Men's action heats up Saturday night at Nationals
In the battle of two brothers, older brother Pete Fenson defeated Eric Fenson (both of Bemidji, Minn.), 9-3, in the opening draw of the men's 10-game round robin. Fenson (Bemidji, Minn.) and teammates Shawn Rojeski (Chisholm, Minn.), Joe Polo (Duluth, Minn.) and Ryan Brunt (Bemidji, Minn.) started strong with three in the first end and capitalized on opportunities to steal en route to the victory. The win continues the Fenson team's winning streak dating back to the 2010 Nationals in Kalamazoo. The team went a perfect 11-0 in Fargo last year when they won the title.
Two-time Olympian John Shuster (Duluth, Minn.) led his team to a 9-6 win over 2007 U.S. champion Todd Birr (Mankato, Minn.). "We came out and didn't get the hammer in the first end and gave up two ... and then you just have to try to work your way back into it and flip the scoreboard. We got a chance to get a big end and we hit that big one in the fifth," Shuster said. "It's nice to get wins before you know exactly how much weight you're going to throw on takeouts when playing precision stuff. We're just trying to get a feel for what sweeping's going to do. It's good to get a win when you're feeling out the ice surface a bit."
