The complete posting of point totals for the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association football standings was held up this week because some school systems did not play games until yesterday, so we'll take a look at a couple of interesting races in this posting, and get to some others tomorrow.

Besides Eastern Tech, which has essentially nailed down the top slot, the 2A North region has ostensibly settled into a four-team contest for the final three spots, with .81 separating the four teams. Poly remains in second, but defending champion Edmondson has moved into third place, with Randallstown now in fourth and City in fifth, just .08 behind the Rams.

Edmondson hosts Poly Friday afternoon in what may be an elimination game, though the Engineers close the season with City the following week. Meanwhile, the Knights will host Mervo Friday afternoon, while Randallstown goes to Patapsco Friday night.

Meanwhile, if you can't make it to tomorrow's Mount St. Joseph-Gilman clash, fear not, for CN8 will carry the game, albeit on tape delay, Saturday at 7 p.m.

Posted by Milton Kent at 12:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

From The Sun's Stefen Lovelace:

Forest Park pulled out a 32-29 overtime football victory over Du Bois last weekend.
It was a game the Foresters were supposed to win. They’re 6-2 while Du Bois is 2-5, but the victory was essential because of the 1A South standings.

Forest Park sits in fourth place in the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association and is just behind third-place Surrattsville (6-1), which had a bye last week.

With the regular season winding down, Forest Park would like to finish in third place, where it would likely face current No. 2 Digital Harbor first in the playoffs. If the Foresters were to stay at No. 4, they’d probably play No. 1 Dunbar.

"The win (against Du Bois) was super important because no one wants to see Dunbar in the first round of the playoffs. They’re an exceptional team," Foresters coach Obie Barnes said. "We’re hoping to see Digital Harbor to hopefully avenge a 14-6 loss we had against them this season."

Posted by Milton Kent at 7:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

From the West Coast, we offer this cautionary note to cheerleaders everywhere:
When you hold a banner, be sure to get out of the way of rampaging football players, or this could happen to you.

Posted by Milton Kent at 9:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Not to beat a really dead horse, but Monday's unveiling of this year's Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association volleyball tournament field provides yet the latest example of the flawed manner in which teams are seeded and placed in the draw.

Just take a look at the 3A East region, where Reservoir, the area's top-ranked team, drew the No.1 seed. Beyond a first-round bye, the Gators' reward for their unbeaten season is a potential second-round match against No. 12 Centennial, the defending 3A champions, who got the eighth seed by virtue of a random draw. It's just silly to have a potential state or regional final match in the second round, unless a particular region is that stacked.

In other developments, No.2 Broadneck and No.6 Severna Park occupy the top two seeds in the 4A East, while No. 7 Dulaney is the top seed in the 4A North. No.8 Catonsville is the second seed in the 3A North region behind Mervo. Ninth-ranked River Hill is seeded third in 2A South, while No. 10 Fallston occupies the second seed on the other side of the bracket with Reservoir. In other seeding quirks, No. 11 Glenelg is the fifth seed in the 1A South region, while 14th-ranked Towson is the fifth seed in 3A North. No. 15 Francis Scott Key drew the third seed in the 2A West region.

Tournament play opens Friday with regional first-round games, followed by the quarterfinals on Monday and the regional semifinals next Wednesday. The regional championship matches are scheduled for Nov. 9 and 10. The state semifinals will be played Nov. 12-15 at the Ritchie Coliseum at College Park, with the 1A matches scheduled for Monday, the 2A's on Tuesday and so on, leading to a quadruple-header of state championships on Nov. 17, also at Ritchie.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Next to the players themselves, a good public address announcer is often the most valuable person at a sporting event. In order to help pave the way for the next generation of men, women, boys and girls who can tell the crowd who scored, what the call was, and just as importantly, where to find the condiments, there'll be a clinic this coming weekend.

The National Association of Sports Public Address Announcers (NASPAA) will sponsor a clinic for aspiring basketball public address announcers this Saturday at 10 a.m. at Kenwood High, 501 Stemmers Run Road in Essex.

The session, which is scheduled to run for about three hours, will be conducted by Mac Barrett, the PA announcer for University of Maryland basketball games, and is open to anyone who wants to learn to announce high school games.

Matthew Bunch, a 2005 Kenwood graduate, was named the NASPAA's High School Announcer of the Year that year.

