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32 Sports Oakville Beaver SPORTS EDITOR: JON KUIPERIJ Phone 905-845-3824 (ext. 255) Fax 905-337-5567 email sports@oakvillebeaver.com · WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5, 2008 Familiar foe awaits Blades in West Conference final By Jon Kuiperij BEAVER SPORTS EDITOR March Break Stop us if you've heard this before: the Oakville Blades have reached the Provincial Junior A Hockey League's West Conference championship series. And if that sounds familiar, how about this: so have the Georgetown Raiders. The Blades and Raiders will both be making their fourth West final appearance in the past five years when they open their conference title clash Friday in Oakville (a 7:30 p.m. start at Joshua's Creek Arenas). This season marks the third time in those five years that the teams will oppose each other, with Oakville claiming a 4-1 upset win in 2004 and the Raiders turning the tables in five games the following spring. This year's favourite would have to be the Blades, who easily won the West regularseason title with a 39-6-4 mark, 17 points ahead of the second-place Raiders (30-14-5). But, as coaches are want to do at playoff time, Oakville bench boss Carlo Coccimiglio is quick to point out that the regular-season standings mean nothing now. "They are not the same team," he said of the Raiders, noting that Georgetown made a number of additions at the league's trading deadline. "They improved their top three lines. It's going to be a tough series. I think the team that can fight off adversity (the best) will win this series." Both the Blades and Raiders are coming off five-game victories in the conference semifinals, following byes in the opening round. Georgetown easily dispensed of the Brampton Capitals, while Oakville polished off the Milton IceHawks with a 3-0 victory Saturday at Joshua's Creek Arenas. Coccimiglio was happy with the way his team played against Milton after the twoweek layoff between the regular season and playoffs. Blades stingy five-on-five "We never gave up a five-on-five goal in the whole series," he pointed out. "We just got back to playing hockey, not a lot of nonsense, and as the series went on we got more relaxed." Kellan Lain, Luke Moodie and Sean Teakle tallied for the Blades in the series finale against the IceHawks, continuing Oakville's balanced scoring effort. Eleven different players scored goals in the five games against Milton. Meanwhile, Scott Greenham was his steady self in goal for the Blades, stopping all 30 shots he faced to record the shutout. The previous night in Milton, Oakville rallied from a 2-0 hole to take a 3-1 stranglehold on the series. Three local residents found the net for the Blades as Moodie, Steven Guzzo and Lindsay Sparks all provided goals, Sparks' third-period marker standing up as the winner. "This year, our philosophy was to bring in as many local boys as possible. They know what it's about. There's a lot of history here and they want to perform for their teammates and the town," said Coccimiglio, who has also been particularly impressed by the play of local products Dan Hunt and Lain. Game 2 of the Blades/Raiders series is scheduled for Saturday in Georgetown, with the third game back in Oakville Monday. KAREN NEWMAN / SPECIAL TO THE OAKVILLE BEAVER ON GUARD: Natalie Hirano (13) of the Oakville Break, a Vytis team, keeps a close eye on Sarnia's Kristen Peck during last weekend's girls' under-14 A basketball tournament at Oakville Trafalgar High School. The Vytis reached the championship game at the tightly-contested competition before falling to Newman Youth, settling for silver. Oakville Blades vs. Georgetown Raiders · Friday, March 7 - Georgetown @ Oakville, 7:30 p.m. · Saturday, March 8 - Oakville @ Georgetown, 7:30 p.m. · Monday, March 10 - Georgetown @ Oakville, 7:30 p.m. · Wednesday, March 12 - Oakville @ Georgetown, 8 p.m. · Friday, March 14 - Georgetown @ Oakville, 7:30 p.m. ** · Saturday, March 15 - Oakville @ Georgetown, 7:30 p.m. ** · Date To Be Determined - Georgetown @ Oakville ** ** If necessary Raiders open basketball OFSAA with two wins The St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders boys' basketball team got off to a strong start at the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) AA championships in Oshawa, winning its first two games. The fourth-seeded Raiders survived a scare from Bishop Morroco in their first game, pulling out a 48-47 victory Monday. Trevor Williams led Aquinas with 24 points. Yesterday, the Raiders had a much easier time of it against West Ferris, winning a 71-34 laugher. Charlie Alexander was the top scorer for the Raiders, with 18. Aquinas was scheduled to play Timmins in quarter-final action last night, a game that began after the Beaver's press deadline.