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18 - The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday December 22, 2007 www.oakvillebeaver.com Kirkconnell's buzzer-beater keeps Loyola Hawks undefeated Sean Kirkconnell's 12-foot jumper as time expired gave the Loyola Hawks a thrilling 84-83 overtime victory over the Asssumption Crusaders in Thursday's battle of undefeated senior boys' basketball teams. HIGH SCHOOLSPORTS "It was a very big win for us coming into the break," said Loyola coach Gary Laurin. The Hawks rallied from a 12-point fourth-quarter deficit, sending the game to overtime when Adam Presutti hit a three-pointer in the final seconds of regulation. Loyola improved to 7-0 to share top spot in Halton's Volpe Division with the St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders (Aquinas won its seventh straight by routing Georgetown's Christ the King 80-35). Trailing by one in overtime, Loyola got the ball with 15 seconds remaining. The Hawks set up for one final shot but left themselves enough time to get a rebound if the initial shot failed. It turned out to be a good call as Kirkconnell grabbed the rebound and got his jumper away to give Loyola the win. Laurin said Thursday's game is a great example of the highly-contested Halton league. "There are five or six teams that on any given day can beat each other," he said. "That's going to make for an awesome playoff." In addition to Loyola and Aquinas, who will meet Monday, Feb. 4, Holy Trinity (5-2), Assumption (5-1), Notre Dame (5-0) and Nelson (5-1) are also making strong bids for the Halton title. Aquinas and Assumption will play in Burlington the first game after the Christmas break, Wednesday, Jan. 9. The following week, on Jan. 14, Holy Trinity hosts Loyola. Junior boys' basketball In junior boys' basketball, T.A. Blakelock remained undefeated with a 68-50 win over Nelson Thursday. Aquinas and Holy Trinity, each 6-1, kept pace with victories. Holy Trinity dropped Pearson 56-46 on Thursday while Aquinas was a 52-41 winner over Christ the King on Wednesday. In division 2 play, White Oaks took over first place by edging King's Christian Collegiate 41-38 Thursday. The win improved White Oaks to 4-1 while King's Christian dropped to 3-1. Senior girls' volleyball Two Oakville schools have emerged as the front-runners to challenge the Georgetown Rebels for the senior girls' volleyball crown. Both Oakville Trafalgar and St. Thomas Aquinas improved to 6-0 with victories on Wednesday. Aquinas defeated T.A. Blakelock while OT swept King's Christian Collegiate. Aquinas and Oakville Trafalgar are the only teams to interrupt Georgetown's hold on the Halton title over the past 12 years. The Red Devils and Raiders are scheduled to play Jan. 16. Loyola and White Oaks, who face one another Jan. 11, are also contenders, each sporting a 5-1 mark. Loyola edged Holy Trinity in three games Wednesday while White Oaks defeated Burlington Central. Junior girls' volleyball Loyola took over top spot in the junior girls' volleyball Volpe Division standings by downing Holy Trinity in two games. Loyola now leads the way with a 6-1 mark, while Holy Trinity fell to 5-2. White Oaks was also 5-1 heading into Wednesday's action but was upset by Burlington Central (3-4) in three games. Oakville Trafalgar (2-0 winners over King's Christian) and Aquinas (2-0 over Blakelock) each improved to 4-1. Girls' hockey Only one point separates the top five teams in the girls' hockey Tier 1 standings. That group includes the Loyola Hawks (3-1-2) and the T.A. Blakelock Tigers (3-11). Blakelock blanked Oakville Trafalgar 2-0 on Wednesday while Loyola handed Christ the King its first loss of the season earlier in the week, edging the Jaguars 3-2. White Oaks is in second place in the Tier 2 standings after improving to 4-1 with a 4-3 victory over Pearson on Thursday. Boys' hockey Oakville Trafalgar is one of four undefeated boys' hockey teams. OT leads the Volpe East Division with a 50-1 record. The Devils defeated Blakelock 3-0 on Wednesday. Holy Trinity is in second place with a 4-2-1 record. Abbey Park (4-3-0) and Loyola (3-1-2) share second in the Central Division standings. Loyola earned a 4-4 tie with first-place Nelson (4-0-3) on Wednesday. A day earlier, Nelson edged Abbey Park 3-2. BALL HOCKEY PLAYERS WANTED Non Contact - Exciting - Competitive - Fun Recreational Men's League · All Skill Levels Welcome! Beginner to Pro · Reg., Individual, 1/2 Team or Full Team Only $150 per person/season $ 10 off if you mention this ad January 6th, 2008. You're gonna love it! Space is Limited. www.sbhl.ca CALL 416-907-4907