Christina Black

Christina Black
Curler
Born (1987-10-21) October 21, 1987
Sydney, Nova Scotia
Team
Curling clubHalifax CC,
Halifax, NS
SkipChristina Black
ThirdJill Brothers
SecondMarlee Powers
LeadKarlee Everist
Curling career
Member Association Nova Scotia
Hearts appearances7 (2015, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2025, 2026)
Top CTRS ranking4th (2024–25)
Medal record
Representing Nova Scotia
Canadian Olympic Curling Trials
2025 Halifax
Scotties Tournament of Hearts
2018 Penticton
2025 Thunder Bay
Canadian Mixed Curling Championship
2013 Mount Royal
2024 St. Catharines

Christina Black (born October 21, 1987) is a Canadian curler from Halifax, Nova Scotia.[1] She currently skips her own team out of the Halifax Curling Club.

Career

Women's

Black represented Saint Mary's University in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport/Canadian Curling Association University Curling Championships in 2009 and 2010.[2][3] In the 2009 tournament, she played second on a Huskies rink skipped by Sarah Rhyno. They finished in second place in Pool A in the round-robin with a 5-2 record and beat Laurentian University 6-5 in the semifinal, but lost to Hollie Nicol and the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks in the final 6-4, claiming the silver medal.[4] In 2010, the Huskies were skipped by Marie Christianson, and Black played third. They finished first in Pool D with a 4-1 record,[5] then beat Brock University 8-5 in the semifinal before dropping the final to Brooklyn Lemon and her University of Regina Cougars 6-5 in an extra end, winning the silver medal again.[6]

Black joined Team Mary-Anne Arsenault for the 2014–15 season at third. The team, along with second Jane Snyder and lead Jennifer Baxter, won two tour events early in the season, the Dave Jones Molson Mayflower Cashspiel and the Gibson's Cashspiel.<[7] They also won the 2015 Nova Scotia Scotties Tournament of Hearts, qualifying them for the 2015 Scotties Tournament of Hearts, Black's first. There, the team finished in seventh place with a 5–6 record. In 2016, Jennifer Crouse joined as second when Snyder left the team. A few seasons later, they won the 2018 Nova Scotia Scotties Tournament of Hearts and won a bronze medal at the 2018 Scotties Tournament of Hearts.[8] Later that year, the team won the 2018 New Scotland Clothing Ladies Cashspiel.[9]

The Arsenault rink began the 2019–20 season by winning the 2019 Curling Store Cashspiel.[10] The team won the provincial Scotties again in 2020, and represented Nova Scotia at the 2020 Scotties Tournament of Hearts with new lead Emma Logan. The team finished pool play with a 4–3 round-robin record, tied with British Columbia's Corryn Brown rink. They lost to British Columbia in a tiebreaker and failed to advance.

In 2020, Arsenault announced she was moving to British Columbia.[11] Black formed a new rink as skip with Baxter at third and front end Karlee Jones and Shelley Barker. In their first event together, the team won the 2020 Curling Store Cashspiel.[12] The 2021 Nova Scotia Scotties was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Nova Scotia, so the Nova Scotia Curling Association appointed Team Jill Brothers to represent the province at the 2021 Scotties Tournament of Hearts. Team Black would have been selected as the Nova Scotia representatives, however, they did not retain three out of their four players from the previous season.[13]

Team Black won their first event of the 2021–22 season, The Curling Store Cashspiel, going undefeated to claim the title.[14] They also reached the final of the Atlantic Superstore Monctonian Challenge, losing to the Andrea Crawford rink. In November, the team once again went undefeated to win the Tim Hortons Spitfire Arms Cash Spiel, defeating former teammate Jennifer Crouse in the final.[15] At the 2022 Nova Scotia Scotties Tournament of Hearts, Team Black won all three qualifying events, winning the provincial title and securing their spot at the 2022 Scotties Tournament of Hearts.[16] At the Hearts, Black led her rink to a 5–3 record in the round robin, which was enough to qualify for the championship round. Along the way, she scored victories over higher-seeded teams such as Alberta's Laura Walker and Manitoba's Mackenzie Zacharias. She also defeated British Columbia, which was skipped by her former teammate Mary-Anne Arsenault.[17] In their championship round match against Northern Ontario's Krista McCarville, Team Black got down 9–1 before coming back to make the game 9–8, eventually losing 11–8. This eliminated them from the championship.[18]

