OUT OF THE HACK: Murata, Oliver true team players for Menard
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 21/01/2016 (3733 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
BEAUSEJOUR — My pinch-hitting record during my minor league baseball days was abysmal. Just ask my dad, who coached me for a couple of years.
There’s a reason I occasionally came off the bench as a defensive replacement behind the plate or in the outfield and it had nothing to do with my bat. He knew it, as did I, that hitting wasn’t my forte.
I did spray the occasional base hit behind the outstretched gloves of the opposing infielders, but those were few and far between.
If only curling provided athletes with the ability to pinch hit for one another.
Sam Murata, who plays second for Lisa Menard’s Dauphin team, might be the closest to pinch-hitting. Well, her and Brandi Oliver.
Murata was on the ice for Menard’s first two draws at the provincial women’s curling championship in Beausejour on Wednesday.
The 31-year-old Murata, who grew up in Carman but lives in Winnipeg, will again be throwing second stones today, but will be on the sidelines on Friday when Oliver arrives to play.
“It’s harder watching, but it’s a team effort and we’ve all put in the time and effort,” Murata said after her team’s Draw 2 victory on Wednesday. “Everybody should have the right to play.”
And there are no hard feelings.
“Brandi is a phenomenal curler. She’s just as good with this team as I am and then I think the five-man rotation has worked awesome for us all year and it hasn’t been awkward once,” she said. “I’m totally OK with it.
“Plus, it’s a long week, so fresh legs and fresh arms might be good.”
Murata and Oliver both joined the Menard team relatively late in the off-season, but they still managed to reach the Scotties.
“Lesle (Cafferty) and Laurie (Macdonell) and Lisa actually had a different third lined up, but about three weeks before the season started she couldn’t play any more,” Murata said. “I knew Lesle from years past and she asked if I could be available, but I wasn’t available every weekend. So we’ve actually had a five-man team all year.”
“Lesle also knew Brandi and they brought us both in because we could sort of switch in and out.”
Although the Menard foursome is a new team, they’ve each curled at provincials multiple times. For Murata, she still remembers her first appearance at the Scotties seven years ago in Morris as a “deer in the headlights” experience. She’s also curled as a lead, second and third during her previous Scotties appearances.
That said, this run has been different because it’s the first time she’s been part of a team that qualified out of the Parkland region. Still, she’s thrilled every time she gets to compete, especially on arena ice.
“I think it’s a real benefit to be able to play on this ice over and over and over again because it’s just so different from club ice, so having that knowledge right off the bat, I think, is very helpful. And just the environment, it’s just different — although I get just as excited every single time.”
SUPER LEAGUE: The Westman Super League playoffs will take place Sunday at the Brandon Curling Club. Kelly McMechan of Deloraine will play Carberry’s Kelly Marnoch in one quarter-final, and Brandonites Steve Irwin will play Cale Dunbar in the other at 9 a.m.
Terry McNamee will play the Irwin-Dunbar winner in one semifinal and Jerry Chudley of Neepawa will face the McMechan-Marnoch winner in the other semifinal at 1 p.m.
The winners will meet for the title at 5 p.m.
EXTRA ENDS: The Binscarth Curling Club’s ladies bonspiel take place Jan. 29-31. The cost is $100 per team and the entry deadline is Jan. 27; contact Lynne Dreilich at 204-532-2344 or Lois Tibbatts at 204-532-2186. The town’s senior mixed bonspiel is set for Feb. 1-5 and costs $100 to register. Contact Cliff at 204-532-2514 or Phil at 204-821-5422. Binscarth’s mixed bonspiel follows from Feb. 12 to 14. The cost is $100 per squad. Contact Ken at 204-532-2118 or Grant at 204-532-2007 … Killarney’s ladies’ bonspiel will take place from Feb. 12-14. Contact Marissa Cuvelier at 204-776-2070 … The Brandon Curling Club is holding a mixed doubles “mini league” on Wednesdays in February. The cost is $25 per person. Call Tanya Enns at 204-726-3560.