1979 Macdonald Lassies Championship

Last updated

1979 Macdonald Lassies Championship
Host city Mount Royal, Quebec
Arena Town of Mount Royal Arena
DatesFebruary 25–March 2
WinnerFlag of British Columbia.svg British Columbia
Curling club North Shore WC, North Vancouver
Skip Lindsay Sparkes
Third Dawn Knowles
Second Robin Wilson
Lead Lorraine Bowles
FinalistFlag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba (Chris Pidzarko)
«  1978
1980  »

The 1979 Macdonald Lassies Championship , the Canadian women's curling championship was held February 25 to March 2, 1979, at the Town of Mount Royal Arena in Mount Royal, Quebec. This was the last women's championship to be sponsored by Macdonald Tobacco and also the first event to feature a playoff.

Contents

Team British Columbia, who was skipped by Lindsay Sparkes won the event by defeating Manitoba 7–4 in the final after also finishing first in the round robin with an 8–2 record. This was BC's fourth championship overall and the second skipped by Sparkes, who also won in 1976. The Sparkes rink also went on to represent Canada in the inaugural Women's World Curling Championship, the 1979 Royal Bank of Scotland World Women's Curling Championship which they lost in the semifinal to eventual champion Switzerland.

Event Summary

Through the first eight draws of the tournament, British Columbia was sitting at the top of the standings with an unbeaten record of 7–0, Nova Scotia and Quebec were tied for second with 6–2 records, while Newfoundland sat at 5–2, Alberta right behind at 5–3, and Manitoba (who started 1–3) and Saskatchewan both sitting at 4–3.

Draw 9 saw the playoff situation become clearer. Manitoba handed BC their first loss of the tournament 5–4, Quebec defeated Newfoundland 5–4, both Saskatchewan and Nova Scotia cruised to victory in their matchups while Alberta drew a bye. With two draws remaining, there was a good chance that at least one tiebreaker would be required but also a chance that tiebreakers wouldn't be needed to determine playoff spots.

Unknown at the time, the penultimate draw (Draw 10) early on Friday would be the beginning of a long day for several teams. Newfoundland would defeat BC 9–8 while Saskatchewan and Manitoba were both victorious as well. Alberta defeated Nova Scotia 9–1 in only six ends and Quebec drew a bye. Alberta's victory guaranteed that a tiebreaker playoff would be required as Nova Scotia drew a bye in the final draw. Heading into the final draw of round robin play, two very important matchups were on the horizon with the BC/Quebec matchup winner getting a direct bye into the final and the loser joining Nova Scotia and the Alberta/Saskatchewan winner in the tiebreakers with the loser of Alberta/Saskatchewan being eliminated. Newfoundland and Manitoba would both need to win in order to be in the tiebreaker playoff as well.

The final draw would see BC would clinch a spot in the final with a 6–3 win over Quebec while Saskatchewan eliminated Alberta from contention with a back-and-forth 11–9 victory. With both Newfoundland and Manitoba cruising to victories, this meant that Manitoba, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Quebec, and Saskatchewan were all tied for second place with 7–3 records requiring three tiebreaker games to determine two semifinal berths.

The tiebreaker matchups would feature Newfoundland vs. Quebec and Nova Scotia vs. Manitoba. The Nova Scotia/Manitoba winner received one semifinal spot while Saskatchewan would play the Newfoundland/Quebec winner for the other semifinal berth.

In the first round of tiebreakers Thursday evening, Newfoundland jumped out to a 3-0 lead after two ends in their game against Quebec and never looked back for a commanding 9–3 victory in nine ends while Manitoba scored three in the fifth to take command in an 8–5 victory over Nova Scotia to advance to the semifinal. The second round of tiebreakers late Thursday night saw a high-scoring affair between Saskatchewan and Newfoundland. Despite playing their fourth game of the day and trailing 10-8 after eight ends, Newfoundland scored three in the ninth to take the lead and stole one in the tenth for good measure and advance to the semifinal with a 12–10 victory.

The four games the previous day would end up taking a toll on Newfoundland in their semifinal matchup with Manitoba as Manitoba controlled the game early and dominated the tired Newfoundland rink 10–2 and meet BC in the final for their eighth win in a row after starting 1–3. The final would see BC dominate Manitoba for a 7–4 victory in nine ends as BC led 5–1 after the halfway point and 7–2 after seven ends. The victory gave Sparkes her second title and a spot in the inaugural women's world curling championships.

