GRAM 4 SPORTS 3 Ron Chimelis Big hits produce results OSTON The day began with Boston calling Butch in talk on from one shows, of the on those Cape which guys without lives explain how coaches and athletes should live theirs. Butch cast the Boston Bruins as a team of Nancy Kerrigans out there, too nicey-nice to survive against those bullies from Buffalo. The inference was that if the Bruins didn't start acting less like Nancy and more like Tonya Harding, golf season would begin Monday. 1 Saying the Bruins should throw their weight around ignores the fact that they don't have that much weight to throw. But yesterday at FleetCenter, Tonya showed up wearing black and gold, and the 5-3 Bruins victory means there will be a Game 6 after all.
Until they decided to skate the third period on training wheels, the Bruins not only made Dominik Hasek look mortal, but bodychecked the Sabres well enough to make Hasek's teammates look quite portable. Hasek was pulled after 40 minutes, a sure sign of surrender, but the Sabres still turned a game into 4-3, then Buffalo's Dixon Ward mugged Kyle McLaren with 53 seconds left. Rob DiMaio intervened in time to take a punch, and Ward and DiMaio went off for roughing. The resulting four-on-four was to Buffalo's advantage since open ice is always to the trailing team's advantage and proved that if the NHL were running Traffic Court, one driver could commit vehicular homicide and the other could park too far from the curb, and they'd both get matching penalties. But Jason Allison's goal clinched a game the Bruins won by passing the most primal of tests.
Their manhood had been challenged ever since Alexci Zhitnik took a run at Ray Bourque during Game 2 in Boston, an act not unlike attending a baseball fantasy camp, and charging the mound against Bob Gibson. In other words, you just don't do it, but since Zhitnik did, the Sabres had been calling the psychological shots against a Bruins team more suited to artful playmaking than trading knuckle sandwiches. Until yesterday. It's been a long time since the phrase "Big Bad Bruins" applied to this finesse-oriented club. But asked about the manhood issue, Don Sweeney said yes, it had become time to check the Bruins' testosterone level." "You've got to see what you've got inside," Sweeney said.
In some ways, the Bruins have more inside than outside, the best example being 174-pound P- Axelsson, who could use a little meat on those bones but who waded right into the fray. So did Sergei Samsonov. playing like a man on winged skates, a Mice change from a month of playing like he had webbed feet. But he hit. too.
It was Samsonov's check on Brian Holzinger that set up Boston's third goal. And then there was Landon Wilson, stepping in to defend Sourque after Michael Peca tried to plant an elbow on Sir Raymond's face. Playing physically would be ensier if coach Pat Burns could use Hen Belanger, the John Wensink of this outfit. But even with only minimal use of Belanger, can't seem to avoid taking penalties, the Bruins opened up an active checking account for 40 minutes. The third period suggested the Sabres may still be in control, but Allison is confident: "When the chips are down.
we play our best," he said, and that's great news, because the chips will He "down for the rest of this series. "I've always been proud of this team," an undaunted Burns dedared. "A lot of teams with bigger names and salaries are no longer But the Bruins are, and only because they played rough and tough, like real men. Or better yet, like Tonya. Union-News Boston Bruins defenseman Don Sweeney is falling, but he's smiling because he has just scored off Buffalo Sabres goalie Dominik Hasek during the first period.
of the Bruins' 5-3 playoff victory yesterday at FleetCenter in Boston. The Sabres now lead the best-of7 series 3-2, with Game 6 tomorrow night at Buffalo. 1: Associated Press 3 Tennis' best capture titles 3 Girls' individuals belong to Amherst By FRAN SYPEK Staff writer Staff writer WEST SPRINGFIELD When it was over, the two players embraced and offered congratulations. And For Amherst-Pelham Regional High School freshman Mollie Edinson, it was a bittersweet victory yesterday. Sweet because she is the Western Massachusetts high school girls' tennis champion, yet just a little bit bitter because she had to beat her good friend and teammate, sophom*ore Jane Chae, to accomplish that goal.
Normally, the two are there for. each other and lending support as teammates. Which was why for, one day, it was extremely difficult for them to face each other as opponents. Edinson said, "was tough." Even tougher for was watching Chae withdraw from the match because of injury. Edinson was leading 6-2, 1-0 when Chae could no longer continue because of soreness in her right arm, just above the elbow.
"I just hope she's OK," Edinson said. "Even though I won, I don't know if I can really feel as good about it as I usually would." Amherst made it a Western Massachusetts individuals sweep as Iva Curcija and Liz Ellis won the doubles title with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over West Springfield's Jenny Donahue and Lauren Follett. The Western Massachusetts champions advanced to the state tournament, where they will meet the Central Massachusetts champs June 12 at Longwood Cricket Club. Edinson and Chae have had to deal with high expectations this season. "People in school are always comparing us," said Chae, who valiantly tried to play through her pain.
