Times Advocate, 1994-06-29, Page 14Page 14
Times -Advocate, June 29, 1994
This Week in Sports...
Golf roundup - page 15
Speed boats coming to Grand Bend - Page 16
Sidelines
By
Fred
Groves
New coaches
will bring
new ideas
Fresh. Fresh ideas, fresh at-
titudes. That is what both the
Exeter Hawks and the Lucan
Irish of the Junior Develop-
ment League will have this
fall when they head into the
1994-95 Junior' D' hockey
season.
Dave Revjngton returns to
the league after spending the
past five years with the Exet-
er Senior 'A' Mohawks. After
waiting patiently for the sen-
iors to come to practice, and
wondering just who will be at
the next game, Revington
will get a chance to put his
expertise to the test.
He has a lot of hockey
knowledge and I believe he'll
get a lot of support from the
executive and -the -community -.-
as a whole. One .thing he
brings to the Hawks is the
ability to handle pressure.
The Mohawks have been in
some pretty tough jams the
past five years and he is ei-
ther able to get them out of it
(most of the time) or the odd
occasion, step aside grace-
fully to the other team.
George Pratt had pretty
good teams the last couple of
of years but when it came to
pressure, especially the
playoffs, he couldn't get the
Hawks to perform.
In Lucan, Ken Needham
walks away after five yew
and he is going to miss the
Monday night practices,
Wednesday night home
games and the weekend bus
trips.
He has never brought the
Irish a title, although he has
come close a couple of times.
In Lucan, it's time for a
change and Scott Bogart and
Jeff Dalrymple could be start-
ing a very successful junior
hockey coaching career.
Bogan, Dalrymple and
Revington are firm believers
in discipline. Revington has
been kind of hard pressed to
exercise that with the Mo-
hawks, but Bogart and bal-
rymple who have coached
midget in Exeter have gained
a lot of respect from the lo-
cals because of their will-
ingness not to show favorit-
ism.
For regular followers of
both teams, look out because
the rivalry will really heat up.
You will have your regular
supporters of the Hawks but
you will also have quite a few
who will go down to Lucan
on a regular basis and watch
Bogart and Dalrymple in ac-
tion.
From the sidelines:... Con-
gratulations to Dave Boltz-
mann of Exeter who recently
broke the course record at
Bayview Golf Club. He also
holds the record at Iron-
wood...I would like to thank
thc Times -Advocate pro-
duction staff of Deb Lord,
Barb Robertson and Laurel
Miner for their assistance in
making the T -A sports sec-
tion the third best in Canada.
Thanks...
Imperials win two at own tournament
Owen Sound played six games on Sunday and beat St. Marys 6-0
By Fred Groves
T -A staff
EXETER - For a team that was
put into the tournament almost at
the last minute, the Exeter Imperi-
als did very well on thc weekend.
Usually there arc 16 teams in the
annual Exctcr Imperials Men's
Fastball Tournament, but this year
there were only 13 so Exeter went
into it to make it 14 and won two
games, just missing a trip to the di-
visional finals by one run.
They opened with a big 10-1 win
over Belmore on Saturday morning
and later in the day edged Mitchell
Juniors 2-1. On Sunday, the Imperi-
als came up short 2-0 to the St.
Marys Nighthawks and were elim-
inated in the double -knockout tour-
nament 4-3 by the St. Pauls Gener-
als.
"We've had so many games can-
celled, we've only played eight
league games. Playing four games
made us sharp," said Exeter coach
Fred Cook.
Winning the tournament was
Owen Sound • Mooney Grenon
Fuels who easily beat thc Night-
hawks 6-0 in a short five -inning
mercied game.
It was the fifth gamc in a row and
sixth of the day for Owen Sound
who were led by the consistent
pitching of Trevor Wardell. In thc
final, Wardell struck out 10 of the
21 batters he faced while allowing
just two hits.
Wardell was named the Most
Valuable Pitcher of the tournament
while Owen Sound shortstop Paul
Qvcsncll was selected as the Most
Valuable Player.
This year's tournament had a dis-
mal start as Friday's games were
cancelled due to thc bad weather
and there wcrc rain delays on Sat-
urday which pushed the action into
the late hours.
Pick ups help: The Imperials
picked up three former players for
the tournament as pitcher Greg
Wise and outfielders Darren Neil
and Sandy Hyde returned to the Ex-
etcr lineup.
Exctcr opened with a big 10-1
win over Bclmorc. This game only
wcnt four -and -a -half innings as the
Imperials plated seven runs in their
half of the third.
Against the Mitchell Juniors, Ex-
ctcr went ahead 1-0 in the bottom
of the first inning when Dan Hey-
wood singled, moved on Neil's sac-
rifice bunt and scored on Hyde's rbi
base hit.
