MONTREAL -- Rachel Homan started defence of her Scotties Tournament of Hearts title in style. Blake Griffin Clippers Jersey . Homan and her Team Canada (1-0) rink from Ottawa scored four in the eighth end for an 8-3 victory over Manitobas Chelsea Carey (0-1) on Saturday night at the Maurice Richard Arena. "The team played really well in front of me," said Homan, the winner last year in Kingston, Ont. "It was a tough battle. It was 4-3 and then one big end kind of ended it. My team just really had it today." It was a nervy but successful start for Val Sweetings Alberta rink. The Sweeting team (2-0) with lead Rachel Pidherny, second Dana Ferguson and third Joanne Courtney scored three points in the ninth end for a comeback 7-5 victory over 20-year-old newcomer Sarah Koltun (0-1) of the Yukon and Northwest Territories in the opening draw. In the evening, Sweeting took the early lead, wasted it, and then scored two in an extra end for an 8-6 win over 22-year-old Kesa van Osch of British Columbia (1-1). Heather Strong (2-0) of Newfoundland used the shot of the day to edge the home team, Quebecs Allison Ross (0-2), 5-4 with a raised angle takeout on the final shot. Stefanie Lawton (1-0) of Saskatchewan downed Allison Flaxeys Ontario rink (0-1) 8-6. Koltun looked ready for an upset when she stole a point for a 4-1 lead in the fifth end to throw a scare into 26-year-old Sweeting, a youngster herself in only her second Scotties. "They were outplaying us for sure," said Sweeting. "We set up some good ends and she made some good draws to save them, but we stayed patient and had an opportunity in the ninth and took advantage. "Im happy to get out of that one with a win, but we definitely have to sharpen up. We knew we couldnt take them lightly. Its their first time here and they have nothing to lose." A miss by Koltun with her first stone in the ninth set up the decisive steal by Alberta. Sweetings rink kept the house clear in the 10th and left no chance for the Whitehorse skip to force an extra end. Koltun is the youngest skip ever to play in the Scotties and is the first to skip at the Canadian junior and Scotties championships in the same year. She went 5-4 at the juniors two weeks ago in Liverpool, N.S. with two of her three teammates at the Scotties. She skipped a record seven times at national junior championships and is considered among the rising talents in the sport. But she may have let one get away in her debut. "We were in control at the beginning and it was just that one bad end, but its our first game at our first Scotties so well take what we can from it," said Koltun. "We are happy to be here, but we want to contend and be competitive and I think we showed that in this first game by putting up a really strong fight." Quebecs Allison Ross had a disappointing start as she failed to score until she picked up one point in the eighth end. After scoring, Ross conceded a 6-1 victory to New Brunswicks Andrea Crawford. The Quebec side from Montreal curled only 64 per cent as a group, lowest of the day. She found her draw weight in her evening match against Strong, which had the crowd of 1,825 roaring, but fell short when the Newfoundland skip pulled off her winning takeout. "I was reading the ice better," said Ross. "Its a disappointing loss, but Heather made an amazing shot. You want to leave the other team a hard shot, and she made it." Strong had won the Hot Shots competition -- a pre-tournament skills exhibition -- on Saturday morning and it may have helped her against Quebec. "A lot of the (Hot Shots) are indicative of what you face in game, so I referred back to that a lot," she said. "I felt good when I threw it, but I was coming off missing the one right before it, so I was a little torn. "We were exhausted. It was late back home. There were the opening ceremonies, we were in the Hot Shots right through. It was a long day, so to pull off that second win was awesome." Strong had won her first match as she took a 6-2 lead after six ends, then had to hold off a charge from Nova Scotias Heather Smith (0-1) for an 8-5 victory. Van Osch needed an extra end to defeat Kim Dolans Prince Edward Island rink 7-4. The 22-year-old from Victoria admitted to feeling nervous in her debut match, but settled down as it went on against the veteran Dolan, who is in her 10th Scotties. Van Osch said she hasnt set any goals for the tournament. "Were a first-year team," she said. "It was a bonus just to make it to the Scotties this year. Were taking things as they come, game by game." There are three draws scheduled for Sunday, including Team Canada against both Ontario and Quebec. 