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30 Sports Oakville Beaver T.A. Blakelock SPORTS EDITOR: JON KUIPERIJ Phone 905-845-3824 (ext. 255) Fax 905-337-5567 email sports@oakvillebeaver.com · SATURDAY, JUNE 16, 2007 Local high schools honour their top athletes of the year Top senior athletes from the past year in Halton Secondary School Athletic Association competition were recognized Monday with a barbecue at Bronte Creek Provincial Park. Following are brief bios of the top senior athletes from T.A. Blakelock, St. Thomas Aquinas, Holy Trinity, White Oaks, Iroquois Ridge, King's Christian Collegiate, Oakville Trafalgar, Abbey Park and Loyola. Murray Cruickshank brought both athletic ability and leadership to the Tigers. The 18-year-old was the captain of the football and rugby teams, and an alternate captain on the hockey team. He earned the MVP award on the rugby team and was the top defensive player on the football team. An honours student, Cruickshank will attend Queen's University next year while hoping to continue his athletic career. Kelly Zinkiewich captained the Tigers' basketball, volleyball and soccer teams and earned the team MVP award in the latter two. She also played badminton. However, it is soccer where Zinkiewich really excels. A four-year member of the senior girls team, she helped the Tigers reach the Halton final in Grade 9 and she will attend Cleveland State University next year, where the 17year-old hopes to maintain honours in her studies while playing for the Vikings soccer team. St. Thomas Aquinas Gillian Knap amassed an impressive collection of awards in her time at Aquinas. In addition to provincial gold and bronze medals in soccer, she helped the Raiders win five Halton championships (three in soccer, two in basketball). Knap was also a member of the Aquinas swim team. In Grade 9, she was the school's rookie of the year. She followed that with the junior athlete-of-the-year award in 2005 and was named sports person of the year in 2006. Knap will attend Queen's next year to study kinesiology and hopes to pursue medical school afterward. Jaime Neefs has also compiled an impressive sporting resumé at Aquinas and there's still more to come. The 16year-old Grade 11 student was named the most promising athlete in Grade 9 and the DEREK WOOLLAM / SPECIAL TO THE OAKVILLE BEAVER TOP HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETES: Local athlete-of-the-year award winners that attended a barbecue Monday at Bronte Creek Provincial Park were (back, left to right) Holy Trinity's Alena Luciani, St. Thomas Aquinas' Alex Crepinsek, White Oaks' Darren Giles, T.A. Blakelock's Murray Cruickshank, (front, left to right) Aquinas' Jaime Neefs and Gillian Knap, Blakelock's Kelly Zinkiewich and White Oaks' Missy Kennedy. junior athlete of the year in Grade 10, the same year she helped Aquinas win the OFSAA gold in soccer. This year, Neefs earned team MVP honours at the allCatholic volleyball tournament and helped the Raiders win the Halton championship. After her senior year, Neefs plans to study health sciences and nutrition and play university soccer. Alex Crepinsek capped his high school tenure by helping the Raiders win the bronze medal at the OFSAA lacrosse festival. The offensive MVP of the junior football team in 2005 and lacrosse team in 2006, the 18-year-old also played on the Aquinas hockey team. A member of the Oakville Buzz junior B national championship team last year, Crepinsek's goal is to play lacrosse in the NCAA. White Oaks Missy Kennedy will return to White Oaks in the fall, which will be welcome news to the Wildcats' hockey teams. Kennedy won a gold medal at the Ontario Summer Games in field hockey and a silver medal at provincials on the ice. Kennedy hopes to earn a scholarship in either sport and would like to become a phys ed teacher. The 18-year-old was also a member of White Oaks' badminton and soccer teams. Darren Giles was the most valuable player of the White Oaks senior rugby team. He hopes to continue to pursue the sport when he attends the University of Guelph in the fall. The 18-year-old also played volleyball and basketball for the Wildcats. Holy Trinity Alena Luciani was named Holy Trinity's senior athlete of the year just one year after winning the junior award. The MVP of the Trinity girls' basketball team, Luciani was selected to represent Halton at the all-star game in Hamilton. Luciani was also a member of the Titans track-and-field team, earning the team MVP award in the sport and in badminton in 2006. The Grade 11 student will return to Holy Trinity next year where she hopes to graduate with honours and See High page 34 O BO NO LI K N E JOIN US FOR LADIES NIGHT Every Monday Starting at 5pm 9 Holes & a Sumptuous Dinner $44.95 · Monday to Thursday · Early Bird (Weekdays before 8:30am) · Twilight (Everyday after 4pm) · Friday to Sunday & Holidays $68 $50 $50 $78