You might recall the story last year of Hayley Milbourn, last year's area Golfer of the Year from Roland Park. Despite leading the field at the conference tournament by nine strokes, Milbourn gave up a chance to capture her third straight Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland league title last year because she inadvertently struck the wrong ball and turned herself in. Milbourn was honored at last year's Sun High School Athlete of the Year ceremony for her sportsmanship.

Milbourn's parents report, with justifiable and understandable pride, that she had a splendid freshman year at Amherst College, where she won five tournaments this spring, and finished second in two others. Her 74 in the final round of the Williams Spring Invitational, the last match of the season, tied a course record.

This just goes to show that nice girls really can finish first.

Posted by Milton Kent at 12:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

The Ravens, in conjunction with USA Football, a Washington-based non-profit organization that offers coaching and officiating education to youth leagues and high school programs, will sponsor a coaching school for youth league coaches next Saturday at M&T Bank Stadium.

The clinic, which will be conducted by a number of Baltimore- and Washington-area high school coaches, will offers courses on schemes and motivational techniques, as well as position fundamentals and drills and will run from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m.

The cost of registration is $35, and can be paid at the stadium or through pre-registration at USA Football's Web site. On-site registration will take place at Gate A, in front of the statue of Johnny Unitas, and will begin at 7:30 a.m. Doors open at 7 a.m.

Posted by Milton Kent at 9:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

The good news just keeps on coming for Digital Harbor, the school that broke Poly's eight-year stranglehold on the city baseball title. The Rams were rewarded for their good fortune and solid play with a No. 1 seed in the upcoming Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association tournament, when the draw was unveiled yesterday. After a first-round bye, Digital Harbor will open play Monday against the winner of tomorrow's Western Tech-Carver game. The 1A tournament semifinals will take place May 20 in a doubleheader at McCurdy Field in Frederick, with the championship match to be played May 23 at Ripken Stadium in Aberdeen at 1 p.m.

Despite finishing out of the money in the city race, Poly still received a No. 1 seed in the 2A North and a bye to the regional quarterfinals, where they will host the winner of the Lansdowne-City first-round game next Monday. Down the road, the Engineers could face defending state champion Eastern Tech in the regional final. In the South, Marriotts Ridge, which beat Centennial yesterday in the Howard County championship game, received the top seed in the region. They'll get a bye into the quarterfinals to meet the winner of the River Hill-Hammond first-round game. The 2A region winners will meet in a doubleheader at Arundel May 20, with the championship game taking place at Ripken Stadium on May 23 at 4:30 p.m.

Even with the loss to Marriotts Ridge, fifth-ranked Centennial received the No. 1 seed in the 3A East region, and will meet the Bel Air-Long Reach first-round winner in Monday's quarterfinals. The Eagles may face No. 9 Northeast, the No. 2 seed in the regional final. Unranked Patapsco got the top seed in the North and will host either Dundalk or Milford Mill Monday in the quarters. The 3A semifinals will take place at Joe Cannon Stadium in Hanover on May 20, with the winners advancing to the championship game at Ripken Stadium.

Fourth-ranked Arundel has the top seed in a stacked 4A East region that has five ranked teams in it. The Wildcats will meet the Thomas Stone-Glen Burnie winner in the quarterfinals. The other four ranked teams -- No. 8 Old Mill, No. 10 Chesapeake, No. 11 Severna Park and No. 12 South River -- are all bunched in the bottom half of that regional draw, meaning Arundel would likely only have to play one of them to advance to the state semifinals. Meanwhile, in the North, Kenwood, which is having one of the best seasons in school history, got the No. 2 seed, and may face No. 7 C. Milton Wright, the third seed and Upper Chesapeake Bay Athletic Conference winner, in the regional semifinals. The 4A semifinals will take place at Shipley Field at the University of Maryland on May 20, with the championship game scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on May 23.

Posted by Milton Kent at 9:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

Last fall, the 4A East region of the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association field hockey tournament was the equivalent of a steel cage match, with four of the area's top seven ranked teams all bunched in the same area. The release of the MPSSAA softball draw yesterday revealed another contentious bunching of Anne Arundel County teams, with four of the area's top 15 teams in the mix in the same 4A East region.