23:04ET 01-02-14 Montrezl Harrell Clippers Jersey . You can watch the game live on TSN2 and TSN Mobile TV at 9pm et/6pm pt. Jonathan Huberdeau and Quinton Howden are expected to make their debuts for Team Canada. Louis Williams Jersey . 5 Trade Deadline is drawing closer and teams will be deciding on whether to buy or sell while figuring out which players can make the biggest difference and hold the greatest value. http://www.clippersnbateamshop.info/louis-williams-clippers-jersey/ . -- Tiago Splitter tipped in a rebound with 2.(SportsNetwork.com) - On the surface, Rex Ryan going to Buffalo doesnt make all that much sense. After all, the Bills already had a pretty good defense with Jim Schwartz orchestrating things and its the offense which needs the tune-up, especially with veteran quarterback Kyle Orton walking off into the sunset and E.J. Manuel warming up for what could be his last opportunity to prove he is the answer in Western New York. So why did new Bills owner Terry Pegula land on the defensive-minded Ryan after a two-week coaching search, which included names like Indianapolis offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton and his counterpart with New England, Josh McDaniels? The answer is Doug Marrone, Pegulas former coach who exited in such a fashion that loyalty became a much bigger deal to the organization than any particular scheme, be it offensive or defensive. Marrones agent, Jimmy Sexton, negotiated an escape clause in Marrones contract that gave the coach a three-day window at the end of the season in which he could terminate his deal with the team but still receive his full salary for the 2015 season, even in a double-dip situation in which Marrone coaches for a new team next September. When he takes a job, he already has a plan in place for his next job, Bob Casullo, a former Marrone assistant at the University of Syracuse, told ESPN Radio earlier this month. Whoever gave him that three-day opt-out clause, his agent is a genius and the person who signed it for the Buffalo Bills is a complete idiot. Pegula, of course, didnt hire Marrone and didnt negotiate the one-sided deal with him, but he was ready to move forward with the coach after a solid, albeit unspectacular, 9-7 season despite the fact that the Bills were unable to end a playoff drought that spans back to the 20th century. Uh, shocked, Pegula said at Ryans introductory press conference on Wednesday when asked about Marronees abrupt departure. Blake Griffin Jersey. More than shocked, but hey, I liked Doug Marrone when he was here. He was probably the guy I talked to more than anybody. So he made that decision. He moved on. Not before issuing a mass text to his players to inform them of the news after employing his golden parachute out of Buffalo. Any time you get a text message saying that its happening, you feel like you got punched in the stomach, Bills running back Fred Jackson said on his radio show. I mean, stuff could have been handled different. It will be handled differently under Ryan, the very definition of a players coach and a man with the reputation of being loyal to a fault as well as painfully honest at times. This football team deserves a loyal coach and deserves loyal players, Ryan said while taking a not-so subtle dig at his predecessor, who Casullo described as self-centered, selfish and greedy. Thats what were bringing, Ryan added. Nobodys more loyal than me as a football coach. And nobody can get players more fired up than Ryan. We are going to build a bully and were gonna see if you want to play us for 60 minutes, Ryan said, reverting back to his pre-John Idzik persona with the New York Jets. Technically the Buffalo defense is already a bit of a bully, finishing fourth in total defense, while recording a league-leading 54 sacks and producing three Pro Bowl defensive linemen this past season. Fourth in the league was probably a little disappointing, the braggadocios Ryan said. I know well lead the league in defense. Im not going to let our fans down, he continued. Im not going to do that. I know its been 15 years since the Bills made the playoffs. Well, get ready, man. Were going. We are going. Going where? The guarantee? Hey, am I going to guarantee a Super Bowl? Ryan asked rhetorically. I tell you what I will do, I will guarantee the pursuit of it. ' ' '