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Sports 26 O k ill SPORTS EDITOR: JON KUIPERIJ Phone 905-845-3824 (ext. 432) Fax 905-337-5571 email sports@oakvillebeaver.com WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 3, 2011 By Kevin Nagel METROLAND MEDIA GROUP BURLINGTON The Oakville Golden As know only too well the combination of luck and skill needed to win a national oldtim- ers baseball division championship. Monday at Nelson Park, the As scored early and hung on to defeat the Petit de-Grat Red Caps from Nova Scotia 11-8 in the 44+ Tier 1 championship game, the only area team to capture one of six trophies up for grabs among 35 teams competing from across Canada. Burlington Vintage Baseball clubs were favoured to have a good shot at winning a couple of divisions, and although all three of the BVB 49ers teams made the semifinals, none could advance any further. The biggest problem of running a tournament, as we did awhile back, is that your mind is all over the place, said Rich Knight, manager of the As. Somewhere along the line you come up flat or play a weaker team just before the big game. Oakville scored seven runs in the first inning, then watched the Red Caps rally to within one with a six-run explosion in one inning. The Red Caps six runs immediately followed a comment Knight made to a teammate. I said Were OK now. Even if they get six runs well still be winning, said an embarrassed Knight, relieved when his team countered with a quick couple of runs of their own. I shouldnt have said it. It came back to haunt me. In the Tier II final in the same age group, Scarborough Maroons had little trouble with the Barrie Red Sox, winning 11-1. Burlingtons entry in the division, the Grey 49ers, were 3-1 in round-robin play but were doubled up by the As in the semifinals, 14-7. Silver 49ers player/manager Terry Wilkinson, the tournament chair, said he was disappointed his team, and the other Burlington 49ers squads, couldnt reach a championship game. Thats baseball, he said. We had over 100 Burlington Vintage Baseball players participating at the tournament. Thats a good thing. A victory would have been much better. Another Oakville Golden A's entry reached the semifinals of the 50+ division before falling 13-3 to the Petit-de-Grat Red Caps. The Red Caps won the Tier II final 11-9 over the Brampton Pioneers. Golden A's pitcher thrives with 8unorthodox delivery, page 2 Golden A's golden at oldtimer nationals PLAY AT THE PLATE: Joey Lopez of the Oakville Golden A's (right) slides safely into home as Petit-de-Grat Red Caps catcher Kevin Olsen g p p g y gawaits the throw durin the cham ionshi ame of the national oldtimers baseball 44+ Tier 1 final Monda in Burlin ton. By Herb Garbutt OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Oakville Trafalgar High School rugby coach Dan Valley says you can definitely see a difference in a player when they return from playing with a pro- vincial team. Its not the skills you notice coming back, but the confidence, he said. Its one thing to be a good player on your high school team but making a provincial squad lets you know you can compete with the best in the prov- ince. Valley should have a confident team returning next spring. Three Red Devils players and five Oakville players in all landed spots on the Ontario girls' rugby teams that will compete at the national championships in Calgary August 15-21. Danielle Spice and Molly Labenski from OT, Haley Thomson from Abbey Park and Kendyl Wilson from White Oaks will play for the under-17 team, while OTs Bethany Greer will play on the Ontario under-16 team. It is the second straight year representing Ontario for Spice and Wilson, who played for the provincial under-16 team last year. Spice said playing at the national tournament helped motivate her to become a better player. Having that experience playing against players just as good or better than you, she said, it makes you want to be faster and be stronger. Valley said Spice, a flyhalf, is the fastest player on the OT team that won a bronze medal at the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Association (OFSAA) tournament. But he said it is her drive that really sets her apart. She wants to learn. She asks questions and shes starting to recognize how to correct things herself, the OT coach said. She works so hard because she wants it. She wants to play for Canada. Labenski will be making her debut with the pro- vincial team. Though she believed she could make the Five local players earn spots on provincial girls' rugby squads Having that experience playing against players just as good or better than you, it makes you want to be faster and be stronger. Danielle Spice, member of Ontario under-17 girls' rugby team See Fullback, page 27 MICHAEL IVANIN / OAKVILLE BEAVER