The Schultz rink of the Comox Valley Curling Club qualified to represent the North Island at the 18th annual Pacific International Cup (PIC) April 19-23 in Richmond.

Teams compete to qualify out of their zones (eight in B.C.) and then to become provincial champions in the BC Club Challenge.

There was also an international side to the event, with teams from the U.S., Australia and New Zealand.

Val Schultz (skip), Melanie Rait (third), LeeAnne Alberti (second) and Mare Michell (Lead) got off to a quick start defeating past champs from the South Island鈥檚 Cowichan team, along with teams from Creston, Cloverdale and Richmond before conceding their only loss to the Golden Ears (Maple Ridge) team. They rebounded quickly to finish the round robin with wins over Marpole and Kamloops and a first place 6-1 record, earning a bye into the gold medal game.

After defeating the third-place Golden Ears rink, the momentum of the Richmond team proved to be more than the Schultz rink could handle, falling to the hometown favourites.

After five days of curling, camaraderie and fundraising for Spinal Cord Injury BC, the Schultz team is happy to bring home the silver medal.