Top-ranked Chesapeake got the No. 1 seed in the region, and a bye into the quarterfinals next Monday. The Cougars' likely reward for a dazzling regular season is a potential meeting with No. 15 Severna Park, provided the Falcons get past Old Mill in the first round Friday. (Parenthetically, the fact that Severna Park got a No. 8 seed even with an 11-7 record is point No. 1 million for why the MPSSAA should seed teams all the way through the draws in all sports, rather than just in football. The only fair way to decide a championship is to distribute all teams through a bracket on their merits, rather than relying on seeding the top four in a region, then positioning the rest of the teams by the blind luck of a computer. OK, rant over).

In the 3A bracket, Franklin grabbed the top seed in the North region, and a bye into the quarterfinals, where they will meet the winner of the Patterson-Hereford first-round game. On the other side of the North draw, keep an eye out for next Monday's Western-Catonsville quarterfinals matchup. The two schools have developed a healthy rivalry in a number of sports, particularly in basketball and a few hoopsters also play softball. In the East region, there's a potentially sensational regional semifinal brewing between second-seeded Atholton, the area's 12th-ranked team and fifth-ranked Northeast, which got the third seed in the region.

Unranked Eastern Tech has the No. 1 seed in the 2A North region, and will face the winner of the Samuel Banks-Edmondson first-round game. On the other side of the bracket, fourth-ranked Hammond, the defending 2A champion, got the second seed in the South region and a wicked draw. The Bears, led by pitcher Stephanie Speierman, will likely have to get past seventh-seeded Calvert, a six-time state titlist, in the quarterfinals and a possible regional final match on the road against Gwynn Park of Prince George's County.

In the 1A draw, two area teams got No. 1 seeds. Glenelg, the 13th-ranked team in this week's Sun poll, is at the top of the South region and will get the winner of the Bohemia Manor-Surrattsville first-round game. Meanwhile, Sparrows Point received the No. 1 seed in the North region, and the requisite bye into the quarterfinals, where they will host the winner of the W.E.B. DuBois-Forest Park opening-round game. Keep an eye out for Western Tech, on the other side of the North draw, to possibly make some noise out of the No. 6 seed.

The regional winners in all four classes advance to the beautiful Bachman Park for what should be an epic day of softball semifinals on May 20, with the winners advancing to the University of Maryland on May 24 for the championship matches. Frankly, it would be much better for all parties if the finals were held at Bachman, rather than College Park.

Posted by Milton Kent at 9:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

It's become a given that the best boys high school lacrosse in the area is played either at the private schools or in the suburbs, yet two city schools received top seeds in the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association boys lacrosse tournament draw, and a third school got a No. 2 seed, when the field was unveiled this week.

Unranked Forest Park got the top seed in the 2A-1A North region, and a first round bye into the regional quarterfinals. They join No. 9 Glenelg in the west region and unranked Joppatowne in the South as No.1 seeds in the 2A-1A tournament, which will be settled in the semifinals May 16 and 17 at Reservoir and the finals at UMBC Stadium on May 20 or 21.

City, which is also unranked, grabbed a No. 1 seed in the 3A-2A South region, and will meet the Howard-Hammond winner in the regional quarterfinals Saturday. Unranked Lansdowne got the top seed in the 3A-2A North region, and a bye into the second or quarterfinal round against the Towson-Dundalk winner. The four region winners will meet May 16 or 17 at Annapolis with the winners there advancing to the state title match on May 20 or 21 at UMBC.

Finally, Walbrook, the relative newcomer among the city's lacrosse powers, got the No. 2 seed in the 4A-3A South region, behind top seed Kenwood. Both teams received byes into the regional quarterfinals, where Kenwood will get the winner of the C. Milton Wright-Perry Hall game, while Walbrook will host the winner of the Southwestern-Aberdeen first round match. North Carroll will host the 4A-3A semifinals on May 16 or 17, with the winners advancing to the state title game on May 21.

Posted by Milton Kent at 2:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

The first thing that grabs your attention when scanning the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association girls lacrosse tournament draw isn't necessarily who's on top of the bracket, but who is not.

