The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Jon Kuiperij Sports Editor sports@oakvillebeaver.com Sports M I L E S T O N E M O M E N T 23 | Wednesday, March 27, 2013 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com "Connected to your Community" OFSAA silver sweet and sour for Loyola girls by Jon Kuiperij Beaver Sports Editor Oakville's James Hinchcliffe crosses the finish line to earn his first career IndyCar victory Sunday in St. Petersburg, Fla.| photo courtesy of IndyCar Hinchcliffe proves he can be a winner by Herb Garbutt Oakville Beaver Staff As James Hinchcliffe pulled into Victory Lane Sunday in St. Petersburg, Fla., there was something missing. It's rare to see the 26-year-old at a racetrack -- or anywhere for that matter -- without a smile on his face. And having just won his first IndyCar race and achieved his childhood dream, you might have expected he would have popped out of his car like a Jack-in-the-box. Instead, Hinchcliffe sat in the cockpit of his car for nearly 30 seconds, staring forward with a look of disbelief on his face, his face stained with the tears that flowed when he took the checkered flag in the season-opening race. "It was so much more overwhelming than I expected it to be," he said. "I had to take a couple of minutes and regain my composure before I could face everyone. It was such a cool moment. I've always wanted to prove myself, that I could be a winner." The Oakville driver proved that Sunday, shooting past Helio Castroneves when the Brazilian driver locked his brakes and slid a little wide in the first turn on a restart. Hinchcliffe took advantage, darting to the Rebecca. "He got a go-kart for his ninth inside to take the lead with 25 laps re- birthday and from the age of 10, he was maining. But with the three-time Indy 500 determined he to be an IndyCar driver. He champion right on his heels, the hard part was absolutely convinced, even though the was still to come. odds are so stacked against you." Castroneves was running on red tires, Hinchcliffe will be the first to say that he which provide better grip and allow the car may not have earned his first go-kart victo maintain speed in corners, tory, which came when the while Hinchcliffe was on two front runners collided blacks, a harder compound and knocked themselves that doesn't break down as out of the race, opening the quickly. Hinchcliffe figured door for Hinchcliffe to take it was only a matter of time the win. But Sunday's vicuntil Castroneves got by tory was satisfying because him, but 10 laps later when it relied less on pit stops he was still in front, the tire and strategy -- though choice began to work in his both helped keep him at favour. He stretched his lead the front of the pack -- and and as he rounded the final simply came down to him corner and sped toward the outduelling one of the cirfinish line, he felt a sense of cuit's best drivers. relief, followed by the flood "He was just able to have Jeremy Hinchcliffe of emotions. James Hinchcliffe's father good exits and not make "I think of everything a single mistake," Castromy family has done to help neves said in the post-race me get here," he said. "They've been there press conference. "So compliment for him for the last 17 years, and continue to be on that because I was pushing, I was just there." going for it." "I know how important this is to him," The biggest factor in Hinchcliffe's win said his dad Jeremy, who watched from was his performance on restarts. After pitbox with his wife Arlene and daughter see Hinchcliffe on p24 From the age of 10, he was determined to be an IndyCar driver. Five minutes after concluding his interview, Dave McNamara proudly came back through the door of one of the rooms at St. Ignatius of Loyola Catholic Secondary School. "Here's the puck they gave me," McNamara beamed, showing off the rubberized disc Loyola captain Steph Solty wrapped with tape and members of the team signed following their victory in this year's Golden Horseshoe Athletic Conference girls' hockey final. It's not as though McNamara is hurting for hockey memorabilia. He already owns one of hockey's most prized possessions, a Stanley Cup ring he earned in 2009 when the team he scouted for, the Pittsburgh Penguins, won the National Hockey League championship. The fact that something as simple as a puck from a high school game is so meaningful to McNamara, the longtime Hawks coach, is telling about the significance of girls' hockey at Loyola. "Ever since I've been here in Grade 9, he's stressed (the team) is a family," said Solty. "You really do feel it. He's almost that father figure." The Hawks rewarded Dave McNamara their patriarch with that Loyola girls' hockey coach GHAC win, McNamara's first in nearly two decades at the helm of the girls' hockey program. And last week, making its first-ever appearance at the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations provincial championships, Loyola sweetened the pot even more, claiming silver. The Hawks won their first five games at the AAA/AAAA tournament in Orillia -- with Daniela Paniccia recording shutouts in all three round-robin wins -- before a 3-1 loss to Mississauga's St. Aloysius Gonzaga denied them the gold. Not that finishing second in the province was a celebrated accomplishment following the final, a game in which the Hawks hit three posts and a crossbar before Gonzaga locked up the victory with a late empty-netter. In fact, the Hawks are still having trouble getting over their loss in the championship game, their coach included. "We went to the finals all excited. And make no mistake, we had one goal in mind. We were going to win gold," McNamara said. "When we lost the gold medal, it was traumatic, really, even now. There were lots of tears in the room When we lost the gold medal,it was traumatic, really, even now. see Silver on p24