Kerri Einarson’s Team Canada rink tied a record with their fourth consecutive Scotties Tournament of Hearts title as they beat Manitoba’s Jennifer Jones 10-4 to win the 2023 edition held in Kamloops.

Einarson, third Val Sweeting, second Shannon Birchard, and lead Briane Harris become just the second team to achieve that feat, joining Colleen Jones’ foursome of Kim Kelly, Nancy Delahunt, and Mary-Anne Arsenault, who did so between 2001 and 2004.

“It feels just as good as winning our first. I’m just so proud of my teammates, they’ve worked extremely hard,” Einarson said, noting it was special to beat Jones in the final.

“She has beaten me numerous times. She is a great competitor and her team is great. They played really well.”

Jones was also chasing history in Kamloops as she was hoping to become the first person to win seven Canadian women’s curling championships, a record she currently shares with Colleen Jones and Jill Officer.

A veteran of 17 Scotties, she led a young team that featured sisters Mackenzie and Emily Zacharias, Karlee Burgess, and Lauren Lenentine, who are all under 25 and played in their first final Sunday.

“It was fun to be out here. It was a great experience for all of us. It didn’t go our way today but that is why you keep grinding and keep trying to get better,” Jones said, post-game.

“It is so fun to watch them and see them soak up the experience. I’m so proud of them. It is a privilege to share the ice with them because they look at curling the way I feel it should be looked at with pure joy and a gratefulness for the opportunity to play.”

We wanted Gold but are proud of our Scotties Silver and our great 10-2 run this week.

Congrats to Team Canada/Team Einarson on the win. Go get’em in Sweden.

Thx to Curling Canada, the ice crew, Kamloops, BC, and the volunteers for staging a 1st class Scotties event.

1/3 pic.twitter.com/z6Zn0ToGpm

— Team Jennifer Jones (@TeamJJonesCurl) February 27, 2023

Einarson stole two points in the fifth end for a 4-2 lead at the break after a back and forth opening four ends at Sandman Centre that saw the two teams trade single points.

“That was a big steal there. It kind of flipped the momentum a little bit there,” Einarson said of the fifth end.

Added Jones, “It was a draw against two and we liked the weight but the speed came off. If I could throw one again, that would be it.”

Both teams continued to trade single points in the sixth, seventh, and eight ends before Einarson made an open hit to score five in the ninth after Jones missed her attempted raise, leading to handshakes.

CHAMPIONS FOR THE FOURTH STRAIGHT TIME 🏆@EinarsonTeam wins the 2023 Scotties Tournament of Hearts!#STOH2023 pic.twitter.com/TSANfR8INr

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) February 27, 2023

“I just took a deep breath and I knew that I played a hit in that spot before so I was just thinking in my head, ‘throw it clean, Kerri, and give it to your sweepers,'” Einarson said, when asked about her thought process going into the winning shot.

“I wasn’t sure if we had to play all ten ends, so when they shook I was pretty surprised. Our last game we had to play all ten ends.”

Team Einarson beat Northern Ontario’s Krista McCarville 7-5 in the afternoon semi-final to set up the all Manitoba final, and a rematch of the 1 vs 2 page playoff game, which Jones won 8-5.

Einarson was also awarded the Sandra Schmirler Award as the most valuable player in the playoffs for the fourth-consecutive year, before presenting it to Harris, who competed in Kamloops five months pregnant.

Someone please pass the Scotties tissues 🥺

An incredibly touching moment when @KEinarson gives her MVP award to @brianemeilleur ❤️ #classy #STOH2023 pic.twitter.com/HiBaHCQewS

— Curling Canada (@CurlingCanada) February 27, 2023

With the win in Kamloops, Team Einarson have a chance at a record fifth consecutive title at next year’s Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Calgary. They will also represent Canada at the Women’s World Championship in Sandviken, Sweden from March 18 to 26, hoping to better the bronze medal won in Prince George last year.

Curling Canada says there were 3,439 people inside Sandman Centre for the final draw of the Scotties – the largest of the tournament – making it a total attendance of 51,255 over 10 days.

It was the first Scotties since 2020 to have fans in the stands, as the past two editions were played behind closed doors due to COVID-19.

“Oh I love it, I love Kamloops. It has been amazing here,” Einarson said of the host city. “We fly out super early tomorrow morning so we might not get any sleep tonight.”

Jones will also be eyeing a record breaking seventh Scotties title next year, though she was coy when asked about it.

“We’ll see,” said a smiling Jones.

Thank you Kamloops for hosting a successful Scotties Tournament of Hearts! 👋 #STOH2023 pic.twitter.com/sv4Wn4821i

— Curling Canada (@CurlingCanada) February 27, 2023

– With files from Curling Canada and The Canadian Press