Cougars Curling team headed to nationals in March

Assiniboine Community College’s men’s and women’s curling teams will head to Fredericton, New Brunswick this spring to compete in the 2024 Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA)/Curling Canada College Curling Championships from March 12-16.

Last month, Assiniboine announced the addition of curling to the Cougars repertoire, and the men’s and women’s teams, under the guidance of coach Maureen Bonar, have been hard at work.

“I was thrilled to come on board as coach of the Cougars curling program this fall. To know we’re now preparing the team for an opportunity on the national stage certainly adds to the excitement,” said Bonar. “I’ve seen great strides in the initial weeks with these athletes. We can’t wait to keep working and represent Assiniboine and Manitoba in Fredericton in a few months.”
The CCAA voted to grant Manitoba a seed at curling nationals, and with no other institutions in the Manitoba Colleges Athletic Conference (MCAC) establishing curling teams to date, Assiniboine has been acclaimed the Manitoba representative.

“We’re fortunate to see our newest student athletes get this national opportunity and exposure to competition at that level,” said Lindsay McLaughlin. “We look forward to this sport continuing to grow at the Manitoba college level and continuing to compete to return to the national stage in the future.”

While it’s been decades since the Cougars iced a curling team, Assiniboine had strong showings at the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association (CCAA) championships in the late 80’s. Between 1986 and 1989, the Cougars curling teams won two gold medals, three silver and two bronze at the national championships.

In the lead up to nationals, the team will continue to compete in a weekly league at the Brandon Curling Club along with a selection of bonspiels.