Posted by Milton Kent at 9:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

With the sizable number of rainouts this weekend, you have to wonder if it wouldn't make sense for the county school systems to build in an extra week into the sports schedules, just as many of them do for snow for the general student population.

That way, if there are delays, weather or otherwise, the systems could simply use the extra day or week to reschedule games rather than attempt to push them into a short period of time. For instance, because of the drenching rains Thursday and Friday, a number of football games were postponed to tonight, meaning those teams will play two games this week. That can't be good for the health and recovery of the kids, particularly as they head to the state playoffs.

With an extra week built into the schedule, those games could have simply slid back a week, rather than be forced into a tiny window. In those years where the week isn't needed, the teams would have time off between their regular seasons, county championships and the state playoffs, which wouldn't be such a bad thing.

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

From the community service desk: The Maryland district of the AAU or Amateur Athletic Union, will hold its annual sports awards banquet to honor athletes, coaches and volunteers next week.

The banquet will take place next Sunday at the Martin's East banquet facility located at 9000 Pulaski Highway at 1 p.m., and will honor 300 kids from around the state who take part in 12 AAU sanctioned sports, including cross country, boys and girls basketball, baseball, tae kwon do, swimming, diving, track and field, golf, wrestling, power lifting and jump rope.

For tickets and more information, contact Antoinette DuBose either at 410-323-7101 or at ndubose1744@aol.com.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Only at Severna Park, home of the area's most dominant field hockey program, could a run like the girls soccer team has had historically take a back seat.

The fourth-ranked Falcons, who captured the school's third straight Anne Arundel County title and the ninth overall with a 2-1 win over Arundel, is tied with Centennial for most state championships with six since 1989, to go along with two runner-up finishes.

Yet, the soccer team's remarkable era of success, which would set them apart nearly anywhere else, is only the second best at the school among girls fall sports, because the field hockey team has captured 15 state titles and 12 county crowns. However, with the field hockey team finishing out of the top two in the county, at least the soccer team, which is seeded first in the 4A East region, will have bragging rights in the school for this year.

Posted by Milton Kent at 10:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Though, as a rule, I am extremely wary about the wisdom of airing high school sports on television, there's something appealing about a new documentary series, "Greatest High School Football Rivalries,' that premieres tonight at 8 on the Versus channel.

The series, which will air over the next six weeks, follows two teams each episode as they prepare to play each other. This week's leadoff show chronicles the rivalry between two Oklahoma high schools, Jenks and Union, and the lead-in to their game, which is annually played at the University of Tulsa before a crowd of 35,000. The schools are located five miles apart, have been playing each other since 1946, and between them, have split the last 11 Oklahoma 6A state championships.

What makes this series a more appealing watch potentially is the fact that NFL Films, which covers football in the most loving way possible, is producing the show. We may not see all the excesses and foibles of the participants, but the look and feel of the telecast will almost certainly be beautiful.

Down the road, the rivalry series concludes in November with a look at the Fort Hill-Allegany matchup in Cumberland, which is arguably the most storied football rivalry in the state.

Versus, which airs National Hockey League games, isn't exactly the easiest destination channel to find, but if you love high school football, it's worth tuning in on Thursdays at 8 the next six weeks, or for the re-airs. Oh, and by the way, speaking of televised high school football, albeit fictional, be sure and tune in to "Friday Night Lights" each Friday at 9 p.m. on Channel 11.

Posted by Milton Kent at 7:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Two state playoff races involving area football teams are looking as if they will come down to the final game, while one race may settle itself Friday night.

The 2A North battle for four playoff spots appears to be down to six teams. Eastern Tech, the only unbeaten team in the region, is in prime position to lock up the top seed. Poly, currently the second seed, essentially controls its own destiny, with games against Edmondson and City in the final two weeks of the season, after this week's game with Carver.

Randallstown probably needs to win two of its final three to clinch a spot, and could move up to a first-round home game if it runs the table against Loch Raven, Patapsco and Calvert Hall. City is on the bubble in the fourth slot, and after this week's game with winless Douglass, the Knights will host Mervo next week, then finish up with Poly at M&T Bank
Stadium. The fifth and sixth teams, defending state champion Edmondson and Northwestern, will play each other Friday afternoon in what is in effect an elimination game.

