National championship, 16 ACAC banners highlight curling program's run of excellence
Jefferson Hagen, MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON – To head coach Tom Kitagawa, the moment that really stands out in his 13 years with the MacEwan curling program is when the Griffins celebrated a Canadian Colleges Athletic Association national men's championship in 2014 in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.
The Jordan Steinke-skipped rink, which also included third Tristan Steinke, second Brett Winfield, lead Ben Bissell and fifth Kristian Bush beat cross-town rival NAIT 7-4 in the national championship final for the definitive moment in MacEwan's curling history.
"Let's face it: coaches coach for a long time and never get that elusive gold," said Kitagawa, who was named ACAC coach of the year that season.
"The team was very talented, but they came together really well as a team. They played for each other, they worked hard. When we went to the Soo, they were all very, very focused. They knew what they were there for. It was actually very easy to coach that team because of the commitment level they put in."
As Kitagawa reflects on the Griffins curling program, which has been discontinued following MacEwan's divestment of its ACAC membership, there are many memories, including the top team ever to wear the maroon and white.
On that 2013-14 men's rink, both Steinke brothers were named to the CCAA tournament all-star team, while Bissell earned ACAC all-conference honours at the lead position.
Brothers Jordan and Tristan Steinke formed the back end of MacEwan's 2013-14 CCAA national championship rink, which also included second Brett Winfield, lead Ben Bissell and fifth Kristian Bush (MacEwan Griffins file photo).
By the time Jordan Steinke finished his curling career at MacEwan in 2015, he had accomplished something no other Griffins student-athlete ever has: win three-straight athlete of the year awards. Steinke etched his name on MacEwan's Male Athlete of the Year trophy in 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15.
"He showed his abilities," said Kitagawa. "He came to the Griffins as a very strong curler and he just continued that. He showed a lot of leadership, he showed it on the ice with his throwing. During his tenure, he won CCAA gold, silver and bronze, so he won one of each. The silver that he lost, he played really well, but unfortunately, the other team just played better. That was against NAIT.
"Over the course of his career at the university, he just excelled. He was a very positive influence and was very strong technically and tactically. He really deserved it (the three-straight male athlete of the year awards). He was a big reason why the team did as well as they did."
Altogether, Griffins curling rinks also won 16 ACAC Championships – three men's (1990, 2005 and 2015), six women's (1993, 2005, 2010, 2014, 2016 and 2019) and seven mixed (1992, 1996, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2018 and 2020).
"Through its history, the curling program at MacEwan has made a significant contribution to the Griffins lore," said Director of Athletics Ken Schildroth. "Coach Kitagawa's effective leadership has put the Griffins in a position where championships were consistently possible and achieved. The Griffins extend our thanks to the student athletes and coaching staffs."
Four Griffins rinks won CCAA medals. Besides the men's gold in 2014, the men also won silver in 2013, while MacEwan women's teams captured a bronze in 2013 and a silver in 2019.
MacEwan's 2019-20 women's team of Erin Wells, left, Taitan Hagglund, Andie Kurjata, Megan Berg and Ashton Simard poses with coach Brian Lupul. All but Berg were members of MacEwan's CCAA silver-medal-winning rink from 2018-19 (Joel Kingston photo).
"The women came close (to a national championship) last year, which was one of the most memorable moments, for sure," said Kitagawa of the Ashton Simard, Erin Wells, Andie Kurjata, Taitan Hagglund and Rebecca Bartz rink which lost 9-7 to Douglas College in the final at Fredericton, N.B.
Three-quarters of that rink – Simard, Wells and Kurjata – were named all-stars at their position, repeating the feat they also accomplished at the ACAC level.
Over the years, MacEwan curlers were named to ACAC all-conference teams 39 times, while Griffins won the ACAC's curler of the year award five times. Jordan Steinke accomplished that feat twice (2011-12 and 2014-15), while Aaron Sluchinski (2007-08), Krysta Hilker (2013-14) and Simard (2018-19) also earned the honour.
"Over the course of the 13, 14 seasons I've been here, there was a whole raft of players," said Kitagawa. "Some were two-year players because at the start of the program, MacEwan had a number of two-year programs. When we slowly transitioned to being a four-year degree-granting institution, players stayed longer.
"There have been a number of players who have continued on into the competitive ranks. Jordan's one of them. Tristan Steinke's gone onto the University of Alberta and won a U SPORTS championship (2018 as the third on Karsten Sturmay's rink). He's also won a provincial junior men's championship.
"Aaron Sluchinski's another one who played for the Griffins that I coached. He was at the provincial men's this year, coming out of the south (and former Griffin Jason Ginter was on his team). That's just the tip of the iceberg. There's a whole pile of them who are playing in different locations."
Head coach Tom Kitagawa, left, poses with MacEwan's 2019-20 men's rink of skip Riley Ross, left, third Jordan Geiger, second Brandon Rubisch and lead Joel MacDonald (Joel Kingston photo).
At the end of the day, Griffins curlers have plenty to be proud of as they established a legacy of excellence over many years competing in the ACAC.
"The ACAC was a wonderful experience," said Kitagawa. "The coaches there were very welcoming and always made us a part of the group. Like any organization, there was always some differences of opinion. They were a very collegial group and I enjoyed my time there. I made some very good friends along the way."
