The host province's team has given the home crowd plenty to cheer about at the Scotties Tournament of Hearts. Heading into Wednesday's play at the Paramount Fine Foods Centre, Ontario's Hailey Armstrong rink from Whitby was 3-2 and tied for third in Pool A, the last playoff position in the pool.

Ontario beat British Columbia's Taylor Reese-Hansen 7-3 on Tuesday afternoon, Curling Canada reported. Before that draw, four teams were at 2-2 and chasing the same spot. The win left Ontario level with Nova Scotia's Taylour Stevens, who beat the Northwest Territories' Nicky Kaufman 10-4 on the next sheet.

A strong start on home-province ice

Ontario opened the championship last Friday with a 9-5 win over Kaufman, Armstrong's first Scotties victory as a skip. She had played at the event twice before, as Quebec's third in 2021 and 2022, when pandemic rules limited crowds. Third Grace Lloyd, second Michaela Robert and lead Rachel Steele are all Scotties rookies. Lori Eddy is the alternate and Stephen Robert coaches the Whitby Curling Club team.

Curling Canada said the team drew a loud ovation from the hometown crowd after that opening win, with many young fans in the stands after the U-15 RockFest East event at the arena the night before. Ontario added a 6-3 win over Yukon's Bayly Scoffin on Monday night.

Against Reese-Hansen's team, Ontario took control with two points in the fourth end and two more in the seventh, when Armstrong made a tap with her last stone. Armstrong credited the team's communication and its habit of playing one rock at a time.

So just sticking together really is a great recipe for us.

— Hailey Armstrong, Team Ontario skip

Where the standings sit

Manitoba's Kaitlyn Lawes team from Winnipeg leads Pool A at 6-0 and clinched a playoff berth Tuesday with a 9-4 win over Yukon. Team Canada's Kerri Einarson is 5-1 after a 10-4 win over Saskatchewan's Jolene Campbell. Reese-Hansen and Campbell are both 2-3.

In Pool B, Manitoba's Beth Peterson team was 5-0 after an extra-end win on Tuesday night, while Alberta's Selena Sturmay improved to 4-1 by beating fellow Albertan Kayla Skrlik 9-5.

The playoffs begin Friday, and the final is set for Sunday, Feb. 1, at 7 p.m.

Ontario and Nova Scotia are scheduled to meet in the last round-robin draw on Thursday, a game that could decide the final playoff place in Pool A. TSN and RDS2 are carrying the event, and tickets are sold through Curling Canada.