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18 - The Canadian Ch ampion, Friday July 24, 1998 THE CANADIAN CHAMPION FRIDAY, JULY 24, 1998 Six Nations puts out Milton, Leworthy says opponents played race card to gain an edge Trudy Poland (left) and Jean Rouse swam their way to first-place honours recently at the Halton Senior Games. Seniors take three offive Halton golds By STEVE LeBLANC The Champion Milton's golden oldies pack a wallop in the water. A trio of local elders dominated the swimming portion of the recent Halton Senior Games in Burlington, taking three of five possible gold medals in the pool. With victory came advancement to the Ontario Senior Games, slated for August 18 to 20 in Windsor. All three swimmers are veterans of the provincial competition - held every sec- ond year - and each admits that having regular access to the state-of-the-art Milton Leisure Centre helps tremendously. "We're so lucky to have this place," stressed Jean Rouse. "My sister was visit- ing from England last week and said it was the best facility she's ever seen." Rouse, 66, prevailed in the 25-metre sprint, covering the distance in a cool 25 seconds flat. She had no serious chal- lengers. Said the long-time swimmer, "I don't want to brag but I wasn't all that surprised to win. I was pretty fast this time. "I don't have any high hopes for the Ontario Games however, because there'il be a lot of terrific athletes there." Milton's other two swimmers were each victorious in prediction races, which test consistency as well as speed. Participants predict their finish time and the closest to that forecast wins. Eric Muir, who was nine seconds over on his 3:10 prediction in the 100-metre, said it takes a great deal of concentration to even come close, much less finish bang on. "The mind tends to wander after a cou- ple of lengths," explained the 74-year-old, who's also an active lawn bowler. "Two years ago at the Ontario Senior Games in Richmond Hill I had a bad cold so at the last minute I changed my prediction from 3:10 to 3:20. "As it turned out, I swam 3:11 and would have won if I'd stuck to my original prediction." Too much speed almost cost Trudy Poland another trip to the provincial meet. The 63-year-old completed the 200-metre in 5:20 - a full 10 seconds faster than she had forecast. Fortunately her opponents were well off the mark, which allowed Poland to sneak • see GAMES on page 23 By STEVE LeBLANC The Champion The Jr. B Mavericks showed a lot more life Tuesday night, but not quite enough to keep their playoff hopes alive. Re-emerging for game seven - after weekend hibernation - were Milton's defensive prowess and overall hustle. Unfortunately, their scoring touch was still nowhere to be found, which helped visiting Six Nations pull off a 6-4 squeaker and cap a remarkable opening round comeback. Sitting on the verge of elimination for almost a week, the Red Rebels managed three straight wins to bounce their West Division rivals from postsea- son play. "It's a sham Mavs' skipper Jim Leworthy offered no excuses for losing the would use h series finale and praised his West this way a Division rivals for a spirited effort, particularly when chasing after Ontario1 loose balls. Association However, the local bench boss remains somewhat sour about cir- itself to he1 cumstances that contributed to and inan such a dramatic series turnaround •••••••••••••••••• and reversal of fortune for his club. i La "Tonight we lost based on the better team winning but that wasn't the case the previous two games," he said after a valiant but unsuccessful game seven campaign. Leworthy maintains that Six Nations' coach Vince Hill played the race card - through complaints of prejudicial officiating - which essentially allowed him to hand-pick referees for games five and six. As a result, Leworthy contends the Red Rebels were able to utilize overly aggressive tactics, including countless one-handed slashes, without much fear of reprisal. "It's a shame that Vince would use his position in this way and that the Ontario Lacrosse Association could allow itself to be intimidated and manipulated," stressed Leworthy. Tuesday's contest lived up to expectations of a game seven showdown, with a rich fan base (for both sides) in attendance for a highly-entertaining, tightly- contested affair. Unlike during their other three wins of the series, Six Nations wasn't able to put things away until well into the final frame, due mainly to exceptional goal- tending by Kevin Eansor. The sophomore cager stopped a total of 29 shots and came up with grand larceny saves on three Red Rebel breakaways. And while he enjoyed much more defensive help this time around his teammates were caught by Six Nations' full-court press a handful of times and sur- rendered two goals as a result. Kalen Bennett fired the game-winner on the most blatant of these hometown miscues with nine minutes remaning. Also scoring for the visitors were James Johnson, Dwayne Porter, Darcy Powless and Roger Vyse, who sank a picturesque behind-the-shoulder ne that Vince tally late in the second to give his cohorts a much needed MS position in boost. nd that the Moments earlier the Mavs had erased a two-goal deficit - Lacrosse with Ian Parker and Craig i could allow Hedley denting the twine - and taken a little wind out of Six intiinidated Nations' sails. ipulated." "I was trying to pump myself •••••••••••••••••••••. up as much as the crowd," ggig¶Y explained Parker, whose cele- bration lap after goal number one brought home team follow- ers to life for the first time in the senes. Captain Andrew Hartholt bulldozed his way past two defenders to notch Milton's third goal while fel- low first-liner Jimmy Leworthy Jr. capped the scoring with a shorthanded tally in the dying seconds of regu- lation time. With the exception of a brief second-period stretch, the Red Rebels held the upper hand the entire evening thanks to their ability to gobble up loose balls. Leading the way in this department was supporting cast member Paul Hill who absorbed untold amounts of punishment in the corners as well as during offen- sive zone picks. Standout efforts for Milton came from Bryan Jackson and Tony Moser, who along with Shawn Bomberry and Russ Fleming has now gone overage for junior lacrosse. Said Parker, "We've got a few big guys leaving but that should serve to unify the rest of us. If we all retum next year, we should take the Founder's (Cup) for sure." i. The moat 2, the V.ggl & The VWorks. TREAT A FRIEND To LUNCH! 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