Specifically, for the first time in school history, Mount Hebron, which has advanced to the state semifinals an incredible 18 straight years, with 15 titles to show for their efforts, will have to get back in a position other than as the top seed in their region.

The 11th-ranked Vikings, who have won 11 straight Maryland championships, are seeded third in the 3A-2A South region, behind Centennial and Reservoir, both unranked. Mount Hebron received a first-round bye and will host sixth-seeded Long Reach in the regional quarterfinals Saturday.

Two other unranked Baltimore area schools, Winters Mill and Dundalk, received top seeds in the girls 3A-2A bracket, with Winters Mill drawing the No.1 seed in the West, and Dundalk getting the top seed in the North. The regional semifinals will take place at Annapolis High on either May 16 or 17, with the championship match to be played at UMBC Stadium on either May 20 or 21.

No.14 Liberty and unranked Loch Raven received top seeds in the girls 2A-1A bracket, with Liberty receiving a No.1 seed in the West region, as well as a bye into the regional quarterfinals against the winner of the Smithsburg-Catoctin first round game. Meanwhile, Loch Raven gets a bye all the way to the regional semifinals, to face either Eastern Tech or Carver. The 2A-1A semifinals will take place at Reservoir on either May 16 or 17, leading to the title game, also at UMBC on either May 20 or 21.

In the 3A-4A bracket, Severna Park, one of two remaining unbeaten area girls teams, tops the East region. The second-ranked Falcons will meet the winner of the Arundel-North County first round game in a quarterfinal match Saturday. Meanwhile, unranked Kenwood received the top seed in the South region and draws a bye into the quarterfinals where they will host the winner of the Perry Hall-Catonsville first round game. The 4A-3A semifinals will be staged at North Carroll on either May 16 or 17, and the state championship match will take place at UMBC on May 21.

Posted by Milton Kent at 11:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

From The Sun's Stefen Lovelace:

There’s just one week remaining in the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference, yet little has been decided as far as playoffs go. Nine teams are jockeying for six seeds.

Gilman has clinched the No. 1 seed with a 9-0 record and the tiebreaker over the teams below them. Loyola is currently No. 2 with a 7-1 record and Calvert Hall No. 3 with a 6-2 record. The Dons don’t have the No. 2 seed locked up just yet, with Boys' Latin and Spalding looming this week, but they have the tiebreak over the Cardinals, so they’d have to lose both to fall to No. 3.

After the top-three seeds, things get interesting. As of today, St. Mary’s, McDonogh and Boys' Latin are all tied at 4-4. Boys' Latin is in the driver’s seat, having beaten McDonogh and St. Mary’s in the regular season already. If they were to tie with those teams in records, they’d be the first to get in and get the highest seed.

A No. 4 seed would be ideal for the Lakers, since it would guarantee them a home game in the playoffs, and they’re 8-1 at home this year. Boys' Latin has a tough road game against Loyola today, before finishing the season at home against St. Paul's.

A game with major playoff repercussions takes place later today, with McDonogh traveling to St. Mary’s. Whichever team loses isn’t necessarily out, as a 5-5 record should still be good enough to get in. The Saints play Severn away in their regular-season finale, while the Eagles play Mount St. Joe at home.

Spalding currently is the first team out, with a 4-5 record. They play Loyola at home in their regular-season finale on Friday night. Working in the Cavaliers favor is their major upset against Boys' Latin during the regular season. That tiebreaker gives them a shot of sneaking in. Severn and St. Paul's both have 3-5 records and little chance of getting in. It doesn’t help that both teams have difficult games this week with the Admirals facing Calvert Hall and St. Mary’s and St. Paul's facing Gilman and Boys' Latin. If either team manages to sweep though, the quality wins would surely put them back in position to get in via tiebreakers.

The Sun's prediction: :

The St. Mary’s-McDonogh matchup should be a well-played close game, but we’re giving the edge to the Saints. The Saints and Eagles should both win their finales.

We think Boys' Latin will lose to Loyola before beating St. Paul's at home. Based on tiebreakers, these team should be playing in mid-May.

