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www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday February 24, 2007 - 25 Raiders finally solve Trinity in junior hoops final By Jon Kuiperij BEAVER SPORTS EDITOR SABRINA BYRNES / OAKVILLE BEAVER UP FOR GRABS: St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders' Eric Fram (50) and Holy Trinity's Slaven Kozul joust for a rebound as the Raiders' Charlie Drouin watches on during Thursday's Halton high school junior boys' basketball final at Sheridan College. Aquinas defeated the Titans 51-43. The Holy Trinity Titans won their first three matchups with St. Thomas Aquinas this season, but the Raiders were victorious in the one that mattered most. Aquinas earned its fourth consecutive Halton high school junior boys' basketball title Thursday at Sheridan College, breaking a 37-37 fourth-quarter deadlock with a 9-0 run and holding on for a 51-43 triumph. Trinity had handed the Raiders their only two losses in regular-season play and routed Aquinas by 30 points in a preseason tournament contest, but the Raiders' performance in the final displayed the considerable improvement they'd made over the past several months. "We talked at the beginning of the season about putting together a tough schedule, playing those athletic Toronto teams, with the thought (being) it would help us along the way," said Raiders head coach Mark Maga. "The biggest thing for (our players) was for them to realize they could play with (Trinity). Not to just be competitive, but to come out and pull it out. If we hadn't played those tournaments against those bigtime, athletic Toronto teams, we might have crumbled at the end." Confidence and experience aside, the Raiders accomplished the upset by managing to slow down the high-paced Titans offence. Trinity was the top-scoring squad in the 22-team Halton loop this season, averaging more than 63 points per contest, but was limited to three field goals in the first seven minutes of the decisive fourth quarter. "We played zone and tried to keep getting rebounds," said Aquinas point guard Matt Blaha. Blaha played a big part in slowing the pace of the game down the stretch, handling the ball very effectively and distributing it to teammates for open looks. The Raiders' Charlie Drouin, a Grade 9 student, scored a game-high 17 points, while Eric Fram hit several big shots and finished with 10. "Every time (Matt) got the ball, he had the presence of mind and intelligence to slow it down and get it to other guys for a shot in the right position," Maga said. "Charlie's probably our smartest player, along with Blaha, and his confidence and poise and skill level is unbelievable. Eric stepped up big -- that was the best game he's played all year. He doesn't have the prettiest shot, but it goes in." Blaha gave Aquinas a 40-37 lead early in the fourth quarter with a three-pointer, then hit a pair of free throws before setting up Drouin for an inside layup to make the score 44-37. The Titans' attempts to get back into the game by fouling the Raiders were in vain as Aquinas hit nine of its final 10 attempts from the charity stripe. Trinity, which was undefeated in Halton play going into Thursday's final, was led by Grade 9 student Silvano Ferreira's 12-point effort. Jordan Cattarall and Troy Stevenson added 10 points each. "It was one of those (days) when we didn't seem able to finish when we had good opportunities," Titans coach Andrew Saulez said. "It wasn't for lack of trying, the shots just didn't seem to drop. "Our guys are heartbroken... they wanted to get Trinity its first junior title, and they came close on a lot of things," he continued. "What can you say? We were 29-4 and we had a good year, but unfortunately it did not end on a good day." Tandet Management Inc. Dundee Realty Mattamy Homes Grant Haulage Ltd. Young OT squad will be contenders next year Continued from page 24 challenging. "It was nerve-racking at first. The first year you're scared to make mistakes," she said. "Once you've been with the girls for a year you get more comfortable. You're not afraid to make mistakes and you swing as hard as you ever have." Of course, youth wasn't the only thing conspiring against the Red Devils. Two key members were sick, with Dionisio battling mononucleosis while Jenny Pierce was suffering from strep throat. OT had a tough time in the opening game, failing to string together consecutive points at any time during the 25-13 loss. The Devils rebounded strong, taking a 9-3 lead in the second game. However, with the game tied 16-16, the Rebels ran off seven straight points to push OT to the brink. "I was a little worried (when OT took the early lead). They're a team that you can't let get on a roll because once they do, they'll just keep going," said Georgetown coach Kyle Stewart. "For us to come back like we did, against a team that is that well coached, that was impressive." While Stewart conceeded OT will be a strong team next season, he wasn't about to rule out the Rebels giving the Devils a run despite the turnover on his team. "The junior program is so strong (the Rebels beat Notre Dame for the junior title), and we have two tall girls coming up. They'll fill the holes in our lineup." Efficient Pools Ltd. Ontario Energy Savings Chartwells Sheridan College Burlington Toyota Vector College of Applied Linguistics Christiano Transport Inc. Target Construction Trafalgar Golf & Country Club Merry Maids Nottinghill Educational Rec. Centre Unique Chrysler BARRIE ERSKINE / OAKVILLE BEAVER GOING ALL-OUT: Oakville Trafalgar Red Devils' Jenny Pierce dives to the floor to dig the ball during yesterday's Halton high school senior girls' volleyball AAAA final at Sheridan College. The Georgetown Rebels defeated OT in straight sets. To place your business logo or name here, call your Classified Sales Representative today! 905.632.4440