Photo Courtesy - Leamington Flyers, Twitter (@LeamFlyers)

 

GOJHL West Playoffs

 

(1) Leamington Flyers vs. (6) Komoka Kings

 

The Leamington Flyers had their backs against the wall this past weekend. Needing to win out in order to avoid an upset at the hands of the Komoka Kings. They kept their season alive in Game #5 of the season, forcing a Game #6 on Saturday evening in Komoka.

After a scoreless two-and-a-half periods, the Flyers finally broke through for three goals in the third period. Rory DiNiro had two goals that bookended a marker from Dylan Weston, who assisted on both of DiNiro’s goals as well. Zach Borgiel made 20 saves for the shutout between the Flyers’ cage, to force a deciding Game #7 back in Leamington on Sunday.

Game #7 saw another scoreless first period, but the Flyers got on the board with a goal from Liam Hall in the second period to give his team the 1-0 lead after 40. Ryan Gagnier extended the lead to 2-0 early in the third period, then Rory DiNiro sealed it with an empty netter to give the Flyers another 3-0 win, sending them off to the Conference Finals. With 31 saves in Game #7, Zach Borgiel stopped 51 shots in the two elimination games, not getting beat once. In the three must-win games for the Flyers, they gave up just one goal while scoring 10.

The Flyers will now play the London Nationals in the Bill Weir Championship series—a matchup between the top two teams. Leamington finished the regular season two points ahead of the Nationals for the top spot and will have home ice advantage for the Championship series. The Nationals took four out of the six regular season meetings between the two teams. This is a rematch of the 2017 Western Conference Final where the Nationals won in five games.

 

Here is the schedule for the GOJHL Western Conference Championship series:

 

Game 1: Thursday, March 28^th – 7:10pm, Leamington

Game 2: Saturday, March 30^th – 7:00pm, London

Game 3: Sunday, March 31^st – 7:10pm, Leamington

Game 4: Wednesday, April 3^rd – 7:00pm, London

Game 5: Thursday, April 4^th – 7:10pm, Leamington*

Game 6: Sunday, April 7^th – 7:00pm, London*

Game 7: Monday, April 8^th – 7:10pm, Leamington*

*if necessary

 

NBL Basketball – London Lightning

 

The London Lightning were on the road over the weekend, doing battle with the Sudbury Five on Sunday. The Lightning suffered their second straight loss 116-108. The Five were led by a stellar performance from Cory Dixon, who had a game-high 34 points on 12-14 shooting off the bench. For the Lightning, Marvin Phillips and Maurice Bolden both had 19 points, with Anthony Gaines Jr. picking up a 13-point, 14 rebound double-double. London will conclude its regular season with a home-and-home against the Windsor Express, in Windsor on Friday then finishing the year at Budweiser Gardens on Sunday. Sitting at 20-18, the Lightning can secure the top spot in the Central Division if they win both games.