The 3A East region, which resembled a rugby scrum a couple of weeks ago, is largely settled, with Wilde Lake, North Harford and Howard in control of their own destinies. The battle, then, lies for the last playoff spot, with Stephen Decatur of Worcester County in that slot, with Atholton and Fallston tightly bunched behind.

Finally, the top seed in the 4A East region likely will be decided at Friday's Arundel-Old Mill game. The Wildcats hold a commanding lead over the Patriots and have an outside chance at home-field advantage all the way through to the 4A state semifinals. However, because the threat of storms last Friday forced the Arundel-Severna Park game to be played Monday, the
Wildcats will have to play their second game in five days this week, which is a lot to ask of a professional team, much less a high school squad.

Meanwhile, North County, which has a .28 points lead over Severna Park for the last playoff spot in that region, will face the Falcons on the road Friday night in what might be a de facto playoff game, with the Knights having the advantage of two days of extra rest.

Posted by Milton Kent at 11:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Two of the area's new high schools are on the doorstep of earning their first Maryland Public Secondary School Athletic Association football playoff berths, but they'll both need some luck.

In the 1A North region, New Town, in its fifth year, trails Catoctin by .14 for fourth place, and could move into playoff position with a win over Western Tech and a loss by Catoctin at unbeaten Smithsburg. However, since New Town closes the season with games against Sparrows Point and Chesapeake, who top the region, the Titans almost certainly will need help.

Marriotts Ridge, meanwhile, has moved to within .03 of Gwynn Park for the fourth and final 2A South playoff spot in the school's third year, but the Mustangs will have their hands full when they host top-ranked River Hill Friday night.

Among other developments to watch in the smaller classifications, Forest Park could move into third in the 1A South region, thus avoiding a first-round meeting with Dunbar, with a win over WEB DuBois and a Gwynn Park win over Surrattsville, which is .31 ahead of the Foresters.

Dunbar, which travels to Mervo Friday, has a .57 lead over Fort Hill for home-field advantage throughout the 1A South playoffs and all the way to the state semifinals.

We'll cover some of the other races involving area teams in the next post.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

It doesn't take a long look into the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association girls soccer tournament draw to spot an inherent flaw in the way teams are seeded and how it may force two ranked teams to play in the quarterfinal or second round of the regionals.

Severna Park, ranked No. 4 in this week's Sun poll, got the top seed in the 4A East region, when the field was unveiled yesterday. In most tournaments, such a seeding would mean a fairly easy path through the early rounds, and the Falcons did receive a first-round bye. However, Severna Park may face a second-round game against No. 15 South River, which incredibly got the eighth regional seed.

Thanks to Oakland Mills boys coach Brett Cutler for writing in to correct something from the earlier post this morning. While seeding in the soccer tournament is determined by points, those points are not awarded by the size of the school that is beaten, but by the victory alone. Each team gets a point per win and a half-point for a tie, with the total divided by the number of games played. The top four teams are seeded, with the rest of the draw determined at random.

Still, I've said it before and I'll said it again: It shouldn't take much to set up a panel of 3-to-5 athletic directors and coaches who can seed the field in all sports by classes, a la the NCAA basketball tournaments. Sure, there may be squabbles here and there, but at least the draw will be consistent and true throughout, not haphazard.

Rant over.

As far as the rest of the field goes, the 3A East region appears to be the strongest among those with local teams. No. 6 Fallston is the top seed in the region, with No.7 Centennial drawing the second seed, setting up a restaurant-quality regional final, assuming the seeds play out. Tenth-ranked Catonsville is the top seed in the 3A North region, with Western getting the No. 2 seed.

In the 2A classification, Loch Raven, ranked 14th, is the No.1 seed in the North region, with 11th-ranked Eastern Tech coming in with the second seed. Both teams drew byes all the way to the regional semifinals, meaning they'll only have to win one game each to face each other for a shot in the state semifinals. No. 5 River Hill, the reigning 3A champion, is the second seed in the South region.

Finally, in 1A, Carver is the top seed in the North and has a bye to the regional semifinals, while Harford Tech is the top seed in the South. Glenelg, which won the 2A championship last year, is the third seed in the region.

As with the boys, regional tournament play opens with the first round Friday, followed by the quarterfinals next Tuesday.The regional semifinals are scheduled for Nov. 2 and the finals are slated for Nov. 6, with all games to be played on the site of the higher remaining seed.