Teams

The teams are listed as follows: [1]

AlbertaBritish ColumbiaManitobaNew Brunswick
Lethbridge CC, Lethbridge

Skip: Myrna McQuarrie
Third: Barb Davis
Second: Gayle Pilling
Lead: Diane Smummach

North Shore WC, North Vancouver

Skip: Lindsay Sparkes
Third: Dawn Knowles
Second: Robin Wilson
Lead: Lorraine Bowles

Stony Mountain CC, Stony Mountain

Skip: Chris Pidzarko
Third: Rose Tanasichuk
Second: Iris Armstrong
Lead: Patti Vande

Bathurst CC, Bathurst

Skip: Anne Orser
Third: Pat Maher
Second: Elvera Kennah
Lead: Shirley Gammon

NewfoundlandNova ScotiaOntarioPrince Edward Island
Carol CC, Labrador City

Skip: Sue Anne Bartlett
Third: Patricia Dwyer
Second: Joyce Narduzzi
Lead: Mavis Pike

CFB Halifax CC, Halifax

Skip: Penny LaRocque
Third: Brenda Shutt
Second: Colleen Jones
Lead: Charmaine Murray
Alternate: Barbara Jones [2]

Boulevard CC, Toronto

Skip: Pat Reid
Third: Sandi Norton
Second: Carmel O'Malley
Lead: Lynda Stoyka

Community CC, Crapaud

Skip: Elayne Thompson
Third: Ruth Cutcliffe
Second: Louise Thompson
Lead: Julie Robinson

QuebecSaskatchewanNorthwest Territories/Yukon
Baie-D'Urfé CC, Baie-D'Urfé

Skip: Lorraine Bowes
Third: Faye Gardiner
Second: Joan Brown
Lead: Barbara Donnelly

Granite CC, Saskatoon

Skip: Barb Despins
Third: Lynne Fuller
Second: Elaine Farkas
Lead: Diane Lynn

Hay River CC, Hay River

Skip: Margaret Whitlock
Third: Marion Clifford
Second: Delaine Kardash
Lead: Amber Schroter

Map of teams

Round Robin standings

Final Round Robin standings [1]

Key
Teams to Playoffs
Teams to Tiebreakers
TeamSkipWLPFPA
Flag of British Columbia.svg British Columbia Lindsay Sparkes 828043
Flag of Nova Scotia.svg Nova Scotia Penny LaRocque 737158
Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Saskatchewan Barb Despins 737763
Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba Chris Pidzarko 737353
Flag of Quebec.svg Quebec Lorraine Bowes 737758
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland Sue Anne Bartlett 738156
Flag of Alberta.svg Alberta Myrna McQuarrie 647963
Flag of Ontario.svg Ontario Pat Reid 374965
Flag of New Brunswick.svg New Brunswick Anne Orser 194589
Flag of the Northwest Territories.svg Northwest Territories / Yukon Margaret Whitlock 194486
Flag of Prince Edward Island.svg Prince Edward Island Elayne Thompson 194890

Round Robin results

Source: [1]

Draw 1

Sunday, February 25

Team12345678910Final
Flag of the Northwest Territories.svg Northwest Territories/Yukon (Whitlock)03001110107
Flag of Quebec.svg Quebec (Bowes)20120002018
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Ontario.svg Ontario (Reid)201020000X5
Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba (Pidzarko)040201101X9
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Alberta.svg Alberta (McQuarrie)401101010X8
Flag of New Brunswick.svg New Brunswick (Orser)000010102X4
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Saskatchewan (Despins)010000200X3
Flag of Nova Scotia.svg Nova Scotia (LaRocque)301111011X9
Team12345678910Final
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland (Bartlett)10202102019
Flag of Prince Edward Island.svg Prince Edward Island (Thompson)03010010308

Draw 2

Sunday, February 25

Team12345678910Final
Flag of New Brunswick.svg New Brunswick (Orser)010100201X5
Flag of Nova Scotia.svg Nova Scotia (LaRocque)303011020X10
Team12345678910Final
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland (Bartlett)13001113XX10
Flag of Ontario.svg Ontario (Reid)00200000XX2
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Quebec.svg Quebec (Bowes)3410202XXX12
Flag of Prince Edward Island.svg Prince Edward Island (Thompson)0001020XXX3
Team12345678910Final
Flag of the Northwest Territories.svg Northwest Territories/Yukon (Whitlock)0100000XXX1
Flag of British Columbia.svg British Columbia (Sparkes)2021231XXX11
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Alberta.svg Alberta (McQuarrie)20003011029
Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba (Pidzarko)00040200208

