The Cougars rocked the Canadian Collegiate Athletics Association’s ice this season
As a staple sport in prairie provinces, curling calls for both big cities and hamlets to have curling rinks. Young kids are often raised with the sport. In the city of Regina, the last two curling seasons have been extremely successful for U of R Cougars men’s and women’s curling programs.
Curling, unlike other varsity sports, does not have league play. The athletes play with their own individual teams and then come together for the Canada West Championships, U Sports, and Canadian Collegiate Athletics Association (CCAA) Curling Championship, and then International University Sports Federation (FISU) when applicable.
They practice together throughout the season but do not have a regular university league to compete in. This season, the Cougars played host to the U Sports and CCAA curling championship at the Callie Curling Club during the university’s February break. 32 teams came together, 16 male and 16 female, across both the CCAA and U Sports championships.
Men’s Curling
Coming off of a successful last season after attending the FISU games in Italy for curling, the Cougars men’s team looked a little different this season. Cougars men’s skip, Carter Williamson, was the only remaining 2024-25 team member on the team this year. Williamson is naturally a second position player and had to readjust to the new role on the team, replacing Joshua Bryden following his final season last year.
Joining Williamson on the ice this year was lead Evan Arnold, second Andrew Moulding, third Rhett Whittmire, and alternate Nathan Weiss. Williamson, the oldest on the team, speaks fondly of his younger teammates and their time spent together this season.
“We were goofy. Those kids are something else. Andrew Moulding and Rhett [Whittmire], are the type of people that would go and crush a 50 pack of Timbits in one day. They did that. We curled two games that day. We gelled quickly.”
Aside from forming a nearly brand new team, Williamson also had to learn to play from a brand new position. The skip is the player at the end of the curling ice calling the shots, choosing where the rocks need to lay in order to have points by the end of the end. It is very different from playing a second like Williamson was used to.
“The way I was kind of thinking of it at first was it’s like driving a road that you’re used to driving just one way, then all of a sudden, just turning around,” noted Williamson.
Playing in the CCAA championship was extra special for Williamson as this is his last season wearing the Cougars uniform. Originally from Dauphin, Manitoba, Williamson has been a part of the U of R curling program since 2021. Being able to host the national championship at home in his last season was an experience he will not forget.
“The Callie is like a unique setup where it’s six on one side, six on the other, so that we could have four sheets going and then have fans out there as well. So it actually felt like a championship and not a bondspiel. It was a blast, we had so much fun. All my buddies that I’ve curled with over the last few years, they all said it was fun watching too!”
The men’s side finished 7-1 at the Canada West Championship in January 2025. They went on to play seven games and finished the week with a 1-6 record at the CCAA championships.
The way I was kind of thinking of it at first was it’s like driving a road that you’re used to driving just one way, then all of a sudden, just turning around.” – Carter Williamson, Cougars men’s skip
Women’s Curling
The Cougars women’s curling team had a different story than the men’s. The team also came off a 2024-25 FISU appearance but had a full team of returning players on their roster including lead Hannah Rugg, second Tessa Silversides, third Lauren Speidel, and skip Chloe Johnston. The only new member of the team was alternate Makena Bailey.
So, the women’s team had a leg up due to already having played a season together. The women’s Cougars team went 6-1 in their Canada West Championship run and went onto play nine games at the CCAA championships, with a 4-5 record and losing the bronze medal game on Feb. 21.
Johnston explained that the Bronze medal game did not go the way they hoped, beyond not bringing home the medal.
“For me, it wasn’t my best game, which was frustrating, of course. But no, we were proud of how we played for the most part. And yeah, I think at the end of the day, sometimes those games just don’t go your way.”
The team lost to the Alberta Pandas who also won the Canada West Championship this season. Even though the Cougars did not finish the weekend with a medal, they created some lasting memories. Johnston shared the same sentiment as Williamson with regards to being on home ice for this year’s CCAA tournament.
“It was really cool,” shared Johnston. “You don’t ever get to do that, so it was a kind of a once in a lifetime opportunity. We tried to play our best and try to make the playoffs, and we did. So that was really nice, and it was good having university friends come over, family, and people that you met when we moved here [come watch].”
The curling hype
A lot of young curlers come into the sport because of their parents. Johnston is a prime example. Although curling is quite popular throughout the prairies, it has become a bit of a dying art lately.
However, the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics Winter Games brought the spotlight back onto the ice. Brad Jacobs’ men’s curling team took home gold this year and Rachel Homan’s women’s team took home bronze. Both teams also caused quite a stir of controversies this year.
During a match against Sweden, Brad Jacobs was seen gently nudging his index finger on the rock he was throwing. The Swedish team pointed this out during the match and got into a heated discussion with Jacobs. This ignited the internet and, all of a sudden, curling became a trending hashtag.
Both Johnston and Williamson say that any press is good press for their sport. Johnston said that the Olympic controversies are causing people to do more asking about the sport.
“I got lots of texts too, just wondering what my situation is like, or what I think of what happened. But I mean, any press is good press for sports, especially because it is so small.”
Curling is now concluded for the 2025-26 season and will resume for both programs with the Canada West Games next year. Though we do not have a location for the CW Championships, the CCAA USports Nationals will be held in Calgary in February 2027.
