Triumph in Wolfville: Team Sturmay and Team McDonald Secure Spots in 2025 Canadian Curling Trials

October 26, 2025 – In a thrilling conclusion to the 2025 Home Hardware Canadian Curling Pre-Trials held at the Andrew H. McCain Arena in Wolfville, Nova Scotia, two rising teams punched their tickets to the prestigious 2025 Montana’s Canadian Curling Trials. On October 26, 2025, Team Selena Sturmay from Edmonton claimed the women’s berth with a convincing 9-4 victory over Team Kayla MacMillan from Victoria in the decisive Game 3 of their best-of-three final. Earlier that day, Team Jordon McDonald from Winnipeg secured the men’s spot by defeating fellow Manitobans Team Braden Calvert 8-5 in their own Game 3 showdown.

These victories mark significant milestones for both squads, who are part of Curling Canada’s National U-25 NextGen Program. They’ll now advance to the Trials, set for November 22-30, 2025, at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax, where they’ll compete among Canada’s elite for the chance to represent the nation at the Winter Olympics.

Team McDonald’s Historic Win: Youth and Resilience Shine

At just 22 years old, Jordon McDonald became the youngest skip in Canadian history to qualify for the Montana’s Trials. His Assiniboine Memorial Curling Club team—featuring vice-skip Jacques Gauthier, second Elias Huminicki, lead Cameron Olafson, and coach Bryan Miki—overcame a slow start to the season through patience and preparation.

“It’s unbelievable,” McDonald said after the win. “I feel like this team really deserved that win. We worked really hard. We didn’t have quite the start of the season that we wanted, but we stayed patient and did a really good prep for this event. It finally clicked.”

The game against Team Calvert was a back-and-forth battle. McDonald opened with a deuce in the first end, highlighted by Gauthier’s run-triple that shifted momentum. Calvert responded with a deuce in the second, but an unforced error in the third allowed McDonald another two. Leading 4-3 at the break, McDonald pulled away in the seventh with intricate shot-making for another deuce, extending the lead to 6-3.

Calvert fought back with two in the eighth, but McDonald’s hit for two in the ninth set up a defensive tenth where a soft double ran Calvert out of rocks, sealing the 8-5 final in nine ends.

“That kind of gets me a bit emotional,” McDonald reflected on his record-breaking achievement. “That’s really cool. I’m going to go in there knowing that and try to show the U-25 of Canadian curling what’s possible in this game. That’s an absolute honour for me.”

McDonald, a 2021 For the Love of Curling Scholarship recipient, emphasized the team’s growth: “Last year was a big stepping-stone year for us. We almost got into the trials directly. We were really close, so we wanted to come in strong for the pre-trials and really get our spot.”

Team Sturmay’s Commanding Performance: Control and Teamwork Prevail

Selena Sturmay’s Saville Community Sports Centre team—vice-skip Danielle Schmiemann, second Dezaray Hawes, lead Paige Papley, and coach Ted Appelman—entered the final as the top seed with a 5-2 round-robin record. Ranked No. 15 on the CTRS, this marks their first-ever Trials berth, a goal since forming the team.

“Feeling everything right now,” Sturmay said post-game. “My team played amazing all week. I have to give full credit to them. They made my job really easy out there. Just wanted to say thank you to them. Really looking forward to the trials.”

Sturmay, a 2018 For the Love of Curling Scholarship recipient, added: “This definitely was one of our big goals when forming this team. We started really good our first year, then a little bit of a lull our second year, but I do finally see all that hard work paying off.”

The decisive game saw MacMillan score a single in the first, but Sturmay quickly took control with a deuce in the second, followed by steals in the third and fourth for a 4-1 lead. Another steal in the fifth pushed it to 6-1 at the break. MacMillan managed a single in the sixth, but Sturmay’s double takeout in the seventh scored three, leading to a concession after MacMillan’s deuce in the eighth, ending 9-4 in eight ends.

“I think the past four games, we’ve always been in control,” Sturmay noted. “It’s always been us in the driver’s seat.” She praised her team’s stats: “My team, they all curled great. I think all of us were number one, if not number two on the leaderboards this week. I think that, and our communication and our shot plan, we totally understand what we need from each other and that’s what really helped us succeed.”

The Bigger Picture: Olympic Dreams on the Horizon

The Pre-Trials in Wolfville showcased the depth of Canadian curling talent, with both finals broadcast on TSN. For curling fans, these wins highlight the emergence of young stars ready to challenge established names at the Trials.

As we at iCurling.com continue to cover the sport’s biggest stories, we’ll be watching Team Sturmay and Team McDonald closely in Halifax. Their journeys from Wolfville victories to potential Olympic representation embody the dedication and excitement that define curling. For live scores, standings, and more from the Pre-Trials, visit Curling Canada’s official resources. Stay tuned—who will slide into history next?