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www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver Weekend, Saturday June 9, 2007 - 31 Early goal keys Titans' senior AAAA soccer win By Herb Garbutt der a goal in league play this season, that was more than enough to put the game away. Notre Dame's Paul Danis MILTON -- The Holy Trinity Titans scored a late goal to end the shutout had bigger goals in mind. string by goalies Max Luburic and When those plans didn't work out, Eduardo Suarez that dated back to last they had quick goals in mind. That year's Halton final -- a stretch of eightworked to a T. plus games -- when the Titans edged The Titans scored in the opening Notre Dame 2-1. minutes of Thursday's Halton senior "I wasn't really aware of that," Notre boys' AAAA soccer final and never Dame coach Paul McDermott said when looked back on their way informed of the streak. to a 3-1 victory over the "For a lot of us, this "Maybe it's good we snuck Notre Dame Fighting is the third (title) in one in, but I would have Irish and a second a row so hopefully been happy with 0-0." straight senior boys' the guys coming The Titans had been championship. looking to make a return back next year will "This is a good note to trip to the Ontario go out on," said Grade 12 continue the reign Federation of School student Jason Field, one of the Titans." Athletic Associations of 10 graduating players. (OFSAA) championships "For a lot of us, this is the Trinity's Jason Field this year. Despite going third in a row (Holy undefeated in league play, Trinity won the junior title in 2005) so three consecutive scoreless games -- hopefully the guys coming back next one of them against the Irish -- to end year will continue the reign of the the season proved to be costly. Holy Titans." Trinity (3-0-4) finished second to the It was Field's early goal that gave Oakville Trafalgar Red Devils (5-1-1) Holy Trinity the early lead it was look- and, with OFSAA contenders being ing for. determined by regular-season stand"We knew we needed to score early," ings, the Titans were left out. That gave said Titans coach Angelo Sottana. added significance to Thursday's final. "(Notre Dame) plays really tight "It was important to them to prove (defence) so we knew if we could score they were the best in Halton," Sottana early, they would have to open up in said. the backfield." Holy Trinity scored a convincing 3Goals by Damir Dolcic and Antonio 0 win over Christ the King (3-1-3) in Jacklin gave the Titans a 3-0 lead. And, the semifinals while Notre Dame considering Trinity had yet to surren- knocked off OT. OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Team spirit BARRIE ERSKINE / OAKVILLE BEAVER GO EAGLES: Abbey Park players Shanna McAleer (foreground, left) and Amanda Johnson (right) shout out encouragement to their Eagles teammates during Thursday's Halton high school girls' slo-pitch final in Milton. The Eagles, however, fell 15-10 to the M.M. Robinson Rams. Core of Blakelock softball team expected back next season Continued from page 30 After the game, Carter-Kendren attributed her team's success to mental toughness and hard work. "We wanted to make sure we came into this game extra pumped and focused to make sure we came out with a win," she said. "We also had some extra practice in the gym this week." Blakelock's offensive outburst was complimented by superb pitching and defence. Blakelock's pitchers combined for a four-hit shutout, racking up six strikeouts in the process. Starting pitcher Jessica Stanley, who was credited with the win, kept the game plan simple. "I just go out there and try not to think about the pressure. I tell myself `don't think, just throw'," she said, going on to praise her coach for keeping the team grounded as the victories continued to pile up. "(Coach LaRose) helped us look at each game as just another game and really helped to keep the pressure off, which made it lots of fun to play." On the other side of the diamond, Nelson coach Doug Aitcheson was pleased with his team's effort and was quick to compliment the opposition. "It became obvious early on that Blakelock was an elite team. We played as well as we've played all year and you've got to tip your cap to Blakelock. They were the better team today," he said. Nelson will lose four players to graduation this year while Blakelock will lose only two. With both teams retaining their cores, it is possible they could return to the final again next year. Graduating Tigers Kalee Thompson and Meghan Stanley expressed sadness about leaving but optimism about Blakelock's future. "It's nice to finish the fourth year with a final. Next year, DOMINANT: The T.A. Blakelock Tigers girls' softball team, pictured above, won all nine of its games this year against Halton competition, including a 17-0 rout of Nelson in Thursday's Halton final. the team will be just as good," said Stanley. provincial championships for softball, something LaRose Thompson's predictions were a little bolder. hopes will change in the near future. "They're going to dominate next year. They should take "It's very unfortunate that these girls can't go on and it all," she said. see how far they can go," the Tigers coach said. "It's tough Both coaches shared disappointment that there are no for us not to lose a game all season and have that be it."