Team Crough can lift their feet for the holidays, said lead Julianna MacKenzie from Cochrane. But not for long.
Starting Jan. 3, MacKenzie, second Kim Bonneau, third Quinn Prodaniuk and skip Elysa Crough will be the youngest team competing in the Alberta Scotties in Grande Prairie.
"We're definitely the underdogs," MacKenzie said. "But, it's going to be a great experience for us."
Especially, she said, after the teams heartbreaking loss in nationals.
"Going to nationals is a memory I will be keeping for a long time," she said. "It was our goal to win nationals and represent Canada in Sweden and obviously we're heartbroken, but we're looking ahead to the competition in Grande Prairie.
"This is a big opportunity," she said. "We'll be playing the top teams in Alberta."
MacKenzie said she has been curling since she was eight, thanks to her brother.
She spent numerous hours at the rink in Cochrane watching her brother curl before eventually deciding to try it for herself.
School sports, specifically basketball and soccer, distracted her from curling temporarily but when her bother needed an extra body, MacKenzie rediscovered her love for the sport.
"I realized I really missed it and have been playing it ever since."
Team Crough continues to prepare for the upcoming showdown, MacKenzie said.
"We do a lot of training off ice, mostly through the summer, but now, too. This maintains our cardio and strength to outlast the week — playing eight to nine games in week is a lot," she said.
They also prepare mentally.
"We have these training books," she said. "We revisit and re-evaluate our selves and set new goals."
But, in the meantime, MacKenzie is going to enjoy her downtown time and celebrate the holidays with her family.