The Black rink began the 2022–23 season at the inaugural PointsBet Invitational, where they lost to Kelsey Rocque in the opening round.[19] They bounced back immediately in their next event, however, winning the New Scotland Clothing Women's Cashspiel in a 6–4 final over Tanya Hilliard.[20] At the 2022 Tour Challenge Tier 2 Grand Slam of Curling event, the team went undefeated until the semifinals where they were defeated by Jessie Hunkin.[21] Through November and December, they qualified for three straight finals. After losing to the Kaitlyn Lawes rink, skipped by Selena Njegovan, in the final of the 2022 Stu Sells 1824 Halifax Classic,[22] they once again defeated Jennifer Crouse at the Tim Hortons Spitfire Arms Cash Spiel and then beat Marlee Powers in the final of the Bogside Cup.[23] At the 2023 Nova Scotia Scotties Tournament of Hearts, Team Black won both the A and B events to earn two of the three spots in the playoffs. They then beat the Hilliard rink 9–4 in the semifinals to claim their second consecutive Nova Scotia Scotties title.[24] This qualified the team for the 2023 Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Kamloops, British Columbia where they again went 5–3 through the round robin. This qualified them for a tiebreaker where they stole in an extra end to upset the Lawes Wild Card rink.[25] In the championship round, they again stole in an extra to beat Ontario's Rachel Homan rink before losing to Northern Ontario's McCarville in the seeding game. They then fell 9–4 to Team Canada's Kerri Einarson in the 3 vs. 4 game, settling for fourth.[26]

The 2023–24 season began well for Team Black as they reached the final of the Summer Series, losing 5–4 to Danielle Inglis.[27] In their third event, they reached another final where they narrowly lost to Jessica Daigle. With their success from the previous season, the team qualified as the sixth seeds for the 2023 PointsBet Invitational. After defeating Nancy Martin in the opening round, they upset Jennifer Jones in the quarterfinals before dropping the semifinal to Rachel Homan.[28] In their next two events, the team reached the quarterfinals of both the 2023 Tour Challenge Tier 2 and the Stu Sells 1824 Halifax Classic, losing out to Madeleine Dupont and Stefania Constantini respectively.[29] In November 2023, the team ranked sixteenth in the world, qualifying them for the 2023 National Tier 1 Slam. They finished with a 1–3 record, earning a victory over Korea's Ha Seung-youn.[30] At the 2024 Nova Scotia Scotties Tournament of Hearts, the team easily qualified for the playoffs through the A event. They then lost to Heather Smith in the 1 vs. 2 game but defeated Mackenzie Mitchell in the semifinal to reach the final. There, they could not defend their provincial title for a third time, dropping the final 6–4 to Team Smith.[31] After the season, the team's lead Shelley Barker retired from competitive women's play.[32] The team then added Jill Brothers and Marlee Powers for the 2024–25 season. The revised lineup featured Brothers at third, with Baxter and Everist moving to second and lead, respectively. Powers was named the alternate but rotates with Baxter at second.[33] The team had success in their first season together, winning the Tier 2 event of the 2024 Tour Challenge, qualifying them for the 2024 National Grand Slam, where they lost in the Quarterfinals to Anna Hasselborg. Black would also go on to win the 2025 NS Women's Championship, beating clubmate Mackenzie Mitchell in the final, qualifying the team to represent Nova Scotia at the 2025 Scotties Tournament of Hearts. At the 2025 Scotties, Black finished 2nd in Pool B with a 6–2 record, and would make it to the semifinals, where she lost to Kerri Einarson 9–8 after a measurement in the 10th end, winning a bronze medal for Nova Scotia.