The regional winners advance to the state semifinals, to be played Nov. 8-9-10 at South River and Broadneck in Anne Arundel as well as Tuscarora in Frederick County. The 4A and 3A championships will be played Nov. 15, with the 2A and 1A title matches taking place on Nov. 17, all at Broadneck.

Posted by Milton Kent at 12:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

The draw to next month's Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association's boys soccer tournament was announced yesterday, and only six area schools received top seeds in the state's 16 regions.

In the 1A classification, reserved for the state's smallest schools by population, Sparrows Point, the defending co-champion, got the No.1 seed in the North, while Joppatowne is the top seed in the South region, an unruly amalgam that stretches from the northeast corner of the state in Cecil County to rolling hills in Carroll County all the way to southern Prince George's County.

Poly was the only Baltimore-area team in the 2A class to earn a No.1 seed, topping the North region, with Overlea drawing the No. 2 seed. River Hill, the seventh-ranked team in the most recent Sun poll, received a No. 2 seed in the South. In 3A, Franklin was awarded a top seed in the North, with Towson drawing a No. 2 seed. Aberdeen got the top seed in the East, while No. 14 Bel Air received the second seed in the region.

No.9 Perry Hall is the top seed in the 4A North region, with 10th-ranked C. Milton Wright seeded second. Second-ranked Broadneck is the No.2 seed in the East behind the region's top seed, Leonardtown of St. Mary's County.

In case you're wondering (and I know that you are), the top four seeds in each region are determined by a complicated point system that assigns greater value to beating schools with larger enrollments. The rest of the region's draw is determined at random.

Regional tournament play opens with the first round Friday, followed by the quarterfinals next Tuesday. The regional semifinals are scheduled for Nov. 2, and the finals will be played on Nov. 6, with all games to be played on the site of the higher remaining seed.

The state semifinals will take place on Nov. 9-10 at Washington College and North Hagerstown High, with a quadruple-header of championship matches scheduled for Nov. 17 at South River.

We'll look at the girls draw later.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

If you look at the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association's field hockey tournament draw, and you know anything of your state geography, you can only wonder what happened to half the field.

That's because two of the state's largest subdivisions, Baltimore City and Prince George's County, don't play field hockey, which means that the entire first round in the four classifications consists of 11 matches, with some teams drawing byes all the way to the regional semifinals.

There are no first-round games in 1A and only four games out of a possible 16 in the quarterfinals. In some cases, a team would have to win only two matches to get to the state semifinals, and four matches total to win a championship.

It's worth noting that the city and Prince George's are majority African-American subdivisions, and it certainly wouldn't hurt education officials in those respective jurisdictions to go out and drum up support for field hockey programs in those areas, not to mention protecting themselves from possible Title IX troubles.

Sure, they might not challenge Anne Arundel or Montgomery county powers at first or maybe for a while, but winning championships isn't exactly why public schools offer sports, now is it?

Posted by Milton Kent at 1:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

When The Sun's new polls are revealed Wednesday, it's entirely possible that two Howard County teams will be at the head of two of them, volleyball and football.

With top-ranked St. Paul's loss to No. 10 Archbishop Spalding Friday, No.2 Reservoir (14-0) appears poised to move up to No.1. With Centennial's perennial success, having a Howard team at the top of the local volleyball scene is hardly unprecedented, but it would be the first time that the Gators, or at least the Reservoir variety, would get there.

Meanwhile, the combination of No.1 Loyola's 24-7 loss to Mount St. Joseph and second-ranked River Hill's 41-0 pasting of Atholton should propel the Hawks to the top of the polls, marking one of the rare occasions when an area public school is the No.1 football team.

Indeed, the current polls show that all but three of the top 15 are public schools, and there's a decent chance that River Hill, No.3 Dunbar and No.4 Arundel, all unbeaten at 7-0, could occupy the top three slots, which would be even more unusual than having the top team come from a public school.

There's one big caveat to this posting: As previously stated, I don't have any input, voting or otherwise, on The Sun's polls, so my guesses are as good as yours.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Apparently, face and body paints are out of the question for student-spectators at games in Sandusky, Ohio and in Manatee County, Fla.

Sandusky officials are apparently reiterating a long-standing Ohio policy that prohibits face and body painting at sporting events that came into play recently when some girls wore only sports bras and paint to a recent football game.

Meanwhile, in Florida, officials there appear to be willing to allow boys to wear body and face paints to games, but not girls, explaining that no one has ever complained about boys getting painted up for games.

