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34 Sports Oakville Beaver SPORTS EDITOR:JONKUIPERIJ Phone 905-845-3824 (ext. 432) Fax 905-337-5571 email sports@oakvillebeaver.com · FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2012 Squirt 1 Angels earn provincial silver The Oakville Angels squirt 1 fastpitch team overcame an opening-game loss to earn silver in the B Division at the recent provincial championships in Guelph. After starting the tournament with an 11-1 loss to the Halton Hills Hawks, Oakville downed Stratford 18-8 and Mississauga Southwest 13-4, then avenged its loss to Halton Hills with a 12-1 romp that advanced the Angels to the playoff round. The Angels downed their sister squad, the squirt 2 Angels, 13-3 in the semis. The Whitby Eagles, however, downed Oakville 9-5 in the final. Neilee Reay led the squirt 1 Angels in batting average during provincials, hitting .750. Maddie Watson (.667), Grace Danner (.587) and Celeste Clark (.586) also enjoyed strong showings at the plate. All four girls hit home runs during the tournament, as did Sydney Dufour. K.C. Lehn turned in a stellar pitching performance in the win over Halton Hills. Also contributing to Oakville's success at provincials were Alexa Nicholson, Jordan Iacobelli, Mackenzie Jacobs, Katie Matheson Green and Amy Lampitt. Mike Jacobs, Craig Lehn and Ian Reay coach the team. Earlier in the season, the Angels won B division gold at the Brampton Blast tournament. Oakville posted wins over the Brampton Blazers Gold, Halton Hills Hawks and Brampton Blazers Burgundy during that competition. -- See page 36 for a photo of the team GRAHAM PAINE / OAKVILLE BEAVER / @HALTON_PHOTOG HEAVY MEDAL: Abbey Park student Arielle Zamdvaiz displays the gold medal she won at the recent International Taekwondo Federation world championships. Toughness keys taekwondo world title By Jon Kuiperij BEAVER SPORTS EDITOR not making a point obvious," said the Abbey Park student. "When (your opponents) make it obvious, it's a point for you." Louie Sanchez, Zamdvaiz's instructor at Horizon, said Arielle Zamdvaiz wasn't intimidated by the opponents she Zamdvaiz (who weighs less than 100 pounds) didn't need any faced at the recent International Taekwondo Federation (ITF) convincing to combat bigger and older boys in practice. "That's just the way she is. She plays rep soccer, so there's that world championships. In Zamdvaiz's mind, she'd already faced much more difficult contact there," he said. "She can take a hit. She's just tough." Zamdvaiz is Horizon's first world champion since 2004, and foes in practice. the club's first-ever member to win world gold The 16-year-old Horizon Taekwon-Do student in sparring. won all her matches at the world championships "I figured if I sparred She has Olympic ambitions, but only the in Ottawa to claim gold in the micro weight spar- (against boys in World Taekwondo Federation -- not the ITF -- ring division. Zamdvaiz, a second-degree black practice), it wouldn't be is recognized by the International Olympic belt, attributed her victory to the intense trainany worse (at the world Committee. The WTF focuses more on the sport ing she did this summer, particularly fighting championships)." of fighting, while the ITF focuses on the art. against boys. "She would have to change federations," "Most girls (at Horizon) took the summer off, Sanchez said. "There's talk of (the federations) so there were only boys left. I figured if I sparred Arielle Zamdvaiz, who won merging one day, but I think that's just people like this, it wouldn't be any worse," said Zamdvaiz, the micro weight sparring talking about it. I don't know if it will happen or adding she left practice with bruised ribs on sev- division at the ITF worlds not." eral occasions. First-degree black belt Vincent Vu also represented Horizon "With the training I had, whenever (girls at worlds) hit me, it didn't seem to faze me as much as when I hit them. I watched at the ITF worlds. The 13-year-old middleweight fought commy videos the other day and they just went flying every time I hit petitors as old as 17 and did not make the podium in his first world championship appearance. them." More than 500 athletes competed at the ITF worlds, repreZamdvaiz said the ability to discreetly take a kick or punch can pay off if not all four judges -- one in each corner of the ring senting more than 25 countries. -- can see the hit. -- Jon Kuiperij can be followed on Twitter @Beaversports "Maybe the two judges behind you don't see the hit and you're Royals product heads to Robert Morris U Former Oakville Royals catcher Eddie Largy will join the Robert Morris University Eagles this year on a baseball scholarship. Largy caught for the Royals from 2008 to 2010, when he earned a scholarship to play for the Carl Sandburg Community College Chargers in Galesburg, Illinois. Largy batted .215 with 14 RBIs in 24 games for the Chargers. Having completed his associate degree, Largy will be transferring to Robert Morris for the final two years of his eligibility. The Mississauga native played with the Burlington Brants of Eddie Largy the COBA Major league this summer, batting .304. Largy will be joined by two other graduates of the Royals program at Robert Morris, pitcher Chris Ruediger and outfielder Mitch Mattarollo.