Team Black finished the 2024-25 season at number four in the Canadian Team Ranking System rankings[34], which earned them a pre-qualifier berth in the Scotties Tournament of Hearts[35], and they also prequalified for the 2025 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials based on cumulative CTRS points from 2023-25[36]. As a result, they were able to primarily focus their efforts in 2025-26 on travelling to Tier 1 and Tier 2 events outside Nova Scotia, where they could play against tougher competition and gain valuable experience[37]. Their first major event was the 2025 AMJ Masters in London, ON, where they went 2-2 in the round-robin, missing the quarterfinals by a point.[38] Next up for them was the 2025 PointsBet Invitational in Calgary; the seven teams that had prequalified for the Olympic Trials were automatically invited[39]; they went 1-3 in this event, again missing the playoffs[40]. A couple of weeks later, they flew back to Alberta for the CO-OP Tour Challenge in Nisku and fared even worse with an 0-4 record[41]. Black said that despite their cumulative record, she considered these three events to have been “a great opportunity” and “really good practice.”[42] In November, Team Black participated in the 2025 Canadian Olympic Curling Trials in their hometown of Halifax, where they would finish round-robin play in 3rd place with a 4–3 record. They would go on to beat Kerri Einarson 6–3 in the semifinals but would ultimately lose both games to Rachel Homan in the best-of-three final by 5-4 and 12-3 scores, claiming the silver medal.[43] They went on the road one more time before the end of 2025, appearing at the 2025 HearingLife Canadian Open Tier 2 Division in Martensville, SK, which they qualified for based on their World Curling team ranking (#15).[44][45] Their record at the Open was 2-2; they qualified for the quarterfinals, where they beat Isabella Wranå 7-1 and then fell to Kaitlyn Lawes in the semifinal 8-3.[46] The last event on Team Black's calendar for the 2025-26 season was the 2026 Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Mississauga, ON. They finished second in Pool B with a 6-2 record, but struggled in the playoffs, losing to Manitoba’s Lawes in the 1A vs 2B game 8-6, defeating fellow Nova Scotian Taylour Stevens 11-6 in the 3A vs 4 game, then falling in the Page 3/4 game to Alberta’s Selena Sturmay 8-4.[47] Team Black participated in some smaller events earlier in the season as well, making the semifinals at the Asham Ice Breaker Challenge in Morris, MB after finishing pool play with a 3-1 record,[48] missing the playoffs at the 2025 AMJ Campbell Shorty Jenkins Classic in Cornwall, ON after a 2-3 round-robin[49], and won the 2025 Stu Sells 1824 Halifax Classic, finishing 4-1 in the round-robin and defeating Danielle Inglis in the final 6-5.[50] On March 16, 2026, Team Black announced that Baxter will be leaving the team and stepping away from competitive curling to focus on other important parts of her life and to spend more time with her family. The remaining members of the team will continue together for the 2026-27 season.[51]

Mixed

Black has also represented Nova Scotia in the Canadian Mixed Curling Championship four times as a third. In 2013, she won a silver medal with Brent MacDougall as skip, finishing first in the round-robin with a 9-2 record and earning an automatic spot in the final, which they dropped to Cory Heggestad's Ontario rink 10-3.[52] She participated but didn't medal in 2015 and 2018, also with MacDougall as skip (made placement round in both but missed playoffs) and was named the Canadian Mixed All-Star at third in the 2015 event[53][54]. More recently, she won the gold medal with Owen Purcell as skip in 2024 (and Team Black second Jenn Baxter as lead), finishing second in Pool A in the round-robin with a 5-1 record, winning all four of their placement round games, then defeating both Ryan Wiebe's Manitoba team 7-4 in the semifinal and Saskatchewan's Jason Ackerman in the gold medal game 5-4. Black was named as the tournament’s female MVP.[55]

Personal life

Black was born in Sydney and attended Riverview High School.[7] She graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Saint Mary's University in 2010,[56] and is currently employed as an SSI Supervision Specialist for Scotiabank.[1]

Grand Slam record

Key
C Champion
F Lost in Final
SF Lost in Semifinal
QF Lost in Quarterfinals
R16 Lost in the round of 16
Q Did not advance to playoffs
T2 Played in Tier 2 event
DNP Did not participate in event
N/A Not a Grand Slam event that season
Event 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25 2025–26
Masters QF DNP DNP DNP DNP N/A DNP DNP DNP DNP Q
Tour Challenge T2 DNP DNP T2 T2 N/A N/A T2 T2 T2 Q
The National DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP N/A DNP DNP Q QF DNP
Canadian Open DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP N/A N/A DNP DNP DNP T2

Teams

Black has played with the following women's curling teams:[57]

