Disappointment for Team BC at U18 curling

Kaila Buchy intends to continue competitive curling

Left, Team BC shares a laugh at the 2018 Canadian Under-18 Boys and Girls Curling Championships in St. Andrews, N.B. Left to right: coach Jim Cotter, skip Jaelyn Cotter, third Kaila Buchy, second Katelyn McGillivray and lead Cassidy Schwaerzle (Curling Canada/Mark Finley photo)

Left, Team BC shares a laugh at the 2018 Canadian Under-18 Boys and Girls Curling Championships in St. Andrews, N.B. Left to right: coach Jim Cotter, skip Jaelyn Cotter, third Kaila Buchy, second Katelyn McGillivray and lead Cassidy Schwaerzle (Curling Canada/Mark Finley photo)

Kimberley junior curler Kaila Buchy is back home from a trip to the U18 Junior Nationals, and although she and the Cotter rink didn’t win, it was an experience she wouldn’t have missed.

“It was a great experience and I learned a lot,” she said.

Kaila, a grade 10 student, is no stranger to competitive curling, having curled with her sister Alysha for many years, including winning a high school championship a few years ago.

With Alysha and the rest of that team having aged out of the U18 category, Kaila was a free agent this year and she was picked up by the Jaelyn Cotter rink for the U18 championships.

Unfortunately the team just missed the playoffs, and finished fifth in the championship, which was eventually won by the Nova Scotia team.

“The goal is always more, and making the playoffs would have been nice,” she said. “But we did what we could and we played well.”

She definitely intends to continue in competitive curling.

The time on the Cotter team, while enjoyable, was always temporary, and Kaila hopes to join up with her sister again for the coming season to see what they can do on the junior (U21) circuit.

Kimberley Bulletin