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Defendin« rhamwc% rariw« to an By STEVE LeBLANC The Champion Winning Hlton and GHAC basebaîl tilles last spring obviously didn't do much for Bishop Reding's profile. Seeded seventh in the Toronto Star's ini- tial GTA polling last week, the defending champion Royals were mislakenly identi- lied as cross-town rival E.C. Drury. "If that doesn'î keep us grounded, I don't know what will. They don't even know our school's name," quipped head coach Joe Jurus, adding that he doesn't put much stock in rankings anyway. Nevertheless, Reding bas to be consid- ered a top threat once again in Halton. White graduates Conan O'Brien and Andrew Pepper leave some big shoos to flI in terrus of both production and leadership. BR certainly isot hurting for talent. lu addition t0 'Reg Taylor and Liam Tennant -who fmustrated hinters through- out 2t003 and wilt likely do more of the same starting nexi week -the Royats have a number of promising players coin- ing over from Ibis year's highly-successful senior basketball team. Said Jurus, "Winning is as much about attitude as anything else. It's a habit. They <cagers) showed a lot of mental toughness through their season. You cao only ocin s0 many close games before people realize it's more than luck." Among the newcomers looking 10 keep Reding's basebaîl squad on top are Marcas Gray, Sean Mathé and Nick Mazzorato - who's expected 10 split the caîching duties with veteran Tim Kirk. The biggesl question marks heading 010o Monday's home opener against Oakvilte's Iroquois Ridge are whether or not Taylor and Tennant cao shoulder the leadership load Ibis year and if the Royals cao find a capable number îwo pitcher to replace Malti Tales - who's now attending Georgetown's Christ the King. .Eleventh grader PJ. McColl appears to be the best shot at fllling that hole in the rotation. 'he yiiuîsg lefty doesn*t corne in with a whote lot of velocity or fanfare, but Midget cagers strike gold After three thîrd-place finishes, the midget Madd Dawgs have finally netted top toumnament honours. They did s0 with a perfect campaigo fast weekend in Hamilton, punctuating the tille drive with a 63-55 overtime victory againsl the host Wildcaîs Saturday evening. Trailing by 10 aI the half, Milton cranked things up more than a few notches 10 force the extra session - which they dommnated 8-0. AI Alilovie led with 19 points, while Dalton Olinoski and Malik Diaz- Mercurius contributed 15 and 10 respec- tively. The Madd Dawgs' reversaI of fortune was sparked by Nathan Carter, who forced tbree tumnovers for fast break baskets early in the third quarter. En route to the finals, the eveistual cham- piontrs kîîocked off' ilîrce oppssieits. Ttiey Instali Smoke Alarms It's The Law. "Jo E w begaîs with an 85-25 massacre of' Woodstock and then turned aside Gloucester (58-22) and Kawartha (43-32). Back aI Bishop Reding Secondary Sehool Wednesday evening. the Madd Dawgs were upstaged by Toronto Five-O 59-49 in the fast remaining game beooe the OBA final rankingu are set. Down by 20 heading int the fourth quarter, tIhe host cagers delivered a strong finish t0 make thse oulcome a lintle more respectable. However they fell hohind early and just couldn't measure up 10 their guesîs in terms of speed and rebounding - despite hoating therni just a couple of weeks earlier. Diaz-Mercurius recorded nine points in the final framne and 15 overaîl 10 lead Milton's production, while Olinoski high- lighted the first quarter with three straight field goals. then neither did Tales -who often rivaled Tennant as Halton's mout effective hurler fast spring. 1I still don't know how Malt got aIl those guys out. He certainly wasn'î îhaî power- fuI," recalled Jurus. A concentrated two-week regular season could be the biggest obstacle for the Royals, who as of yesterday stilI hadn't had an off-field practice -with recent dlown- pours leaving Maplehurst and Brian BesI parks unusable. Hoocever. Jurus' frustration over Ibis seems overshadowed by overaîl opîimism. But then heading mbt the season as defend- ing champs will do that. 'We've got the trophy and everyone wanîs il," he said. Meanwhile, Milton's two other hal tearus - the E.C. Drury Spartans and Milton District Mustangs - could be in store for a rather tough spring. Both tearns have few retumnees -partie- ularly the Spartans. who're back from a one-year hiatus and have jusl three players from 2W82. Infielders Jordan Fagiîî and Chrîs Whitîng are expecîed 10 ho among the brîght spots in the lineup. The Mustanigs shoutd ho aI least credible on the mound with veterans Chris Jones, Aarons Mark and Adant Rosanally back in the fold. Beyond that. however. MD does- nIt have much experience -which could make consistent hitting tough 10 come by. The Mustangs kicked off 2004 witb a 7- 3 exhibition win over Hamilton's Westdale Monday and bout Oakville Trafalgar Monday aI Brian Best. E.C. Drury will alto gel ils regular sea- son campalgn underway Monday with a trip 10 Negaweya 10 face Oakville's Q.E. Park. AIl games start aI 3:30 p.m. RECYCLE THISU PAPER PLEASE The Canadian Champion, Fniday, April 30, 2004-23 ony Meday Auc tioneera. 905-878-2647:00a at theAgricutura cHa, Mfeeh aignel Roetat o items just jin gass clu hn Rya oulns oin s oement? You'd be surprised who needs our help. The Red Shield appeal is T'Me Salvation Army's major fundraising effort for supporting ils ministry 10 those in need on both a local (Milton) and national (Canada) level. Your support Iselps us 10: - Feed ansd clothe low income famî- lies " Olter sîteller (or tise hollielc'ss " Ruit ,îlîer scîsool prograns *Reh.îb cetîters * [ospitals *Hoine> tor lxttîered ss ointen * [isas1,er i .fief' Enclosed in your May 4îh copy of Thse Champion is ant envelope for thse purpose of submitting donations 10 TIse Salvation Army. This is in lieu of our yearly door 10 door campaign. AIl donations will receive a charitable lax receipt. Please include your postal codle to etîsure that the Molliies receisecd ssi retio 10 (e co)nllnînîtîts of M iltonl. l)inaîtitîs, Gý ili ,îl o lie r-ecels cd aT the Miltoit off ice on I0 Ntpissîtt- A1ve, tnit #ý T I ii miore infuormation cati 905-875-10122. 2 for The power to amaze yourself. Spith serice 905-875-9246 327 Bronte St. S., Unit #10, Milton Over 7,700 locations to serve you. www.curvesintemnational.com 0Offer based on firt.îeollmen, minimum2 mo. c.d. progam. Serice fee paid ai lime of enrolîmeni. Nol valid with aoy oter offer. Vatîd oniy ai participahing locations. *MILTON MINOR Annual General Meeting Monday May 10/04 at 7:00 pm Banquet Room Milton Sports Centre Corne and find out what's been happening throughout 2003/2004 season ALSO Ellections will be held at this time for new Board members for the 2004/2005 season. Severa'. Executive & Director positions are open - your help is needed