Team Koltun started out strong in Ottawa this weekend, before dropping a tight semifinal match that saw them end their tournament on a slide.

The Yukon junior women's curling rink was participating in the JSI-OVSA Junior Superspiel in the nation's capital this weekend, which marked a homecoming for third Andrea Sinclair, who joined the squad this summer.

The junior rink also consists of skip Sarah Koltun, second Patty Wallingham and lead Jenna Duncan.

Team Koltun got off to a good start Friday morning, beating Quebec's Team MacKay 5-3 and New Brunswick's Team Daigle 6-4 before losing a tough back-and-forth matchup to Manitoba's Team Peterson in the A Draw semifinal Friday night.

Team Koltun started the semifinal matchup off by scoring five in the first end, but could not hang on for the win.

"We have been struggling a little bit, just trying to find our footing as a team,” Sinclair said when reached in Ottawa yesterday afternoon. "But for this bonspiel, we just really focused on getting back to basics, taking the simpler approach, making the other team make a more difficult shot versus us. And that turned out really well in the first couple games.”

The Yukoners would go on to lose their final two games of the bonspiel to eventual B Draw winner, Team Haymes of Ontario, and Team Christensen from the U.S.A.

Despite the early-season losses, Sinclair said the team is starting to come together.

"Personality-wise, we fit together really well and bring out the best in everyone,” Sinclair said. "But with any new team, it's finding that careful balance when you're out on the ice, how to say things to who and when.”

The 20-year-old said the return to Ottawa was a welcome boost to her psyche, and seeing her family and friends helped recharge and refresh her as the junior rink now sets its sights on the territorial playdowns in late December.

Sinclair chose to enjoy an extra few days in Ottawa while her teammates returned to Whitehorse yesterday.

The superspiel marked the end of a three week long road trip that saw Team Koltun finish 1-2 at the Whitney Field Junior Curling Classic in Lloydminster, and 1-3 at the Kamloops Crown of Curling.

Coach Lindsay Moldowan said the road trip proved to be a good learning experience for the young rink.

"Clearly we didn't do as well as we had wanted to, but at the end of the day, it still is early in the season,” she said.

"What we got out of it is what we need to work on. If you look at it that way, then it's a positive experience. Now there's a clearer picture of what they need to do as a team and what I need to do as a coach once they can get back here.

"We have a lot of hard work to do, and they've proven to me year after year that they can do it,” Moldowan added. "We have a plan going forward … and I fully, 100 per cent, believe that they'll be fine by the time they need to be.”