Chae has been bothered by a sore right arm for the past few weeks. "It's something that just comes and goes," she said. "I was all right yesterday (Saturday), but today it started bothering me during warmups." Last week, Chae had to serve underhanded just to complete a set during a regular-season match. But the pain was just too intense Please see Girls, Page D3 East Longmeadow junior repeals LONGMEADOW Can anyone beat David Donn? The 16-year-old East Longmeadow resident only strengthened that question yesterday when he answered last year's Western Massachusetts high school boys' tennis individual championships with another singles title. The East Longmeadow High School junior turned back Cesar Carmona of Minnechaug Regional 6-1, 6-3 in the championship match at Longmeadow High School.
"It's a good feeling, more of a relief than anything," Donn said. "Last year was great because I 1999 :.3 SECTION 163 Bruins keep 30 153 season going afT cH Inspired effort against Sabres: sends series back to Buffalo a By GENE O'DONNELL Staff writer BOSTON In the organization's 75 years, the Boston Bruins have developed a sense of pride and a workmanlike ethic. Now is the time to give the Bruins credit for displaying that character. After a dismal, lack- Bruins adaisical and uninspired performance Friday night at Buffalo, the Bruins fought back with one of their best showings of the season yesterday, rebounding with a convincing 5-3 victory over the Sabres at FleetCenter. Now, it's off to Buffalo for Game 6 of the best-of-7 Eastern Conference semifinal series tomorrow night.
The Sabres, who won the three previous games of the series, lead 3-2. Game 7, if necessary, will be at FleetCenter Thursday night. So many good things happened to the Bruins yesterday. Jason Allison, who had been Staff photo by CHITOSE SUZUKI Amherst-Pelham Regional High School freshman Mollie Edinson unleashes a two -handed shot toward teammate Jane Chae during yesterday's Western Massachusetts girls' tennis singles final at West Springfield High School. Edinson won after Chae withdrew early in the second set because of injury.
Longmeadow High School's David Donn follows through with a backhand against Minnechaug Regional's Cesar Carmona yesterday during the Western Massachusetts boys' singles final at East Longmeadow High School. Donn won 6-1, 6-3 to capture his second straight title. Staff photo by i. CHITOSE SUZUKI 0 0 dormant in the scoring ment since Game 1, sealed the vic-. tory with an even-strength goali with 42.1 seconds remaining.
el Left wing Sergei SamsonovA joined the checking line with Taylor and Rob DiMaio, and delivered a goal and an assist and tered a plus-3 rating. Goaltender Byron Dafoe out.h played Buffalo's Dominik Hasek, making 20 saves while snapping three-game losing streak. Spare defenseman Mattias Tif mander, who played in one playoff game for 5:04 May 2 against the Carolina Hurricanes, made the best of his opportunity and scored, a goal for Boston. Don Sweeney, who returned after missing Game 4 with a back injury, and Dmitri Khristich, who? hadn't been a factor since Game of the series, also scored for Boston. Curtis Brown, Wayne, Pri- 39.
meau and Joe Juneau tallied for? Buffalo. oM Just before game time, Pat Burns and captain Ray Bourque addressed the team. DIS 1 Please see Bruins, Page D2 Blue Jays 26 Red Sox im Nd SN Boston was knocked out of a. tie for first place in the AL East: on Carlos Delgado's, winning 3-4 run homer in the 9th. 2 nq Associated Press foo 1 TORONTO With his team in a rut, Carlos Delgado provided much-needed spark for the Toronto Blue Jays.
0:2 Delgado hit a three-run homers in the ninth inning as the Blue Jays rallied to beat the Boston Red Soxi. 9-6 yesterday for only their fourth win in 12 games. "We've been through some hard! times, we've been losing, we've: had guys hurt, so we had to battle," Delgado said. "It was Blue Jays a big game Red Sox for us, and hopefully we can turns things' around and start from here." Jose Cruz who entered the" game batting .226, went 3 for 3, with two doubles and a two-run" homer for the Blue Jays. Alex Gonzalez led off the ninth, with a walk off Kip Gross (0-2).
Shawn Green followed with a sharp single to right, sending Gon-. zalez to third. Delgado then Gross' next pitch into the second deck for his 10th homer. "It was just plain ugly," Gross, said. Graeme Lloyd (3-1) pitched hitless ninth for the Blue Jays, who" rallied from 4-1 and 6-4 deficits to.
tie the game in the eighth inning. "I think the way we won it was better than if we won 15-0," Green said. "It's good to get the feeling back that we had in the first couple of weeks." After Delgado singled to lead of the eighth, Derek Lowe relieved Mark Guthrie and walked Tony. Fernandez. One out later, Lower walked Cruz to load the bases and.
pinch hitter Kevin Witt followed with a two-run single to tie it at 6. Please see Sox, Page D14 By RUSS HELD Staff writer Staff writer proved myself, and was able to get it off my chest. I expected to win it this year, more than last year." Donn's back-to-back titles provided half of the highlights yesterday. The spotlight also hit AmherstPelham Regional tandem Karthik Easwar and Jon Breitbart, who won their first doubles crown. Easwar and Breitbart unseated defending.
champion Justin Blair and Mike McCarey of Longmeadow. The top-seeded and fourth-year doubles partners lost 7-4 in a firstset tiebreaker, but rallied with a 6- 2, 6-3 finish. "After three years, we finally got it." said Breitbart, who had twice Please see Boys, Page D3.
