on and are 14-0 when doing so this season ... Xavier owned a 46-18

TORONTO - For months, the thought of walking out on his team and fleeing to the U. Custom Nike Baseball Jerseys Store .S. lingered on Maikel Changs mind.The young midfielder talked about it with close friends on Cubas national soccer team and almost tried his luck on a few occasions, only to let fear deter him. But when he saw his chance — the night before a World Cup qualifying match in Toronto in the fall of 2012 — there was no hesitation, he said.He and two teammates, Odisnel Cooper and Heviel Cordoves, grabbed their passports and belongings while the rest of their group settled into their hotel rooms. They then slipped out through the fire escape and bolted down the street to avoid being spotted by their coaches. U.S. officials later confirmed the three had crossed the border in Niagara Falls, Ont.We had to do it if we wanted to play professional soccer. We also had to do it when we were still young, Chang, 23, told The Canadian Press in a phone interview from Charleston, S.C., where he, Cooper and Cordoves play for the Charleston Battery in a lower-tier professional league.We had already played at all levels in the national team and we realized that there was nowhere else to go, he said in Spanish.Dozens of top athletes — including many from Cuba — have defected during international competitions in an effort to escape persecution or to move up to a larger market.Its too early to tell whether the thawing relations between Cuba and the U.S., which will ease travel restrictions and may affect immigration policies, will reduce the incentive for Cuban athletes to defect while playing abroad, experts said as Ontario prepares to welcome thousands of athletes for the Pan Am and Parapan Games this summer.When Canada last hosted the Games in 1999, eight members of the Cuban delegation defected, stirring tensions between the two countries as Cuban officials accused Canadian media of inciting athletes to jump ship. When Winnipeg first staged the Games in 1967, a Cuban boxer defected shortly after winning a gold medal.Two players from the Cuban womens soccer team defected in 2011 after facing off with the Canadian team in Vancouver in an Olympic qualifying match. They crossed into the U.S., where they were reunited with relatives.It is fairly common given that these events bring people from different places in the world...They may be persecuted due to their sexual orientation, due to their political opinion and other grounds, said Jamie Liew, an Ottawa lawyer specializing in immigration and refugee law.In our culture, we view athletes as being quite well off, being compensated for the work that they do, who live charmed lives, (but) its very different for people who may come from different countries, she said.Athletes in certain sports, such as soccer and baseball, can often find better opportunities in North America, said Bruce Kidd, an expert on the history and political economy of Canadian sports at the University of Toronto.But should travel between Cuba and the U.S. become easier in the next few years, they might not need to defect to get their big break, he said.Many Russian athletes defected during the Cold War, when movement in and out of the Eastern Bloc was heavily controlled, Kidd said.Since then, he said, the freeing up of travel has significantly reduced the driver for a lot of this and Russian athletes dont have to defect to have opportunities to train and compete in the United States, Canada and Western Europe.Both Liew and Chang, however, said its unlikely the softening relationship between Havana and Washington will affect athletes decisions at this time.There is still a lot of uncertainty, Liew said. In the last few weeks there has been an increase of Cubans trying to get to the U.S. due to U.S. policy with regards to Cuban refugees. There is a healthy skepticism that anything in the near future will change in Cuba.Chang said he cant predict whether Cuban athletes will try to defect during this summers Pan Am Games, but he doesnt believe the new diplomatic developments will be a factor.Fear, and concerns about leaving relatives behind, are more likely to influence athletes considering defection, he said.I can tell you that all my fellow Cuban players would like to be here to play professional soccer but this is a very difficult decision to make, said Chang, who was barred from returning to Cuba for eight years but talks to his mother daily through email.This is a decision you cannot undo.Athletes seeking to stay in Canada rather than head south of the border will have to go through the same process as any other asylum-seekers, Canadian officials said.Canadas refugee policies are applied consistently regardless of any special event, a spokesman for Citizenship and Immigration Canada said in an email.In the past, there were allegations that Ottawa — or NGOs acting with federal approval — actively encouraged defection, Kidd said, more to embarrass its political rivals than to bolster Canadian teams.More recently, he said, Canada has not gone out of its way to recruit defectors, it has simply considered and supported those who have asked for refugee status._ With files from Marie-Espérance Cerda Custom Nike Baseball Jerseys Sale .com) - The Winnipeg Jets placed defenceman Paul Postma on injured reserve Tuesday. Wholesale Custom Nike Baseball Jerseys . Joel Embiid was nearly unstoppable in the paint in the second half, and Naadir Tharpe seemingly couldnt miss. https://www.customnikebaseballjerseys.com/111n-custom-nike-new-york-yankees-jerseys-baseball.html . Among the teams moves was trading one of the teams two third round picks, no. 83 overall, to the Chicago Blackhawks for Brandon Bollig, a six-foot-two, 223-pound left-winger who had seven goals, seven assists, and 92 penalty minutes in 82 games last season.Villanova, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - Ryan Arcidiacono led the way with 18 points and six assists as No. 5 Villanova cruised past Xavier for an 88-75 win on Wednesday. Dylan Ennis went 5-of-8 from 3-point range to finish with 17 points and Josh Hart chipped in with 15 points and seven rebounds off the bench for the Wildcats (16-1, 4-1 Big East), who have won three straight following their lone blemish of the season, a 66-61 overtime loss to Seton Hall on Jan. 3. What a tough game. Coming out and making the start we did, hitting the threes and getting the lead was big, Villanova head coach Jay Wright said. We hung on in the second even though they outplayed us. Matt Stainbrook scored 17 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the field and Jalen Reynolds contributed 14 points, five boards and three blocks for the Musketeers (11-6, 2-3), who have dropped three of their last four games. I was proud that our team fought and continued to fight in the second half; didnt cash it in, said Xavier head coach Chris Mack. There arent too many teams, if any, that are going to come into this building and get a win. Darrun Hilliard, Arcidiacono and Ennis each made a 3-pointer as the Wildcatss jumped out to an 11-2 lead less than four minutes into the game. Custom Nike Baseball Jerseys Outlet. After J.P. Macura brought the Musketeers within six points, Villanova answered with a 12-2 run that featured seven straight points from Hart for a 34-17 lead. The Wildcats maintained its lead as the game was 45-27 at halftime. Daniel Ochefu capped a 9-0 spurt early in the second half with a layup, giving Villanova a 59-36 lead with 14 minutes to play. Dee Davis, however, scored the first seven points of Xaviers 13-2 burst that cut the deficit to 12. Stainbrook scored six points, Myles Davis hit a jumper and Reynolds dunked to make it a 67-57 game with seven minutes to play. JayVaughn Pinkstons two free throws kickstarted an 8-0 run with under five minutes to play and the Wildcats led comfortably the rest of the way. Game Notes Pinkston and Hilliard had 12 and 10 points, respectively, in the win ... Villanova leads the all-time series, 19-4 ... The Wildcats are 37-1 when scoring 70 points or more in a game since the start of the 2013-14 season and are 14-0 when doing so this season ... Xavier owned a 46-18 advantage for points in the paint. ' ' '