But the Juniors' ninth batter, Dar-
ren Fuller hit a home run to tic the
game up but in the bottom of thc
sixth frame, Exeter's Greg Dal-
rymple singled and came home on
catcher Gavin Snell's game winning
rbi base hit.
"Greg and Gavin are playing ex-
cellent, the young guys arc im-
proving," said Cook. "Rod John-
ston and Jim Allison had good
weekends:' he added of his two
middle infielders.
Exeter's third game was against
the Nighthawks and their top pitch-
er Paul Homburg fanned 11 and re-
tired 20 in a row before Heywood
could bes'tt out an infield single in
the bottom of the ninth with two
out.
"That's as good as I've seen him
play in a fcw years," said Cook of
Homburg who used to play for the
St. Marys Selects.
There were 14 teams in the tour-
nament which ineant they went to
two divisions and they played a
. double -knockout until the final
when it was one game, winner take
all.
Exeter got to the division semi-
final against the Generals and lost a
close 4-3 contest.
"Greg (Wise)started and they hit
three home runs off him. Dan came
on and shut them down," said
Cook.
Neil, who hit thc ball hard all
weekend had a two -run homer in
the fourth and just missed in the
sixth when he tripled off the base
of the outfield fence.
The Imperials were beaten by
Milverton in South Perth league ac-
tion on Thursday and prepare to
head to Tara next weekend for a
tournament.
Exeter catcher Gavin Snell,
left; fires down to first base
in the Imperials game against
St. Marys. Looking on is
pitcher Greg Wise.
Kevin Windsor, above; shows
some agility while making a
throw. Below, Dan Heywood
slides into third base.
Ladies fastball Ieague dying?
There are now only four teams - Crediton, Exeter, Kirkton, Sebringville
By Fred Groves
T -A staff
EXETER - Over the past few years, ladies fastball has
faded to the point where, unfortunately, it is nearly non-
existent.
This year, the Huron -Perth Ladies Fastball League has
just four teams - Exeter, Crediton, Sebringville and Kirk -
ton. In recent years, there have been entries from Mitchell,
Winthrop, St. Marys, St. Pauls and Dublin.
The Exeter Greys, once the elite club of the league had to
put posters up around the area just to get enough ladies to
come and try out for their team.
Fastball for ladies; at the lower level anyway seems to be
alive as Don McInnes, coach of the Exeter ladies juvenile
team says his players are quite enthusiastic.
He says his players are looking forward to going on and
playing in the ladies league.
"Eighty percent are interested in going on in fastball. A
lot of them play slow -pitch as well," said McInnes.
Slow -pitch has taken many males and females away from
fastball but it seems the Huron -Perth ladies league has suf-
fered the most. However, while slow -pitch may be purling
some away, there are those like Crediton's Brenda Wilds
and Exeter's Patti Down who are very loyal to the game of
fastball.
"1 think it's a shame all these younger are players going to
slow -pitch," said Wilds who has been with the Crediton la-
dies team for a dozen years.
Now the coach of the Classics, she has tried slow -pitch
but came back to fastball.
"1 quit one year and went to slow -pitch and said it wasn't
for me," said Wilds.
McInnes pointed out that slow -pitch is not the only factor
that is seeing the Huron -Penh ladies league dwindle.
"They go away to university and get jobs. 1 think society
has a lot to do with the demise of fastball," he said.
The Classics easily beat the Greys last Tuesday and they
did it with a couple of players who also suit up for the Exct-
cr juvenile team. Wilds said her team's roster is not as big
as it has been in the past.
"One year we wcnt with 14 or 15 and everyone com-
plained they weren't playing, now we have 12."
While McInnes is fairly optimistic about the future of la-
dies fastball, Wilds says the Huron -Perth league is close to
becoming extinct.
"The way they're talking, there might not he any fastball
at all next year. 1 know Exeter is having problems."
The Greys did have a rocky start, looking for players is
something new but the dedication of Down and a fcw other
veterans is keeping that organization together.
McInnes' juvenile girls play in the seven team Parkhill-
McGillivary-West Williams league and Sunday had little
trouble in beating one of the two entries from Licury. That
increased Exeter's record to 7-1.
He said the juvenile league seems to be solid which
means there could be some re -interest in fasthall in the fu-
ture.
"There is enough interest there, the guy from Ailsa'Craig
recruits in London."
The interest is there, that's evident by McInnes' team and
hopefully even when they do go on to university and get
Tema VanRaayof the Crediton
jobs they will continue to play fastball. , dOwn a bunt In recent game.
Classics lays
A