Draw 3

Monday, February 26

Team12345678910Final
Flag of Prince Edward Island.svg Prince Edward Island (Thompson)00000010XX1
Flag of British Columbia.svg British Columbia (Sparkes)01211102XX8
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Alberta.svg Alberta (McQuarrie)002000210X5
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland (Bartlett)210121000X7
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Nova Scotia.svg Nova Scotia (LaRocque)010301110X7
Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba (Pidzarko)002010001X4
Team12345678910Final
Flag of New Brunswick.svg New Brunswick (Orser)000101XXXX2
Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Saskatchewan (Despins)124040XXXX11
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Quebec.svg Quebec (Bowes)01004301XX9
Flag of Ontario.svg Ontario (Reid)00110010XX3

Draw 4

Monday, February 26

Team12345678910Final
Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba (Pidzarko)20001011005
Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Saskatchewan (Despins)02110100117
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Quebec.svg Quebec (Bowes)00100202207
Flag of Alberta.svg Alberta (McQuarrie)30001010016
Team12345678910Final
Flag of British Columbia.svg British Columbia (Sparkes)00100032006
Flag of Ontario.svg Ontario (Reid)20001100015
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Prince Edward Island.svg Prince Edward Island (Thompson)00100002104
Flag of the Northwest Territories.svg Northwest Territories/Yukon (Whitlock)02021110018
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Nova Scotia.svg Nova Scotia (LaRocque)000002101X4
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland (Bartlett)011140010X8

Draw 5

Tuesday, February 27

Team12345678910Final
Flag of Ontario.svg Ontario (Reid)000221302X10
Flag of the Northwest Territories.svg Northwest Territories/Yukon (Whitlock)101000010X3
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Nova Scotia.svg Nova Scotia (LaRocque)101210300X8
Flag of Quebec.svg Quebec (Bowes)020001012X6
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Saskatchewan (Despins)10310201019
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland (Bartlett)02002020107
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba (Pidzarko)002020202X8
Flag of New Brunswick.svg New Brunswick (Orser)100102010X5
Team12345678910Final
Flag of British Columbia.svg British Columbia (Sparkes)000410302111
Flag of Alberta.svg Alberta (McQuarrie)02100303009

Draw 6

Tuesday, February 27

Team12345678910Final
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland (Bartlett)40030211XX11
Flag of New Brunswick.svg New Brunswick (Orser)03001000XX4
Team12345678910Final
Flag of British Columbia.svg British Columbia (Sparkes)102012102X9
Flag of Nova Scotia.svg Nova Scotia (LaRocque)010100020X4
Team12345678910Final
Flag of the Northwest Territories.svg Northwest Territories/Yukon (Whitlock)102101000X5
Flag of Alberta.svg Alberta (McQuarrie)030010232X11
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Ontario.svg Ontario (Reid)020211102X9
Flag of Prince Edward Island.svg Prince Edward Island (Thompson)001000030X4
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Saskatchewan (Despins)02010110XX5
Flag of Quebec.svg Quebec (Bowes)20504002XX13

Draw 7

Tuesday, February 27

Team12345678910Final
Flag of Alberta.svg Alberta (McQuarrie)20003100039
Flag of Prince Edward Island.svg Prince Edward Island (Thompson)01120002006
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Saskatchewan (Despins)010010101X4
Flag of British Columbia.svg British Columbia (Sparkes)000302010X6
Team12345678910Final
Flag of New Brunswick.svg New Brunswick (Orser)02001022007
Flag of Quebec.svg Quebec (Bowes)101201004110
Team12345678910Final
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland (Bartlett)001003020X6
Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba (Pidzarko)050110101X9
Team12345678910Final
Flag of the Northwest Territories.svg Northwest Territories/Yukon (Whitlock)100002030X6
Flag of Nova Scotia.svg Nova Scotia (LaRocque)001310304X12

Draw 8

Wednesday, February 28

Team12345678910Final
Flag of Quebec.svg Quebec (Bowes)102000010X4
Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba (Pidzarko)010022103X9
Team12345678910Final
Flag of the Northwest Territories.svg Northwest Territories/Yukon (Whitlock)00200101XX4
Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Saskatchewan (Despins)12003030XX9
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Alberta.svg Alberta (McQuarrie)00020100014
Flag of Ontario.svg Ontario (Reid)10000010103
Team12345678910Final
Flag of New Brunswick.svg New Brunswick (Orser)00101000XX2
Flag of British Columbia.svg British Columbia (Sparkes)21030212XX11
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Prince Edward Island.svg Prince Edward Island (Thompson)00032000005
Flag of Nova Scotia.svg Nova Scotia (LaRocque)01000101227

