Lineup shakeup has Team Galusha in playoff mix at Scotties

A lineup change has helped Kerry Galusha and her rink from Yellowknife, N.W.T., reach new heights this season, including putting them in the thick of the playoff race at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Thunder Bay.

Galusha, 44, suffered a lower-back injury at last year’s Scotties inside the Calgary bubble, which later developed into a disc herniation.

“I was injured since the bubble last year and all summer,” Galusha told TSN.ca following an 8-6 win over Manitoba’s Mackenzie Zacharias Tuesday morning. “It was a struggle for me. My injury actually got worse and in September when we curled together, I could barely throw.”

The injury forced Galusha, who regularly tosses the last stones, to move up to the lead position. Jo-Ann Rizzo, who was a silver medalist at the 2013 Olympic Trials as a third for Sherry Middaugh, moved from vice to skip stones. Margot Flemming plays second, while Sarah Koltun is the lead on the team.

“So, we had been prepared whether if I could throw in pain, then I’m going to be at lead,” Galusha explained. “If I can’t throw at all, we had a fifth player. If I was good, I would throw last rocks. We had every scenario written out with our sports psychologist. It kind of worked well right off the bat and we really just stuck with it.”

The new lineup and a commitment to travelling more has helped Team Galusha put together a career season on Tour. They competed in three Ontario-based Tour bonspiels in the fall, winning the KW Fall Classic by beating Hollie Duncan in the final. Team Galusha also went 4-0 at a Pre-Trials qualifier in Ottawa. 

Galusha says the entire team have taken on their new roles with open arms.

Skip of Team Northwest Territories Kerry Galusha joins Bob Weeks to discuss entering her