Season Skip Third Second Lead
2010–11 Tanya Hilliard Christina Black Liz Woodworth Kaitlin Fralic
2011–12 Marie Christianson Kristen MacDiarmid Christina Black Jane Snyder
2012–13 Marie Christianson Kristen MacDiarmid Christina Black Jane Snyder
2013–14 Christina Black (Fourth) Jane Snyder Katarina Danbrook Mary Sue Radford (Skip)
2014–15 Mary-Anne Arsenault Christina Black Jane Snyder Jenn Baxter
2015–16 Mary-Anne Arsenault Christina Black Jane Snyder Jenn Baxter
2016–17 Mary-Anne Arsenault Christina Black Jennifer Crouse Jenn Baxter
2017–18 Mary-Anne Arsenault Christina Black Jenn Baxter Jennifer Crouse
2018–19 Mary-Anne Arsenault Christina Black Jenn Baxter Kristin Clarke
2019–20 Mary-Anne Arsenault Christina Black Jenn Baxter Emma Logan
2020–21[58] Christina Black Jenn Baxter Karlee Jones Shelley Barker
2021–22 Christina Black Jenn Baxter Karlee Everist Shelley Barker
2022–23 Christina Black Jenn Baxter Karlee Everist Shelley Barker
2023–24 Christina Black Jenn Baxter Karlee Everist Shelley Barker
2024–25 Christina Black Jill Brothers Jenn Baxter Karlee Everist
2025–26 Christina Black Jill Brothers Jenn Baxter Karlee Everist
2026–27 Christina Black Jill Brothers Marlee Powers Karlee Everist