1. Gilman
2. Loyola
3. Calvert Hall
4. St. Mary’s
5. Boys' Latin
6. McDonogh

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

When basketball season commences next winter, high school players, coaches and referees will have to adjust to a rule change approved by the rules committee of the National Federation of State High School Associations that presumes to clean up rough play during free throw attempts.

The new rule will leave the two marked spaces on the foul lane open during free throw attempts, which brings high school play into line with the colleges. A new mark will be applied to the foul lane to mark where the last lane spot is. The change comes from an experiment conducted this past season during Georgia high school games. There's no word on whether the rule change will affect girls basketball, though the women's college game has had the empty spaces under the rim for years.

In addition, the committee changed the rule about technical fouls assessed for the wearing of illegal uniforms. Beginning next season, a technical will be charged to the head coach, rather than to the players, as the committee moved to place blame on the coaches for allowing the players to wear the uniforms in the first place.

Finally, the rules committee wisely decided not to authorize the use of video replay in state championships, on the theory that reviews run counter to what high school sports are all about. Plus, the committee said the decision was influenced by the unavailability of video equipment in some places as well as the notion that it would be unfair for officials to be required to use replay at the end of a season, after not using it the rest of the year. There were calls for video replay after a controversial ending in a South Carolina boys state final, with two state legislators attempting to inject themselves into the matter.

Posted by Milton Kent at 7:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

Or to ask the score of a 41-40 softball game, as the case may be.

So, I was at Dr. Samuel L. Banks High School on Wednesday to do reporting for today's column on Digital Harbor, whose baseball team was playing at Banks. The first pitch was around 3:45 and the game went the regulation seven innings, ending about 5:15. After about 15 minutes of interviews, I trudged up the rather unkempt hill towards the parking lot and my car.

Along the way to the car, I passed a softball game between Banks and Southside, which had started about the same time as the baseball game. I glanced over for a moment, saw the batter get a hit and a run score. Seems normal enough, right? So much so that I got in my car and went home.

While reading the paper yesterday, I scanned through the scores to see if the usual suspects had done what they usually do and to see the boxscore of the game I had watched. My eyes did a screeching stop at a line score the likes of which I couldn't ever recall seeing in a baseball or softball game at any level, namely:

Southside     40 8 5
Banks           41 24 7

I let out an audible 'Wow,' because line scores like that one just scream out for recognition. Then, I noticed the two schools involved and a wave of recognition rolled over me. I actually saw some of that game, albeit a brief glance.

In hindsight, I'm not sure which of the numbers from that box score are the most noteworthy: the 81 total runs, the fact that Southside scored 40 runs on just eight hits (with assistance, no doubt from seven Banks errors) or the fact that Southside scored 13 runs in the seventh and final inning, only to lose when Banks scored 10 runs in their half of the inning. In fact, Banks scored 19 runs in the final two innings.

Unbelievable. I was a witness to history of some sort, and didn't even realize it.

So, let this be a lesson to you dear readers. The next time you're at one sporting event and another one is going on nearby, always stop to ask what the score is. As Ferris Bueller once warned, you might miss something.

Posted by Milton Kent at 9:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

From The Sun's Stefen Lovelace:

Gilman has been the No. 1 boys lacrosse team in the area for a month now, but they've finally climbed to the top of the mountain in the national rankings as well. The Greyhounds are No.1 in this week's insidelacrosse.com poll.

This is really no big surprise. Gilman is still undefeated in the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference, which is regarded as the top conference in the nation. They've just come off a week where they beat No. 3 Calvert Hall, 10-7, and routed No. 2 Loyola, 17-7.

They have scoring weapons all over the field and an unheralded defense that has played well most of the season, and Harvard-bound junior midfielder Jack Doyle has to be considered the favorite for Player of the Year thus far this season.

Gilman's (15-0, 8-0) reign at No. 1 won't be easy as their first game in the newly minted top spot comes against No. 4 St. Mary's (13-3, 4-3), a tall and strong team stocked with football players.

Watch video of Gilman's 12-10 win over Archbishop Spalding on Tuesday:

Posted by Milton Kent at 10:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)