ts) & WY PORTS, Royals bring home men’s soccer bronze at nationals Fell to Seneca Sting on day one, defeat Holland Hurricanes for bronze Reynold Stewart By Garth McLennan, Sports Editor men’s soccer team, and it was capped off in excellent fashion earlier this month at the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association 2009 national soccer championships, where the Royals downed the Mount Royal Cougars, who play out of the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference, 1-0 to take home the tournament’s bronze medal. Midfielder Reynold Stewart, who has been Douglas’ most valuable player this year by far, scored the game winning goal while goaltender Gyrish Kaniah made 20 saves to preserve the shutout win. While the Royals undoubtedly had gold medal hopes, winning bronze shouldn’t be considered a disappointment at all. They were strong throughout the tournament and lost just once, in a tight 1-0 game against the Seneca Sting, the host team, where the Royals battled hard all game before surrendering the winning goal at the 75:00 mark in the opener on day one. Unfortunately, that loss against Seneca came in the all-important first game. The national championships are a highly compact tournament, and the opening day winners are the only teams eligible for a shot to get into the gold medal game on day three. Despite being out of gold medal contention, Douglas didn’t come out flat in 20 le been a tremendous year for Douglas’ their next game, in which a victory would guarantee them a shot in the medal round. They made it count, blowing out Alberta’s Holland Hurricanes 6-0 in a dominant performance that saw Conner McMahon score a hat trick, including the opening two goals. The Hurricanes were trounced throughout the weekend, and failed to win a single game, winding up with a not-so- impressive 0-3 record. Douglas finished 2-1, and while losing to Seneca was tough, especially considering how close the game was up until the end, some solace can be taken in the knowledge that the Sting went on to defeat Francois- Xavier Garneau, the Quebec representative, 3-2 on day three in the gold medal game to win it all. At the conclusion of the tournament, Stewart was named to the 2009 CCAA All- Canadian squad, the only Royal to have that distinction. Douglas also did well at the awards banquet following it all, as both Kaniah and forward Owen Sinclair were named to the championship all-star team. Kwesi Loney of the Algonquian Thunder (Ontario Colleges Athletic Association) was named 2009 CCAA Coach of the year while Andrew DaSilva of the Humber Hawks (also OCAA) took home the 2009 CCAA player of the year honours. Pacquiao-Cotto lives up to the billing Outclassed, Cotto fights bravely for 12 rounds By Garth McLennan, Sports Editor jor Manny Pacquiao, Saturday was a ET: ght where he once again entrenched himself as one half of the best pound- for-pound fighter on the planet question and captured the WBO welterweight championship in a 12" round TKO. For Miguel Cotto, Saturday was a night in which he took a pounding for 12 rounds, but it was also a night where he proved to anyone who doubted him that he is indeed one of the gutsiest, most courageous boxers alive today. Yes, Saturday provided a tremendous fight, and it was boxing at its finest. Ina sport where far too often ridiculously over- priced Pay Per View events are a major turn off, this was one night that even the most casual fan wouldn’t want to miss. It was a clash between the most famous boxer alive in Pacquiao, and one of the toughest in the game today in Cotto. The action was fast paced, incredibly entertaining and as the fight progressed, more and more one sided. Both fighters, Pacquiao from the Philippines and Cotto from Puerto Rico, put on a show by throwing bombs all night. Despite his heart, by the third round it was apparent that Cotto was clearly outclassed, as Pacquiao once again displayed his inhuman speed and landed combo after devastating combo while backing Cotto up all night and frequently punishing him in the corners and on the ropes. But to Cotto’s credit, he didn’t quit. While it was evident that he had run out of gas as his hard jab, which was so effective early in the fight, began to fade, he took everything Pacquiao threw at him right up until the end, when the referee jumped in to wave the fight off 55 seconds into the 12" and final round. After a wild and action-packed second round, Pacquiao took near total control of the bout, time and again breaking through Cotto’s defences with powerful left and right ee hooks that more than once had Cotto reeling and floored him twice. Despite questions about Pacquiao’s endurance heading into the fight, which were accentuated by Pacquiao moving up a weight class to reach the 145 pound limit and the heavier Cotto moving down, it was Pacquiao who maintained his awesome speed and power all the way through, while Cotto visibly tired as the night wore on. By the later rounds Pacquiao was landing power punches seemingly at will, and it was only through steely determination that Cotto managed to stay on his feet and in the fight. This has to be considered Pacquiao’s biggest win yet, and that includes his pummelling of Oscar de la Hoya and his destruction of Ricky Hatton earlier this year. Cotto has consistently been one of boxing’s top welterweights for years now and can take a punch better than almost anyone, and that was proven once again on Saturday. While a rejuvenated Shane Mosley has made claims to being Pacquiao’s next opponent, the mega-fight already looming in the distance is the inevitable meeting of Pacquiao, who with his win on Saturday won his seventh championship in seven different weight classes, and the undefeated Floyd Mayweather, the other half of the top pound- for-pound fighter in the world equation and arguably the best boxer of his generation. Pacquiao’s speed has been the overwhelming factor in his last three, very _ high profile, fights, and it appears that Mayweather is the only person left out there who can match him in that department, or at least keep up with him. While Pacquiao has the fastest hands of anyone I’ve ever seen, no one in boxing in the last 20 years can dodge punch better than Mayweather. Saturday was a night where it was great to be in love with boxing, where we got to see one of the best, and on the other side one of the bravest, fighters alive today. It makes Pacquiao-Mayweather all the more epic.