MONTREAL - It was an intense week at the Bouchard household as daughter Eugenie worked her way to the Australian Open semifinals. Barry Sanders Womens Jersey . "We were yelling like idiots," Mike Bouchard, the players father, said Thursday of his daughters stirring win over Ana Ivanovic in the quarter-finals, which made her the first Canadian to reach the semifinals of a Grand Slam tournament since Carling Bassett-Seguso in 1984. It wasnt quite as frenzied at their Westmount, Que., home two nights later, when Bouchard bowed out with a 6-2, 6-4 loss to fourth-seeded Li Na of China in the semis. "It was also exciting, but in the first set Li Na came out strong and Genie was a little nervous," he said. "I felt for her, but she came back well in the second set. Overall, it was an excellent tournament." Bouchard stole the show in Melbourne, where a dozen or so local fans formed Genies Army to cheer her on and toss her stuffed Australian animals after her wins. Several commentators spoke of Bouchard, the 2012 Wimbledon junior girls champion, being the next big thing in womens tennis and a potential future Grand Slam tournament winner. Already, her results are expected to move her from 31st into the top 20 in next weeks rankings. And it has stirred ticket sales for her next appearance on home turf. She will play for Canada against Serbia Feb. 8-9 in a Federation Cup tie at the Claude Robillard Centre in Montreal. Eugene Lapierre of Tennis Canada, tournament director for the Montreal half of the Rogers Cup, said 500 to 600 tickets per day have been sold since Bouchards win over Ivanovic. The 4,000-seat venue will likely be sold out. And ticket sales have picked up for the womens Rogers Cup at Uniprix Stadium next summer, which is rare in January. "It will drag a lot of people out to come and watch her play," said Lapierre. "It will be interesting to see how she makes the switch from a Grand Slam and playing in a 20,000 seat stadium to the Claude Robillard here with 4,000. But it will be a lot of fun." Canadian tennis has been on a high lately with Milos Raonics rise into the top 10 in the world on the mens side and Vasek Pospisil also climbing in the rankings. Both made the Rogers Cup semifinals in Montreal last summer and led the Davis Cup team to a first-ever semifinal appearance. "Its phenomenal what Eugenie has done," said Lapierre. "I wouldnt say she opened the gates for Canada. The boys started that last year. "But its a new era thats started with the sport of tennis in Canada. Itll be tremendous for the promotion of the game in Canada. Thats our goal at Tennis Canada — to get more kids playing the game. Everyones talking about Eugenie, and thats bound to be good for the sport." Louis Borfiga, Tennis Canadas high performance director, said Bouchard could have a similar impact to Nadia Comaneci, the Romanian who drew slews of girls to try gymnastics after her stunning performance at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal. Or the effect that Anna Kournikova and Maria Sharapova had on womens tennis in Russia. "It will enlarge the pool of players and that will produce more very good players," said Borfiga. "Thats the difference between Canada and countries like France and Spain — their pool of players is larger." Mike Bouchard, an investment banker, is fine with having a daughter who may be seen as a role model for young players. He doesnt even mind that she is quickly becoming a celebrity. "Its good for her," he said. "Shes put in so much work and effort. "If she can be an ambassador for tennis and help tennis grow in Canada, thats fantastic. If it becomes bigger than that — international stardom — good for her. She has a strong head. Shes well grounded, and I think shell be able to go through that unscathed." Mike Bouchard knew he had a special daughter when Eugenie was a young child. When she was 12, the family the moved to Florida so she could learn at an academy run by Nick Saviano, who remains her coach. She spent more than three years in Florida before returning to Montreal to work at the national tennis centre. "It was difficult to find players at her own level to play against, and we also wanted to expose her to international coaching," said Mike Bouchard. "It takes a lot of dedication. Everyone in the family chipped in." Eugenie has a fraternal twin sister Beatrice, an 18-year-old sister Charlotte and a 14-year-old brother William, so the move was a big commitment for all of them. It paid off when Bouchard became one of the worlds top junior players and then made a rapid rise in WTA rankings. The group cant go to every tournament and they elected not to go to Australia, where Eugenie lost in the qualifying tournament last year. But her father said he was tempted to jump on a plane when she reached the semifinals. "We never anticipated shed go this far in the first Grand Slam of the year, so we gathered the kids and some friends and we watched (on TV)," he said. "There was a lot of emotions when she was hitting some winners. We were screaming