References

  1. ^ a b "2020 Scotties Tournament of Hearts Media Guide" (PDF). Curling Canada. Retrieved 2020-02-12.
  2. ^ "2009 CIS/CCA University Championships ~ WOMEN". Canadian Curling Association. Archived from the original on February 13, 2010. Retrieved March 9, 2026.
  3. ^ "2010 CIS/CCA UNIVERSITY CURLING CHAMPIONSHIPS - WOMEN'S TEAMS". Canadian Curling Association. Archived from the original on March 11, 2010. Retrieved March 9, 2026.
  4. ^ "2009 CIS / CCA University Championships - Final Results - Women". Canadian Curling Association. Archived from the original on December 10, 2009. Retrieved March 9, 2026.
  5. ^ "University Championships - Standings". Canadian Curling Association. Archived from the original on April 16, 2010. Retrieved March 9, 2026.
  6. ^ "2010 CIS/CCA UNIVERSITY CURLING CHAMPIONSHIPS - RESULTS". Canadian Curling Association. Archived from the original on April 15, 2010. Retrieved March 9, 2026.
  7. ^ a b >"Christina Black: Events". CurlingZone. Retrieved December 13, 2018.
  8. ^ "Sydney's Christina Black a third on provincial champion rink". Cape Breton Post. Archived from the original on December 15, 2018. Retrieved December 13, 2018.
  9. ^ "New Scotland Clothing Ladies Cashspiel". www.curlingzone.com. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
  10. ^ "2019 The Curling Store Cashspiel – Women's". CurlingZone. Retrieved September 28, 2020.
  11. ^ John MacNeil (February 13, 2020). "Mary Anne Arsenault Throwing Last Rocks for NS at Scotties". Saltwire. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  12. ^ "2020 The Curling Store Cashspiel – Women's". CurlingZone. Retrieved September 27, 2020.
  13. ^ Jeremy Fraser (January 14, 2021). "Jill Brothers rink accepts Scotties invite; Christina Black's team was next in line to represent Nova Scotia". Saltwire. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  14. ^ "Curling tours recap!". Curling Canada. September 27, 2021. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  15. ^ "2021 Tim Hortons Spitfire Arms Cash Spiel". CurlingZone. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  16. ^ "Black Punches Ticket To Scotties". CurlingZone. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  17. ^ "Black bests curling mentor at Hearts". CurlingZone. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  18. ^ "Mrs. M a winner". Curling Canada. February 4, 2022. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  19. ^ "One win in the bank!". Curling Canada. September 21, 2022. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
  20. ^ "2022 New Scotland Clothing Women's Cashspiel". CurlingZone. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
  21. ^ "Oskar Eriksson skips Team Edin into HearingLife Tour Challenge men's final". Grand Slam of Curling. October 23, 2022. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
  22. ^ "Epping, Lawes win 1824 Halifax Classic". TSN. November 15, 2022. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
  23. ^ "Team Christina Black: 2022–23". CurlingZone. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
  24. ^ "Meet the Teams: Nova Scotia". Curling Canada. February 10, 2023. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
  25. ^ "Stayin' Alive!". Curling Canada. February 24, 2023. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
  26. ^ "Bounce-back win!". Curling Canada. February 25, 2023. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
  27. ^ "Cameron, Skrlik, Mouat all winners on Tour this weekend". TSN. August 28, 2023. Retrieved April 26, 2024.
  28. ^ "Bracket-Bustin' Black!". Curling Canada. September 29, 2023. Retrieved April 26, 2024.
  29. ^ "Team Christina Black: 2023–24". CurlingZone. Retrieved April 26, 2024.
  30. ^ Jonathan Brazeau (November 9, 2023). "Homan, Hasselborg stay undefeated to clinch playoff berths at KIOTI National". Grand Slam of Curling. Retrieved April 26, 2024.
  31. ^ Gregory Strong (January 22, 2024). "6-time champion Colleen Jones set to return to Scotties as Nova Scotia coach". CBC Sports. Retrieved April 26, 2024.
  32. ^ "After four unforgettable seasons, it's with mixed emotions to share that Shelley has decided to step away from competitive play". Facebook. Team Black. March 3, 2024. Retrieved April 26, 2024.
  33. ^ "🚨 NEW TEAMMATE ALERT 🚨". Facebook. Team Black. March 9, 2024. Retrieved April 26, 2024.
  34. ^ "Canadian Team Ranking System (CTRS)". Curling Canada. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  35. ^ "2026 Scotties Tournament of Hearts Media Guide" (PDF). Curling Canada. p. 15. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  36. ^ "2025 Montana's Canadian Curling Trials Media Guide" (PDF). Curling Canada. p. 11. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  37. ^ George Myrer (January 16, 2026). "Team Black, so close to Scotties final in 2025, more prepared and confident in 2026". The Chronicle-Herald. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  38. ^ "2025 AMJ Masters Draws & Schedules". The Grand Slam of Curling. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  39. ^ Jonathan Brazeau (September 30, 2025). "PointsBet Invitational preview". The Grand Slam of Curling. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  40. ^ "2025 Pointsbet Invitational Scores". Curling Canada. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  41. ^ "CO-OP Tour Challenge Draws & Schedules". The Grand Slam of Curling. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  42. ^ Donna Spencer (October 23, 2025). "Nova Scotia's Christina Black feels curling buzz ramping up in her home province". The Canadian Press. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  43. ^ "2025 Montana's Canadian Curling Trials". Curling Canada. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  44. ^ "HearingLife Canadian Open Format & Qualification". The Grand Slam of Curling. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  45. ^ "World Team Rankings: Women". CurlingZone. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  46. ^ "HearingLife Canadian Open Tier 2: Schedule, standings and results". Grand Slam of Curling. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  47. ^ "2026 Scotties Tournament of Hearts". Curling Canada. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  48. ^ "Icebreaker Challenge". CurlingZone. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  49. ^ "AMJ Campbell Shorty Jenkins Classic". CurlingZone. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  50. ^ "2025 Stu Sells 1824 Halifax Classic – Women". Stu Sells Series. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  51. ^ "TEAM BLACK UPDATE!!". Facebook. Team Black. March 16, 2026. Retrieved March 16, 2026.
  52. ^ "2020 Canadian Mixed Curling Championship Media Guide" (PDF). Curling Canada. p. 38. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 21, 2025. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  53. ^ "2020 Canadian Mixed Curling Championship Media Guide" (PDF). Curling Canada. p. 30. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 21, 2025. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  54. ^ "2020 Canadian Mixed Curling Championship Media Guide" (PDF). Curling Canada. p. 15. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 21, 2025. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  55. ^ "Season of Champions 2024-25 Fact Book" (PDF). Curling Canada. p. 28. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  56. ^ "We are so proud of Christina Black BComm'10 and this team as they have secured a spot in the play offs at this year's Scotties Tournament of Hearts". Facebook. Saint Mary's University Halifax. January 29, 2026. Retrieved March 9, 2026.
  57. ^ "CurlingZone". www.curlingzone.com. Retrieved 2018-12-13.
  58. ^ "Team Black — Introducing our new and exciting lineup for the 2020/21 curling season!". Facebook. May 19, 2020. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
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