Logan Zacharias going for back-to-back under-18 Manitoba boys' curling titles

Logan Zacharias is trying to accomplish something his decorated older sisters were never able to.

The 18-year-old is hoping to earn a return trip to the under-18 Canadian curling championships when he and his Altona-based team take aim at defending their U18 Manitoba title beginning Wednesday in Morden.

"Being able to go back to nationals, that's the goal as Team Manitoba-1. It would be amazing. I've been very much looking forward to having the opportunity to go and earning that spot," he said.

But Zacharias knows he and his team have to take things one step at a time.

Zacharias and Rylan Graham played third and lead, respectively, on last year's provincial-winning team, which was skipped by Rylan Campbell and included Nick Senff at second. They easily disposed of Nash Sugden, 11-1, in last year's final in Selkirk to earn a spot at nationals.

The Manitoba champions posted a 4-2 round-robin record to earn a playoff berth in Ottawa, but lost 10-1 to Ontario-1 in the opening playoff round and eventually finished ninth.

With Campbell and Senff aging out after last season, Zacharias took over as skip and Graham moved up to third. They joined forces with Carter Malmquist and Hudson Strand, curling out of the Heather club in Winnipeg this season.

The new-look foursome has played just one bonspiel together — a Manitoba Junior Curling Tour event in Springfield last month — but Zacharias says the squad possesses similar strengths.

"Carter throws very similar to Nick at second and Hudson very similar to Rylan [Graham] … and Rylan's just a consistent thrower and can make anything. It's a really great team and I think it'll depend on my ability to make clutch shots," Zacharias said.

He admits there havre been some challenges learning the nuances of calling the game and everything else that comes with being the team's skip.

Fortunately for Zacharias, he has a wealth of experience he can and has called upon: His three older sisters — Katie, Mackenzie and Emily — have all curled competitively at various stages.

Mackenzie and Emily teamed up to win three consecutive provincial U18 championships from 2015 to 2017, and followed that up with consecutive U21 Manitoba titles in 2019 and 2020. 

"When you have such experienced curlers it's hard not to take advantage of that experience and feed off that," Zacharias said. "They'd come with me to practice — critique my slide sweeping … and do anything to [help me] get better."

Emily and Mackenzie also appeared in the inaugural national U18 girls' championship in 2017. It marked a major stepping stone for the Altona siblings that culminated in a world junior championship victory in Russia in 2020.

Mackenzie also played in three Scotties Tournament of Hearts, while Emily has been to four Canadian women's curling championships — finishing second each of the last two years.

"I'm not super focused on trying to outdo them. I think it's more about just what I want to do and just trying to have my own accomplishments," Zacharias said.

And he's hoping the list of accomplishments grows in Morden so he can return to U18 nationals.

"You've got to stay focused on curling and whoever stays focused will come out the winner. Taking that into provincials, I think, is huge advantage," Zacharias said.

Twins from Miniota

Twin sisters from southwestern Manitoba don't have title aspirations on the pebbled ice in Morden, but they're hoping to gain valuable experience in their first provincial championship.

The curling season has been one full of learning for Miniota's Tiffany and Lexi Brown, skip and lead, respectively, on their Virden-based team that includes third Joelle Barkley and second Hannah Low.

The 14-year-olds have been curling for the past six years and they just finished their first season on the Manitoba Junior Curling Tour. They had more losses than wins, but aren't deterred.

"I learned a lot of new strategies just in watching other teams, but it was a bit scary going against 19-year-olds and I'm just 14," Tiffany said.

They are hoping for a little more success at provincials but know the chance to compete against Manitoba's best U18 curlers will benefit them down the road.

"Just have to learn from the experience and further our skills, and have fun," Lexi said. "Hopefully win some games [too]."

The U18 provincial championships conclude Sunday, with the winners punching their ticket to the national championships at the Nutana club in Saskatoon from Feb. 16 to 22.

Shaela Howard and her team from the Carman Curling Club became the first and only Manitoba squad to claim a Canadian U18 title with an 8-5 win over Quebec-1 in last year's girls' championship.