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35| The IFP -H alton H ills | T hursday,M arch 29,2018 theifp.ca SPORTS Visit theifp.ca for more coverage For the third year in a row, the Georgetown Raid- ers have reached the Onta- rio Junior Hockey League's South/West Conference fi- nal after a remarkable 4-3 comeback overtime win at the Alcott Arena Monday evening. Rookie Justin Paul, a 17- year-old from Mississauga, netted the winner just over seven minutes into the first overtime for his second goal of the post-season to eliminate the North York Rangers in Game 7 of the best-of-seven semifinal. The Raiders now move on to face the top-ranked Toronto Patriots in the con- ference final with the dates yet to be announced. After battling back from a 3-1 series deficit, the Raid- ers looked to be in dire straits Monday, trailing by three goals at one stage, al- though persistence paid off as they generated 41 shots on the North York goal. Heading into Game 7, the Rangers tried to stem their opponent's momen- tum by turning to backup and former Raider goalie Jett Alexander for the de- ciding contest over all-star Colby Muise and the switch seemed to work as the visi- tors took a 3-0 lead midway through the middle frame. But the Raiders stormed back with late second-peri- od markers by Jordan Crocker and Bailey Molel- la, followed by the equalizer with just 1:36 left in regula- tion by blueliner Zac Elson, who scored twice in Sun- day's crucial 4-3 triumph at North York. There was only one mi- nor penalty called during the entire game and it re- sulted in a short-handed marker for Rangers' lead- ing scorer Nick Campoli at the 6:19 mark of the opening period. Georgetown netminder Troy Timpano was named second star, blocking 31 shots in front of about 600 spectators at the Alcott. Five of the seven games in the series were decided by one goal and another in- volved an empty-netter, un- surprising since the teams finished just two points apart in the standings, with the Raiders getting home ice advantage as West Divi- sion champs. The Patriots were also pushed to the limit in their semifinal series with Oak- ville, skating to an 8-3 victo- ry Sunday night in Game 7. Georgetown and Toron- to split the regular-season series with a win apiece and two 3-3 ties. Down 3? No biggie. Raiders rally to knock out North York in Game 7 OT RBC Training Ground gives local athletes - no mat- ter what sport they are in- volved in - the chance to test their strength, speed, power and endurance in front of of- ficials from 14 Olympic sports looking for new tal- ent. On Saturday, April 7, Olympic officials will be bringing the search for un- covered athletic gems to Mil- ton. This Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) and RBC initiative to bring new ath- letes into Canada's Olympic talent pool is an open talent discovery event. There is no charge to participate. The Milton event is one of more than 30 local combines hap- pening across the country in 2018. Top performers in Milton (any athletes deemed to have Olympic potential) will ad- vance to an Ontario regional final in Toronto on June 2 or begin further testing (one- on-one) with specific sports. In addition to training support from a national sport organization the ath- lete may not have consid- ered, top performers also earn "Future Olympian" fi- nancial support from RBC to help them on their Olympic journey. Any athletes from the re- gion (between the ages of 14 and 25) curious about whether they might be suit- ed to an Olympic sport are encouraged to sign up in ad- vance at rbctrainingground- .ca. At the event, they will be measured for anthropomet- ric suitability (things like wingspan and body type) and perform speed, power, strength and endurance benchmark tests in front of officials from the COC and 14 national sport organiza- tions in hopes of re-energiz- ing a dream or being discov- ered and directed toward an Olympic sport. Overall, the program is designed to help fill a hole in Canada's amateur sport sys- tem (talent identification in a country as big as Canada) and to then provide the un- covered talent with the high- performance sport resourc- es they need to achieve their podium dreams. Former Canadian Olympians Curt Harnett and Karina LeBlanc congratulate local resident Je'Land Sydney as he earned the Best Male Performance in the Speed category at the RBC Training Ground sport-specific testing combine in Toronto this past fall. The 19-year-old fared well in testing for other sports other than his speciality, track cycling, but he said he's sticking with the sport he took up at age six his native Trinidad & Tobago. Photo by Kevin Light Do you have what it takes to be an Olympian? 312 GUELPH ST., GEORGETOWN 905-877-2296 www.georgetowntoyota.com Saturday Mar 31st, 2018 Georgetown Raiders vs. Toronto Patriots Wednesday Apr 4th, 2018 Georgetown Raiders vs. Toronto Patriots Games are 7:30pm, Mold-Masters SportsPlex