Canada's Einarson, Manitoba's Lawes advance at Scotties Tournament of Hearts

It's a good time to be a Manitoba curling fan.

Canada's Kerri Einarson and Manitoba's Kaitlyn Lawes advanced into the Page 1/2 playoff game at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts after winning their qualifying games on Friday. Einarson beat Manitoba's Beth Peterson 8-5, while Lawes beat Nova Scotia's Christina Black 8-6 on her final throw.

"We're just taking one game at a time," said Einarson, a four-time national champion who is also from Manitoba. "We're trending in the right direction, and we're playing well, so we've just got to keep that going forward."

Einarson or Ontario's Rachel Homan have been finalists at the Tournament of Hearts each of the past nine years. Homan, the reigning national champion, is missing this year's event because she's representing Canada at the Milan Cortina Olympics.

As the last non-Homan champion, Einarson's rink from Gimli is competing as Team Canada at this year's tournament.

Lawes said that it "feels amazing" to face a provincial rival in a high-stakes playoff game.

"It's been a goal of ours ever since the (Olympic) trials to try and win a Scotties," she said. "We're putting ourselves in a position to have that potential opportunity, and super proud of the team for fighting for every rock all week long."

The two losing rinks will play again Friday night in the Page 3/4 qualifiers, with Black facing Taylour Stevens in an all-Nova Scotia matchup and Peterson meeting Alberta's Selena Sturmay.

Einarson and Lawes will play Saturday evening, with the winner going to the final and the loser playing the winner of the Page 3/4 game in a semifinal.

As Peterson is still in the mix, it's entirely possible to have an all-Manitoba semifinal and then an all-Manitoba final at the national women's