December Highlights

With the building anticipation of Santa’s arrival and the growing excitement of winter vacation around the corner, some of the country’s high school athletes were busy focusing on their respective sports. With the hockey season in full effect and award ceremonies on the rise, here are some of the December school sport highlights.

The “Oscars” of Football

You would think that winning the OFSAA Western Bowl back in November would have been pinnacle of an amazing football season for the Vikings but the best was yet to come in December.

The now humbled Eric Guiltinan, the Vikings running back, was awarded the Bob Gooder Award as the outstanding player in TVRA Central senior football this season. Guiltinan lead the Vikings to their first conference title since 2003 and the very first Western Bowl victory in school history by scoring 25 touchdowns over 11 games.

Fellow teammate and soon to be graduate, Jimmy Ro, won the Greg Anderson Memorial Award. The award is presented to the player in his final year that best displays the combining skills of football talent, academics, and community involvement.

TVRA Central football award winners include: Rupert Butcher, left, of Central, winner of the Dr. Jim Allen Award; Eric Guiltinan of Lucas with his Bob Gooder Award; and Jimmy Ro of Lucas winner of the Greg Anderson Award

The Vikings weren’t the only football team to have players honored with awards for this past season. Rupert Butcher, from Central, took home the Dr. Jim Allen Memorial Award as the conference’s top lineman,

an honour that Butcher wasn’t expecting. “I couldn’t have predicted this at all,” Guiltinan said. “I mean, none of us were thinking about individual awards or winning the Western Bowl or MVPs. All we were focusing on was winning that city title.”

Teams were also recognized for their achievements during the season. The Medway Cowboys won the Jim Casburn Memorial Award – an award that is voted for by the London Football Officials Association – as the team most displaying sportsmanship, improvement, and achievement.

From Injured to Golden Goalie

It’s no secret that of late in the major league hockey concussions have become a hot topic. With some of the leagues top players recovering from concussions and sitting out for the season, one high school goalie isn’t letting that interfere with his game.

Alex Weitzel has suffered a series of concussions all relatively close together. He suffered from one in March, April, and August that left him unable to play the sport he loves for almost five months. This period of time away from the game, especially for a goalie, can have serious side effects on the players’ skill level and performance.

Alex, worried he may not be able to lace up for his high school hockey team -the Saunders Sabres, got the doctors approval and was allowed to start the season alongside the rest of his team. In his first game back, Weitzel delivered a shutout performance with a 4-0 victory over rivals Holy Cross on December 9^th. It wasn’t an easy feat considering twice the Centurions had a two-man advantage over the Sabres.

“Excellent,” Alex replied when asked about how he felt. “I was really rusty the first period. I was just glad to get that period out of the way, especially the first shot.”