Chippawa driver wins F3 Winter Series title
Chippawa’s Nelson Mason clinched the Winter Series title after finishing second at the final race weekend of the 2013 European Formula 3 Open Winter Series at Spain’s Circuito de Jerez.
Mason finished the race 2.7 seconds behind teammate Ed Jones of the United Arab Emirates.
“Ed was very fast, so congratulations to him for this weekend,” Mason told his Team West-Tec website. “I am delighted with our performance though, and to come away with the Winter Series title makes it pretty mem- orable for me.”
Team West dominated once again as its drivers were the fastest in all five practice sessions.
Mason, in addition to winning the Winter Series title, was also the fastest in Free Practice 4.
Much like Paul Ricard, which Mason won, both Team West drivers started the race cleanly. A spinner at the back of the field brought the safety car, which allowed other drivers to close the gap, but Jones and Mason pulled away after the restart.
Mason will return to the track at the two- day collective test at Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona, Spain March 14-15.
Fort Erie’s Trevor Parkes was named the ECHL’s Player of the Week.
Parkes scored six goals and added five assists in four games from Feb. 25- March 3 with the Toledo Walleye. The Detroit Red Wings prospect has seven goals and eight assists in seven games with the Walleye t his season. He’s scored t hree goals and six assists in 34 games wi t h the Red Wings’ Amer ican Hockey League affiliate in Grand Rapids. Parkes had three games with at least three points last week.
It started with two goals and an assist in a 5-4 shootout loss at Fort Wayne. After collecting an assist in a 6- 3 defeat to Evansville, Parkes’ hat trick and assist led Toledo to a 7- 1 win over Evansville in the rematch.
He finished the week Sunday with a goal and two assists in a 5- 4 overtime loss against Trenton.
Parkes’ contributions on the ice led to generosity off the ice, as a case of pucks was donated by Sher- Wood on his behalf to a youth hockey organization in Toledo.
Toledo is fifth in the Eastern Conference with a 31- 20- 5- 4 record.
Former Niagara Falls Canucks goalie Jake Rattie recently finished his third season with the University of Ontario Institute of Technology.
Rattie, who spent five seasons with his hometown junior B club, posted a goals-against average of 4.09 and a .901 save percentage in six games in 2012-13.
The Ridgebacks finished eighth in the Ontario University Athletics West Division. Their 11-16-1 record clinched t he f i nal playoff berth, but UOIT l ost in t wo g a mes to t he f i rstplace Western Mustangs.