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35| The IFP -H alton H ills | T hursday,M arch 15,2018 theifp.ca SPORTS Visit theifp.ca for more coverage Just like thousands of Canadi- ans, Ben Abram will be spending his March break in Florida, soaking up the sun. But the recently turned 18- year-old right-handed pitcher does have some important busi- ness to attend to while in the Sun- shine State, including a game against the big-league Toronto Blue Jays on St. Patrick's Day. Abram, a Grade 12 George- town District High School stu- dent, has been invited to attend Baseball Canada's Junior Na- tional Team Spring Training Camp starting Monday (March 15) in St. Petersburg. At six-foot-eight and 240 pounds, Abram has committed to the University of Oklahoma this fall and is considered the fourth best pro prospect in Cana- da. He has played his club ball for the Ontario Terriers, under coach and local resident Scott Van de Valk and his fastball was recently clocked at 89 miles an hour. The St. Petersburg camp in- cludes daily workouts, a six- game professional schedule against minor league prospects from the Baltimore Orioles, De- troit Tigers, Philadelphia Phil- lies, Tampa Bay Rays and Toron- to Blue Jays organizations, with two intersquad games and an ex- hibition contest against the Fort Lauderdale Stars also planned. The highlight of the week will come on March 17 when the team will travel to Dunedin Stadium in Dunedin to take on a split-squad version of the Toronto Blue Jays. This is the seventh time in eight years that the two sides have come together for a game that has become a true celebration of the Baseball Canada/Toronto Blue Jays' partnership. Fans in Canada will be able to watch the game on Sportsnet One and listen across the Sports- net Radio Network live from Dunedin beginning at 1 p.m. Abram, Junior National Team to face Blue Jays Big Ben Abram of Georgetown will get to test his pitches against Major League hitters at the Baseball Canada Junior National Team Spring Training Camp in St. Petersburg, Fla. during the March Break. Baseball Canada photo Round two of the Ontario Ju- nior Hockey League's post-sea- son gets underway Wednesday as the Georgetown Raiders host the North York Rangers in the best-of-seven South/West Con- ference semifinal matchup. Game time at the Alcott Are- na is 7:30 p.m. North York actually out- pointed Georgetown 80-78 in the regular-season standings, but the Raiders are the second seed and have home-ice advantage over the third-ranked Rangers after finishing first in the West Division. Taking the regular-season series 3-1, the 36-12-3-3 Raiders will also host Game 2 Saturday, March 17 at 7:30 p.m. before the series switches to North York on Sunday, March 18 and Tuesday, March 20 for games 3 and 4. Both clubs swept their open- ing-round series over St. Mi- chael's and Buffalo, respective- ly. The 37-11-1-5 Rangers are coached by former Raiders' as- sistant Geoff Schomogyi. The top-ranked Toronto Patriots will take on the fourth- seeded Oakville Blades in the other South/West Conference semifinal. Raiders set for clash with North York Rangers 312 GUELPH ST., GEORGETOWN 905-877-2296 www.georgetowntoyota.com Saturday Mar. 17th, 2018 Georgetown Raiders vs. North York Rangers Friday Mar. 23rd, 2018 Georgetown Raiders vs. North York Rangers Games are 7:30pm, Mold-Masters SportsPlex FRI NIGHT