and laughing and encouraging her." He was a little taken aback at a bizarre question put to Eugenie by an on-court interviewer after the quarter-final. She was asked who shed most like to date. To the apparent displeasure of Genies Army, she named Canadian pop star Justin Bieber. "Youve got to get used to that if youre going to become a celebrity," Bouchard said. "I actually thought she answered pretty well. She said Justin Bieber with a question mark at the end. It was tongue in cheek." It became a little awkward when Bieber was arrested in Florida on Thursday for reportedly taking part in an early morning drag race. "I actually dont follow anything that goes on in his life," Bouchard said with a laugh. "But I did hear about that." Marvin Jones Jr Lions Jersey . Louis, MO (SportsNetwork. Detroit Lions Jerseys . The league-leading New York Rangers outhit and outmuscled the Maple Leafs during a 3-0 victory on Saturday. Backup goalie Martin Biron stopped all 20 shots he faced to complete a nice workmanlike effort by the visitors. http://www.shopdetroitlionsnfl.com/lions-calvin-johnson-black-jersey/ . Bach, a 59-year-old German lawyer, was elected Tuesday as president of the International Olympic Committee. He succeeds Jacques Rogge, who stepped down after 12 years. Bach, the longtime favourite, defeated five candidates in a secret ballot for the most influential job in international sports, keeping the presidency in European hands.TORONTO -- Carter Ashton hasnt scored in 30 NHL games this season, but he knows how to put the puck in the back of the net in the American Hockey League. Ashton scored a hat trick -- giving him 13 goals in 16 AHL games this season -- to power the Toronto Marlies to a 5-2 victory over the visiting Lake Erie Monsters in AHL action on Sunday. "He took the game over," said Marlies coach Steve Spott. "You see what he can do at this level. "Hes going to have to find that same confidence and swagger when he plays for the (NHL parent) Maple Leafs. Here in the AHL, he does a nice job, he maintains possession of the puck, he uses his body, uses his speed, and it becomes a weapon for him. He just needs to find the confidence to do that at the next level." Ashton broke a 2-2 tie -- and completed his hat trick -- during a goal-mouth scramble when he deposited a rebound into the net past Monsters goalie Calvin Pickard at 6:16 of the third period. Defenceman T.J. Brennan, with his team-leading 21st of the season, gave the Marlies a two-goal cushion 45 seconds later when his point shot trickled through Pickards legs. Brandon Kozun closed out the scoring with an empty-netter at 17:51. "Its definitely a process, so to come back down and get these games and some good ice time, thats good for me," Ashton said. "And we finished off our homestand with a win, so thats great." Toronto went 7-3-0 on its 10-game homestand and improved to 33-18-4 on the season, good for first place in the North Division. Ashtons linemates, Spencer Abbott and Greg McKegg, collected two assists apiece in front of 4,351 fans at Ricoh Coliseum. Joey Hishon and Mike Sgarbossa replied for the Monsters, who dropped their second game in a row to fall to 23-26-6. "Give Lake Errie credit, they found a way to get back into it after a two-goal deficit," said Spott, who watched the Monsters strike twice in the latter stages of the second period after Toronto had staked a 2-0 lead. Kerryon Johnson Womens Jersey. "We knew we were at home, playing the last period of a 10-game homestand, and we wanted to take advantage of it. I give our guys a lot of credit for the way they played the final 20 minutes." Marlies goalie Drew MacIntyre was sharp making 26 saves, while Pickard stopped 18 of 22 shots. Toronto led 1-0 after the first period and the score was tied 2-2 through 40 minutes. The Marlies opened the scoring 53 seconds into the first period when Ashton took a pass from Spencer Abbott in the slot, cut to the left and whipped a wrist shot past Pickards blocker. The Monsters had some chances of their own in the opening frame -- including a two-minute 5-on-3 power play and a breakaway by right winger Guillaume Desbiens -- but they couldnt beat MacIntyre. Ashton gave the Marlies a two-goal edge when he deflected Greg McKeggs point shot past a screened Pickard at 10:02 of the second period. The advantage was shortlived, however, as Hishon put the Monsters on the scoreboard 52 seconds later when he redirected a slapshot past MacIntyre. Sgarbossa tied it up when he whacked in a rebound for a power-play goal at 18:35 of the middle frame. Ashton regained the lead for Toronto with his third goal of the game at 6:16 of the third period, and Brennans goal 45 seconds later sealed the win for the Marlies. Kozun capped the scoring with an empty-netter at 17:51 Toronto went 0 for 3 on the power play while Lake Erie was 1 for 6. The Marlies and Monsters are off until next weekend, when Toronto visits Lake Erie for back-to-back games on Friday and Saturday. 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