HomeMy WebLinkAboutTimes Advocate, 1992-02-05, Page 13conadian Special Olympics
Elsie Swan heads to nationals
By Adrlai Harte
EXETER - An Exeter woman
will beeampetmg at the Canadian
Bpseisl°Olympics in Saskatoon this
IPebniery.
A gold medal performance at the
Provincial Special Olympics in
Windsor last year tamed Elsie
Swan a cbaace to compete at the
national level this year. She will be
only one of four on the 60.E
Ontario team in the figure skating
compel ion.
"I've been practising hard," said
Swan, who now skates with the Ex -
Elsie Swan, shown here with her gold medal from last year's provincial competiton, will be rep-
re3'enting Team Ontario at the Canadian Special Olympics .
Mohawks win three -of -four
By Fred Groves
EXETER - Four games in .six
nights is a lot of hockey but when
you can come away with seven of a
bible _eight _paints, it -he s to
ease the pain a bit.
Last week, the Exeter Mohawks
beat Aylmer twice, topped Walpole
Island and lost in overtime to
Dunnville to move into first place
in the Southern Counties Senior 'A'
Hockey League.
At home Sunday night, fatigue
was en obvious factor for the locals
but, a strong third period saw them
beat the Aylmer Hornets 4-2, im-
proving their record to 19-
Although
9 Although Exeter hit the post
twice and Kevin McArter was
stopped on a breakaway, the Fust
period was scoreless. It took a scor-
ing spurt by .forward Mark Bannon
to cinch the victory.
Bannon bad two goals, including
the game winner while Greg Snyd-
er and Jeff Shipley also oonnecitd.
"It's a lot of games to play in six
nights," said Bannon who got his
fourth and fifth goals of the season.
Mike Haines gave the visitors a
1-0 dead in the seated period and it
held asp and' 40 seconds into the
third when Bannonijunnped on a re-
bound. A Dustin Bellyou breaka-
way repined the Hornets toed be-
fore the Mohawks Wok cotarol.
Snyder scored and then Bannon
let go with a wrist shot that bit the .
aefslsher .a d dropped info the net
babied Fred Mabee. Shipley put a
shot op high to faith the scoring
with less that four milieus left.
Bannon commented that coach
Dave Revington gave the Mohawks
a bit of a pep talk during the second
intermission.
. "He just id .we _bave_,4D _ xp
working bard. He said dig a little
deeper, keep the shifts shat and try
and not get too tired out there."
Two of the four games week
were makeups, prior to thaae Mo-
hawks had been idle since January
19.
"We haven't played a lot the two
.previous weeks. They were makeup
games and we had to get them in,"
said Revington.
While Exeter was trying to put
the puck past Mabee, Mohawks
rookie neuninder Jeff Hill was
spectacular making several key
saves.
With Shipley taking four minutes
in the penalty box sad then Barry
Bayottam being slapped with a
five-minute high sticking .purity,
back-to-back in the stood period,
Hill had to come up big.
"Hill was the difference. He held
us in the second period when we're
short," said Reviogton.
Fester 8, WalpokMood 4
Saturday night on the Iliad, Joe
SCbaer fired another* irk**
added an mist for a 1atttfpoint
eight. Also sooting -for the Mo-
hawks were Wyyae Whalen,
S11lp1ey, McArter, Bannon, #nd
. Soyda
' Rookie Craig Oster was given a
pmt atiacoodur:t andan.ias igatrr
,penalty near the cod of the: sane
when be was involved ins skim -
tion with Brad Crawford.
Dunnville 6, Exeter 5 (OT)
Early in the overtime period, Tim
Shields was hauled down on a
birakaway,_no_penalty was called
and while the Mohawks were pro-
testing, Mudcats' Dale Kelly
scored.
Down by two goals a couple of
times in this one, .Exeter got a pair
from Scherer with singles to Snyd-
er and .Bannon. Osier had a goal
and four assists.
Exeter forward Andre Prevost
was sent to the hospital after he_
took a stick above the eye from
Rod Mina.
Revington felt even though his
team came up short, they can beat
the Mudcats.
"It should give us more motiva-
tion. We know we can heat them. I
think the referee was intimidated."
Euler 8, Aylmer 4
This one started as a shootout,
but last 'fteeaday night the visiting
Mohawks beat the Hae>Aets 8-4: It
was 4-4 at the cod of the fusttpSti-
od before Esser netininder Paul
Woolford was able to keep the Hor-
tense
or-
t elss e bay for the rest of the game.
Gad. Brooks and Shields bad
abonthanded ,,osis for the winners
while Snyder paced\ the offence
with two goad and a pair of militia.
Rookie Scott Pfaff and captain
Shipley also had twit each.
. Malsawk moments: -.League
axteener Bob Habkirk was at the
,prof in Dunnville and said whin
Shields was hauled down it should
have .been a penalty
hitelPigure Skating Club after mov-
it so town but year.
APietne skating is one of the more
*Beth events in the Special
Olympics, and these will only be 17
lranpetitors from across Canada.
