and we know how talented she is as a player,” she continued. “We know that she is completely in the game at all times, not a worry whatsoever. We knew she’d come out and perform and she did.”

Blixhavn doesn’t wanted to disrupt the groove Clark-Rouire’s team has, and simply wants to help contribute in any way she can.

“I’m very fortunate that a team of that calibre gave me a call when I haven’t been playing competitively in the last eight years,” Blixhavn said. “I was just hanging out and riding coattails. It’s great to be out there and if I can support them and help them along the way … maybe we can build some momentum moving into the weekend.”

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