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18 Sports Oakville Beaver SPORTS EDITOR: JON KUIPERIJ Phone 905-845-3824 (ext. 432) Fax 905-337-5571 email sports@oakvillebeaver.com · SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2009 MacCallum York's all-time leader By Jon Kuiperij best season yet. The 5-foot-7 guard led all OUA scorers in points per game (18.4) going into the final weekend of the regular season. Laura MacCallum has never been one to be overly A league scoring title would be the latest addition to concerned with individual statistics. an impressive basketball resume that already includes a Even as she neared a major milestone, the 23-year- Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) rookie-of-the-year old continued to play basketball the same way she award in 2004-05, two OUA first-team all-star selections, always had. In fact, she doesn't even an OUA championship and two appearknow the exact moment when she "I was never purposefully ances at nationals. became the all-time leading scorer in going out to break the MacCallum has also been one of York University history, a feat she record. I was just playing York's top two scorers in each of her accomplished during the Lions' 74-60 five seasons. as I normally do, and it loss to the University of Ottawa Gee"Laura is the epitome of a player became more and more Gees last month. that all coaches want on their team," "I knew I only needed 10 or 13 of a reality." said Lions head coach Bill Pangos. "She points (to surpass the York record of is a tremendous student, is coachable, 1,359 points, previously held by Laura MacCallum has a strong will to compete, can play at Nastassia Subban)," MacCallum said, both ends of the court and provides "but I wasn't keeping track of the points that I scored tremendous leadership on and off the court. She has litduring the game. I was never purposefully going out to erally given our Lions program everything she has." break the record. I was just playing as I normally do, MacCallum is considering playing semi-pro basketand it became more and more of a reality." ball next year in Toronto, and is also interested in coachMacCallum, who will suit up in her final university ing younger players. game today (Saturday) when York hosts the Ryerson "I'd like to get into the Oakville Vytis or the Venom, Rams, also became the fourth-highest scorer in Ontario maybe volunteer my time there," she said. "I'll get in University Athletics (OUA) history with her 28-point contact with some of the coaches over the next little effort against Ottawa. while, see if they want some assistance, just pass along A Paris native who moved to Oakville with her fami- what I know and help the younger players get to the ly five years ago, MacCallum is currently enjoying her next level." BEAVER SPORTS EDITOR IN THE RECORD BOOKS: Oakville resident Laura MacCallum recently became the top scorer in York University women's basketball history, breaking the school record with a 28-point game against the University of Ottawa. MacCallum will conclude a stellar five-year tenure at York tonight against Ryerson. PHOTO COURTESY OF YORK UNIVERSITY Swimmers making splash at U of T By Herb Garbutt OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Curtis Samuel is wasting little time following in some big footsteps. The rookie University of Toronto swimmer won four gold medals and added two silvers at the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) swimming championships last weekend. Samuel, whose father Craig was a national medley champion at U of T, was named the meet's top swimmer. Three other Oakville swimmers -- Cam Cummings, Zack Chetrat and Marco Monaco -- also played significant roles in helping the Varsity Blues' men's team win its sixth consecutive Ontario title. U of T's Oakville contingent combined for 14 medals, seven of them gold, plus an Ontario record by Chetrat. "They're very critical members of our team," said Varsity Blues coach Byron MacDonald. Samuel earned three individual victories. He won both the 400-metre and 1500m freestyle and posted a one-two finish with Cummings in the 400m individual medley. It took Chetrat's Ontario university record in the 200m butterfly to keep Samuel off the top step of the podium. Chetrat, also in his first year at U of T, turned in a time of 2:00.27, knocking 0.35 seconds off the nine-yearold Ontario record. Coach expects more in the future "They were my number one and two recruits," said MacDonald. "And the great thing is you look at these two and you know there's more to come." Craig Samuel was actually one of the first swimmers MacDonald recruited when he joined U of T as swim coach, and Curtis' mother, Linda, was a member of the Blues' women's swim team. Samuel teamed up with Monaco to lead the Blues to a win in the 4x200m freestyle relay and picked up his sixth medal in the 4x100m freestyle relay along with Cummings. The 20-year-old Cummings finished the meet with five medals. He swam a personal best to win the 100m backstroke and added silvers in the 200m backstroke and 400m individual medley. Cummings, Monaco and Chetrat were also members of the gold medal-winning 4x100m medley relay team. Chetrat also picked up a silver medal in the 4x50m freestyle relay. MacDonald said he has been trying to convince Cummings to add weight since he showed up three years ago as a 6-foot-5, 150-pound rookie. "He was bone thin," the coach said. "We've almost been force feeding him to get him up to 180 pounds. I told him this year, don't come back unless you're 180 so before he came in the first day, he gorged himself, had a second lunch, a few candy bars, and we weighed him and he was 180.5." MacDonald believes the extra weight will allow Cummings to add strength and better equip him to fight off sicknesses. Monaco, the reigning U of T athlete of the year, is coming off arthroscopic knee surgery in November. Despite limited pool time before the OUAs, the team captain earned bronze medals in both the 200m breaststroke and the 200m IM. "He suffered through it for 12 months and finally he couldn't suffer any more," MacDonald said. "He's not back in top form but I think it was important, personally for him, to do the surgery and get back with the team." The U of T contingent weren't the only Oakville See Other page 20