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It started in November when Delaney and Rhianon Klein of the Waterloo Regionâ€" al Synchro Club‘s Tier 5 team challenged other local teams to collect toys for the Tree of Angels this Christmas. But this year there were too many to profile individuâ€" ally, so I thought I‘d hand out a few sugar plums of my own. We‘ve done stories in the Chronicle in the past about an individual team‘s generosâ€" ity at this time of year. The latest is how local teams come together for a greater purâ€" pose at this time of year, like helpâ€" ing the less fortunate And in rare occasions it teaches life lesâ€" sons that are bigâ€" ger than all of us. But how about all of the social benefits sports create. New friends and lifelong bonds are formed. There is skills developâ€" ment and the way it teaches our young to compete. There is a sense of purâ€" pose and the thrill of achieveâ€" ment. The benefits of sport are already well known. There are health benefits from the fun, fitness and relaxation that sport affords. Celebrating the spirit of the season Jamie Collins and Adam Ciuman, both 9, check out some of the 50 toys their Waterloo Wolves Minor Atom Triple A team collected for the Tree of Angels on Saturday at Conestoga oi e e 1 s ns Send me a rundown of their accomplishments and I‘ll publish a "nice list" over the next couple of weeks. Email _ your list _ to sports@waterloochronicle.ca. There are many other team‘s who. have done someâ€" thing nice and thoughtful at this time of year, so here‘s my chance to play Santa Claus. Then there was the Waterâ€" loo Bantam Ice Wolves _ who, d ‘ instead of holdâ€" ,‘?} ing a Christmas «i / party this year, decided to volâ€" unteer _ with B ()l;:eration Chrisimas NAC Child. _ They loaded up shoeâ€" boxes Dec. 11 for children who have a lot less than they do in developing countries in Africa and South America. They came out of Zellers at the Conestoga Mall with a cart full of goodies for kids their own age so SÂ¥esi) | that they would 3\ s have snfnething LD under the tree 1 this Christmas. Taking up the challenge were teams like the Waterloo Wolves Minor Atom Triple A team, who collected money while doing extra chores so they could go on a shopping spree for the campaign last Saturday. So what was the biggest difference between this Knights teams and previous squads who were routed by the Renegades? How about talent. In the process the Knights established themâ€" selves as a favourite to take this year‘s girls hockey crown in addition to teams like the St. David Celtics and the Forest Heights Trojans. It just wasn‘t what they did but they way they did it as the dominated thedeâ€" fending WCSSAA girls hockâ€" ey champs in a 4â€"1 win. he Bluevale Knights I girl‘s hockey team managed to do someâ€" thing they haven‘t been able to do in four years â€" they beat the Grand River Renegades last Thursday at Moses Springer Arena. The _ Sugar _ Kings responded to tie the game by the end of the first, but got into penaltyâ€"trouble in the second to continue the holiday generosity they Mcintosh apple of Bluevale Knights‘ é);e Stuffed animals, collectâ€" ed for local toy drives, rained down on the ice at 4:01 of the first period as Josh Rubenschuh opened the scoring for the Siskins. And the giftâ€"giving continâ€" ued less than a minute later with Andrew Dostie putting the Siskins up 2â€"0. 6â€"5 win over leagueâ€"leading Cambridge two weeks ago that started their fiveâ€"game winning streak. hree games in three I nights caught up with the Waterloo Siskins Sunday afternoon as they let a thirdâ€"period lead slip to Stratford and settled for a 3â€" 3 overtime tie. While three seemed to be a magic number on Sunday, it was a better start to the weekend Friday night as the Siskins proved they could compete with the top teams in the Midwestern Junior B league with a 4â€"3 win over the secondâ€"place Elmira Sugar Kings. That was after a Tired legscatch up to Siskins in tie SPORTS By Bos VrBaNac Chronicle Staff By Bos VrBanac Chronicle Staff The Grade 11 student suited up for the Knights in Grade 9 but couldn‘t play for Bluevale last year because of team commitâ€" ments she had playing in the Provincial Women‘s Nothing personifies that more than Laura Mcintosh‘s return to the team. The Knights‘ Megan Hopkins gets another shot on net in Bluevale‘s 4â€"1 win over Grand River, BOB VRBANAC PHOTO The Siskins‘ winning streak came to an end Saturâ€" day night in Guelph after a tough 2â€"1 loss. The breaks that were going their way the night before caught up with them against the Domâ€" The Siskins‘ Blake Underwooc Way in Sunday‘s 3â€"3 tie. started in the opening frame. With two men in the box, the Siskins scored two powerâ€"play goals less than a minute apart to put them ahead to stay. Garret Rank put the Siskins up while Blair Brewer added the eventual game winner with the man advantage. Blake Underwood backhands the second of his two goals past Stratford‘s Colin i event c Those commitments were eased a little this year, and the Knights have beneâ€" fited from the return of the star forward who was recently selected to play for Team Ontario in the Canada Winter Games in the Yukon ; "This was a game we ~ . | _ wanted to win," said Mcinâ€" tosh, who got her start in mammitle the game 11 years ago playâ€" ing big brother Jeff in the driveway and the basement of their parents‘ home. "We ts another shot on net in fought for every pass." ver. soe shtanac miore That effort has the Hockey League with Missisâ€" _ Knights thinking of bigger sauga. and better. Making the playâ€" Those commitments _ offs would be a start. Underwood extended that lead to two on a nice feed from Nick Gill at 8:20 of the third. But the Siskins‘ skating legs failed them as The Siskins looked like they were going to bounce back Sunday, taking a 2â€"1 lead into the third against Stratford at the Waterloo Memorial Recreation Comâ€" plex on powerâ€"play markers by Blake Underwood and Justin Knee. inators, even though Siskins‘ goalie Kyle Broadhagen turned away 36 of 38 shots. www.rwwaterloo.com "Last year we didn‘t even make the playoffs," said Mcintosh, 16, about her year away from the team. "We have a new batch of Grade 9s and our goalie Mcintosh had a goal and an assist in the win against Grand River, joining teamâ€" mate Sarah Moore to form a potent line combination. Moore also had two goals in the contest, and assisted on Mcintosh‘s goal to open the contest. this February The Siskins managed to kill off a Cullitons‘ power play in overtime and got a truncated one of their own to end the game, but the Continued on page 27 the Cullitons tied it up with 2:25 left in the third. "We played hard but they had a good third period, and we ran out of legs," said Underwood, who joined the Siskins this season after a twoâ€"year stint in Owen Sound. "Three games in three nights kind of caught up to us there." CLICK HERE Yolkswagen New & Certified Preâ€"owned Cors Volkswagen Waterloo Continued on page 27