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16 Sports Oakville Beaver www.aplushomes.ca Adam Campbell 905-844-4444 I N D E P E N D E N T LY O W N E D A N D O P E R AT E D Broker of Record B R O K E R A G E SPORTS EDITOR: JON KUIPERIJ Phone 905-845-3824 (ext. 432) Fax 905-337-5571 email sports@oakvillebeaver.com · WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 27, 2010 Dream coming true for snowboarder Jeff Batchelor felt all along he'd be on the Canadian Olympic snowboarding team, but he's still happy to have earned his spot the conventional way. The 21-year-old Oakville resident officially qualified for the Olympic team Friday, finishing second in halfpipe at a World Cup competition in Stoneham, Que. Batchelor's second top-5 World Cup finish of the season earned him an automatic berth on the Canadian squad that will compete in the Vancouver Games next month. If he hadn't qualified, Batchelor was still optimistic he would have been selected for the team because of his track record the past few years, including the world championship he won a year ago. "It didn't come as a surprise to me," Batchelor said yesterday (Tuesday) from Calgary, where he will train for the next couple weeks. "But who wants to win by default? It was good to get two top-5s." Making the Olympic snowboarding team is the realization of a dream that began when Batchelor was eight years old. However, it wasn't until 2005, when he placed 11th at his second-ever World Cup meet, that Batchelor first began to believe that the dream could become a reality. "The Olympics, for me, is the highest level of competition," the Appleby College grad said. "I've been working towards it for the longest time." Batchelor fully expects to be on the podium next month at Cypress Mountain, but he knows he'll face plenty of stiff competition. Shaun White, Louie Vito and Scotty Lago headline a talented American team, while Finland's Janne Korpi finished ahead of Batchelor at Friday's World Cup meet. Armed with his trusty iPod and headphones, Batchelor doesn't expect the pressures of competing on home soil will affect him in Vancouver. "Once I put my music on, I'm always in the same spot," he said. "The Jeff Spot." He'll have plenty of fan support at Cypress Mountain as well. Batchelor said his parents Dave and Nancy and sister Jennifer will be making the trip out west, as will a few cousins and some friends from Queen's University and Toronto. Olympic men's halfpipe qualification, semifinals and finals will all be held Feb. 17. -- Jon Kuiperij MEDAL HOPEFUL: Local resident Jeff Batchelor lifts his snowboard triumphantly after earning a spot on the Canadian Olympic team with a secondplace finish at a World Cup meet Friday in Quebec. The 21-year-old Appleby College grad has set a podium finish as his goal for next month's Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver. SEAN KILPATRICK / THE CANADIAN PRESS Loss hurts Blades' shot at first Ice gets offensive against Markham The Oakville Blades' hopes of finishing first in the Ontario Junior A Hockey League regular-season standings took a hit last weekend. The Blades' seven-game winning streak was snapped Friday with a 3-2 loss to the Couchiching Terriers at Joshua's Creek Arenas. Despite winning their other two games on the weekend to improve to 36-7-1 on the year, the Blades sat seven points behind the league-leading Kingston Voyageurs (38-3-4) before the Blades' road game last night (Tuesday) against the Collingwood Blues. Oakville and Kingston both have 11 games remaining in the regular season, including a head-to-head matchup Feb. 4 in Kingston. Mark McGowan had two goals for the Blades Friday to give them a 2-0 lead entering the third period, but the Terriers scored three unanswered markers in the final frame. Saturday, the Blades bounced back to whip the Blues 7-1. McGowan once again potted a pair, with singles going to Thomas Evans, Nic Rivait, Steven Guzzo, Dustin Alcock and Mark Bennett. Ryan Murphy had four assists in support of winning goaltender Mike Morissette. The Blades then traveled to Huntsville Sunday and dealt the Otters a 6-4 defeat. Kellan Lain, Nick Scamurra, Kyle Badham, Guzzo, Murphy and McGowan had the Oakville tallies, with Morissette again earning the win in goal. The Blades host the Brampton Capitals in their next home game, 7:30 p.m. Friday at Joshua's Creek Arenas. After a few months of going AWOL, the Oakville Ice's offence suddenly returned Sunday at Joshua's Creek Arenas. The Ice exploded for four first-period goals on its way to a 6-4 victory over the Markham Stars Sunday, concluding a 2-0 weekend for the local Provincial Women's Hockey League squad. Oakville's six-goal outburst marked only the third time in the team's past 25 games that it scored more than three goals in a contest. Jaclyn Conacher led the way with a goal and two assists against Markham, while Hayleigh Cudmore contributed three helpers. Cassie Albertine, Courtney BrindAmour-McClure, Julie Hall, Andrea Ziesmann and Megan O'Neill also tallied for the Ice. Ali Binnington earned the victory in goal, making 35 saves. Binnington was also on top of her game the previous day, kicking out 28 shots to blank the London Devilettes 3-0. Lisa Donachey, Alie BrindAmour-McClure and Ziesmann had the Oakville goals Saturday. The Ice (11-13-5-1) currently sits 11th in the league standings with four games to go in the regular season. The top 16 teams in the league qualify for the playoffs. Oakville will host the Whitby Wildcats in its next game Saturday, a 4:30 p.m. start at Joshua's Creek Arenas.