A local duo sister curling team is representing the Lacombe Curling Club at the U18 Curling Championships next month (Feb. 4 to Feb.10) in Ottawa.

The DeSchiffart sisters of Lacombe, and the Yarmuch sisters of Sherwood Park secured their place for the national championship after going undefeated 8 to 0 at the Curling Alberta U18 Provincials in Sylvan Lake.  

“We played strong all week. We scored 73 points and only allowed our opponents to score 13,” Morgan DeSchiffart said.  

When DeSchiffart found out the team was going to nationals she was excited to have the opportunity to represent the province on the national stage. 

“Not many young athletes get this opportunity, and we are super excited to make the most of it,” she said. 

Going forward, the team now is preparing for nationals with rest and recovery, and then hitting the ice to fine-tune their skills. 

“We have put in a lot of hard work throughout the season, winning five Alberta Junior Curling Tour Events and we plan to trust our training,” DeSchiffart said. 

Despite the team's success, they had to learn early in the season how to work well together. 

“It’s challenging having to dive right into a season with a new team, but I feel like we were all ready for the challenge and had the same goal of winning provincials,” DeSchiffart said. “We worked hard and achieved that goal.” 

Although the team did have to overcome challenges this season, they have many highlights to look back on, such as winning the Red Deer U18 Bonspiel, kicking off their winning streak. 

Another season highlight for DeSchiffart was winning the Ray Kingsmith Bonspiel in Airdrie.  

“It’s an amazing event that helps support athletes in post-secondary due to some amazing donations,” DeSchiffart said. “Winning that took some stress off of the student-athlete life.” 

Without the support of the community, and their families, getting to this point in the season wouldn't have been possible. 

“We are just so appreciative of the support of the community and our families,” DeSchiffart said. “Playing the sport that we love at a high level would not be possible without the people behind the scenes.” 

Team Deschiffart consists of skip Emma DeSchiffart, third Emma Yarmuch, second Morgan DeSchiffart, lead Sarah Yarmuch, coach Mark DeSchiffart, and alternate Rhiley DeSchiffart. 

Team Whitbread of Lacombe will also be joining Team Deschiffart at nationals. 

Follow the team's progress here.  

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