Hien an, Swan sin expected to do
awn by her coaches, mainly be-
anie she performs well under pres-
Swan will have to perform both
mandatory figures and her solo
time, which has to include at least
!len of 10 "elements". As she de-
tdiibes it, Swan's routine will make
lade of a spiral, hinges, cross cuts, a
Maltz jump, and bunny hops.
Should she find herself with a
"Physically,
she has
come a
long way"
medal after the games wrap up, she
will then be qualified to enter inter-
national competition at the World
Special Olympics in Austria next
year. -
After epilepsy left the right side
of her body urnespousive in her late
teens, Swan's parents, who now
live in Zurich, encouraged her to
try figure skating as a form of ther-
apy. Now more than 10 years later,
Swan has not only overcome much
of her disability, but has canted
sovaral medals and awards for her
ming,1111 .of. which she proudly •
;displays by her bed. .
"Pty+atca q. slat has tttltme fleNtg
way," says Swan's support worker
Spaan.Nigh, adding that the Special
Olympics. e=fforts "snowballed" out
of the therapeutic intent of the skat-
ing;
Swan's efforts with the Special
Olympics have been supported by
the Huron local which meets in Va-
nastra each month. * ' • annual
OPP torch nun•
•, money
for the Special 01 u d . Swan
was one of the torch bearers in
1991's nun. .
Although figure skating competi-
tion is nothing new to her, Swan
says she is still "nervous" about her
upcoming challenge in Saskatoon.
She says those nerves won't go
away right up until she steps out
onto the ice and the music begins.
Stanley Cup visits
Grand Bend
hat do Bobby
Comte, Wayne
lean Batti-
veau, Zte+icW: Pat OveAtolt
and yours Indy have in com-
mon? .
We've ell field the Stanley
Cup.
I'm a hockey fan and on
¶i4 edrteeday afternoon I went to Gland Bald to see the NHL
Legends on Ice. More specifically, it was Legends on Wheels
as aweOtey4sound buses Ailed -with-memories hem the Hock-
ey Hall of Fame gave the public a glimpse at hockey's past.
At the end of one of the buses, was the Stanley Cup. North
America's oldest trophy and the reward for being the best
team In the NHL. Some may consider it the prize for the best
team in the world.
That's debatable as you constantly have. makeshift groups
which enter the Olympics, World C?tampionships, Canada
Cup, etc. Vet for me, Site Stanley Cup is soltymbol. A symbe1
of excellence.
Pat and I took each others picture with the large silver tro-
phy which was donated by Frederick Arthur, Lord Stanley of
Preston; thus the name Stanley Cup.
For hockey trivia fans,. guessing the name of the man who
donated the cup is a toughie. Well you know now, ifs Frede-
rick Arthur. If you ask the question to someone and they say,
Lord Stanley, remember they are only half right.
It was kind of fitting I was standing on a little ice at the
Grand Bei : Chrysler dealership while holding the cup. Hock-
ey captains from as far back as the tum of the century have
lofted it high above their heads.
I didn't try it, to tell you the truth I was a tad worried I
might drop it. Afterall this is an antique, and I was nervous.
The cup isn't that heavy but I can imagine Mark Messier and
Lanny MacDonald holding it for display to their fans mo-
ments after they had won it.
Blood pumping, exhausted both physically -and emotionally,
it could soon be a heavy piece of hardware.
The test of the Legends on Ice, I am afraid to say, was not
as spectacular. It's tough to top the Stanley Cup. But just like
everyone else, I was able to step back in time and relive some
of hockey's highlights.
The displays were divided into different eras. Beginning.
with the earl,' days from 1880 to 1925, this included Frank
Foyston's, hockey skates. He played for the Toronto Blue-
shirts, the 1914 Stanley Cup Champions.
There's Percy LeSueur's goalie stick. The same one he used
when he was in net for Smith Falls in.1904-and the same one
he used for five full years with the 1909 champion Ottawa
Senators.
Next year when the new_ edition of the Senators play in .the
NHL, don't expect come kid from Smith Falls to appear on
the rink and use a goalie stick for five years. They simply
don't make them to last that long anymore.
Pro hockey for me is divided into three easy categories. Pre
1967 when I have things like the Legends of Ice to remind me
of early days. Then then; is the expansion year 1967 to about
19$0, for and BOWS the best of hockey.
Guys like Bobby Mull, Bobby Orr and Ken Dryden. After
1980 a new age of hockey was bom. Gretzky, Mario Lemieux
and Bob Probert.
Hockey is changing, from the days of the Montreal Wander-
ers to the re-creation of the Senators. It's history and hopeful-
ly we will be able to always wander through a bus full of
memories to dream and pretend we are the greatest
idell
by
G roves
Hockey with or without ice, you can have it either way.
RSD Sports Den of Exeter is trying something new on Satur-
day, February 15 when it will be hosting a Floor Hockey
Tournament.
The single day event will begin at 8 a.m. at the South Huron
District High School. Scott Bogart of RSD tells me that the
tournament will be divided into two age groups, 16 -and -under
and over 16.
Entry forms can be picked up at the store.
Exeter Mohawks forward Joe Scherer, left; and Kris Muscut of the Aylmer Horents may have
looked like they were going to dance on Sunday but they had something else in mind which
was qulcky broken up by the referee.