Draw 9

Wednesday, February 28

Team12345678910Final
Flag of Nova Scotia.svg Nova Scotia (LaRocque)03103101XX9
Flag of Ontario.svg Ontario (Reid)00020010XX3
Team12345678910Final
Flag of New Brunswick.svg New Brunswick (Orser)010101102X6
Flag of the Northwest Territories.svg Northwest Territories/Yukon (Whitlock)101010010X4
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba (Pidzarko)00010210015
Flag of British Columbia.svg British Columbia (Sparkes)10002001004
Team1234567891011Final
Flag of Quebec.svg Quebec (Bowes)000100030015
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland (Bartlett)010010001104
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Prince Edward Island.svg Prince Edward Island (Thompson)001001110X4
Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Saskatchewan (Despins)200340002X11

Draw 10

Thursday, March 1

Team12345678910Final
Flag of British Columbia.svg British Columbia (Sparkes)01003201108
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland (Bartlett)30040010019
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Prince Edward Island.svg Prince Edward Island (Thompson)024010022X11
Flag of New Brunswick.svg New Brunswick (Orser)200102100X6
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Ontario.svg Ontario (Reid)200002000X4
Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Saskatchewan (Despins)001110121X7
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Nova Scotia.svg Nova Scotia (LaRocque)100000XXXX1
Flag of Alberta.svg Alberta (McQuarrie)021231XXXX9
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba (Pidzarko)01011002005
Flag of the Northwest Territories.svg Northwest Territories/Yukon (Whitlock)10100000114

Draw 11

Thursday, March 1

Team12345678910Final
Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Saskatchewan (Despins)100330210111
Flag of Alberta.svg Alberta (McQuarrie)02300300109
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba (Pidzarko)310601XXXX11
Flag of Prince Edward Island.svg Prince Edward Island (Thompson)001010XXXX2
Team12345678910Final
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland (Bartlett)3012013XXX10
Flag of the Northwest Territories.svg Northwest Territories/Yukon (Whitlock)0100100XXX2
Team12345678910Final
Flag of British Columbia.svg British Columbia (Sparkes)003101001X6
Flag of Quebec.svg Quebec (Bowes)010010010X3
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Ontario.svg Ontario (Reid)010110110X5
Flag of New Brunswick.svg New Brunswick (Orser)101001001X4

Tiebreakers

Five teams were tied for second, therefore there were three tiebreakers. The two remaining teams advanced to the semifinal. [1] [3]

 Winners to Semifinal
    
Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Saskatchewan 10
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland 12
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland 9
Flag of Quebec.svg Quebec 3
Flag of Nova Scotia.svg Nova Scotia 5
Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba 8

Round 1

Thursday, March 1, 6:30 pm

Team12345678910Final
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland (Bartlett)120101103X9
Flag of Quebec.svg Quebec (Bowes)001010010X3
Team12345678910Final
Flag of Nova Scotia.svg Nova Scotia (LaRocque)100102001X5
Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba (Pidzarko)021030200X8

Round 2

Thursday, March 1, 10:00 pm

Team12345678910Final
Flag of Saskatchewan.svg Saskatchewan (Despins)020203030010
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland (Bartlett)301020203112

Playoffs

Semifinal Final
1 Flag of British Columbia.svg British Columbia 7
2 Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba 10 2 Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba 4
3 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland 2

Semifinal

Friday, March 2, 9:00 am

Team12345678910Final
Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba (Pidzarko)10220212XX10
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Newfoundland (Bartlett)01001000XX2

Final

Friday, March 2, 2:00 pm

Team12345678910Final
Flag of British Columbia.svg British Columbia (Sparkes)020120200X7
Flag of Manitoba.svg Manitoba (Pidzarko)100001011X4

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "1979 Macdonald Lassies". Curling Canada Stats Archive. Curling Canada. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  2. "Rough start for Despins' lassies". Saskatoon Star-Phoenix. February 26, 1979. Retrieved 2025-11-25.
  3. Phillips, Randy (March 1, 1979). "Quebec lassies come back". The Montreal Gazette. p. 45. Retrieved 24 February 2023.