Feel free to insert your own joke here.

Posted by Milton Kent at 9:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Six of the area's top nine ranked field hockey teams are bunched together in Class 4A of the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Administration's tournament field, announced yesterday.

The draw, which seeded the top four teams in each of four regions by records and then distributed the rest of the field at random, is strongest, as expected in the 4A East region, where No.1 South River, No. 2 Broadneck, No. 4 Severna Park and No. 7 Chesapeake, all of Anne Arundel County, occupy the top four seeds. In addition, No. 5 North Carroll is the top seed in the North region, while No.9 Westminster is the second seed, with Kenwood and C. Milton Wright taking the third and fourth seeds.

The North region of 3A, though not as glamorous as the 4A East, could be just as contentious with three teams ranked in the top 12, Catonsville, Towson and Fallston drawing the top three seeds, with last year's 2A champion Hereford, which lurks just outside the top 15, as the fourth seed. Centennial, Reservoir, Atholton and Long Reach are the top four seeds in the East.

No area team received a top seed in 2A, and in the South region, where a number of Howard County teams are bunched along with Southern of Anne Arundel, the top two seeds are occupied by Calvert County teams, Patuxent and Calvert. If the seeds hold, Mount Hebron, the third seed, could have a pair of long bus rides south to make the state semifinals. Lansdowne received a two seed in the 2A North, with Loch Raven drawing the third seed in the region and Eastern Tech receiving the fourth. In the West region, Winters Mill and Century earned the second and third seeds, respectively.

In 1A, Glenelg received the top seed in the West region and a bye all the way to the regional semifinals, where they'll await the winner of the Owings Mills-Catoctin quarterfinal. Because field hockey isn't played in Baltimore City, the 1A North region, where city teams would likely play, has just five teams. Harford Tech, the region's top seed, is through to the semifinals, where they will meet the Carver-Pikesville quarterfinal winner. Sparrows Point, the second seed in the region, and No.3 seed Joppatowne are already set to play each other in the regional semifinals.

First-round regional games will be played next Tuesday, with quarterfinal games scheduled for Oct. 25. The regional finals are scheduled for Nov.1, with the winners advancing to the state semifinals at Broadneck and South River on Nov. 5 and 7. The state championship matches will take place on Nov. 12 and 13 at Broadneck.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

The thinking in Anne Arundel County field hockey circles is that the winner of the 4A state championship is likely to come from a pool consisting of top-ranked South River, No.2 Broadneck, No.4 Severna Park and seventh-ranked Chesapeake.

But Broadneck coach Jen Parks says you can't overlook Arundel, which enters today's match with Chesapeake in fifth place in the county.

"You can't discount anyone," Parks said recently. "Any team on any day can win. Chesapeake proved that (against Severna Park) and we did it (two weeks ago) with Severna Park. It's just exciting."

The Wildcats are 9-4 overall and 6-3 in the county standings in their first year under new head coach Alison Grava, who took over this season for longtime coach Clint Gosnell.

"They've really come in strong," said Parks. "They have a new coach and with new coaches, girls, if they buy into your new coach's philosophy, they'll want to play really hard for you. I think the Arundel players are really buying into their philosophy. They're loving playing for her (Grava). That's why they're playing so well."

Posted by Milton Kent at 12:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Besides its import on the city championship race, tonight's Dunbar-Poly football game will have an impact on the state playoff picture.

Poly, which, like Dunbar, is unbeaten at 6-0, will almost certainly tumble out of first place in the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association 2A North race behind Eastern Tech (6-0), which probably clinched a playoff spot with last week's win over Randallstown (5-1), whose hold on third place over Edmondson (4-2) became tenuous as the Rams now have a .14 point advantage over the Red Storm (4-2).

And don't look now, but Northwestern (4-2) has climbed into the race, leaping past City (4-2) for fifth place in the region. Northwestern, which travels to surprising Digital Harbor (5-1) this afternoon for a big game, is just a tenth of a point behind Edmondson and .24 ahead of City in what has become a three-team scrum for one playoff spot.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Atholton's 12-7 loss to Marriotts Ridge last week knocked the Raiders out of first place in the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association's 3A East region, but they still appear solidly in playoff position in this week's postseason points standings.

Atholton fell to fourth place in the region behind North Harford (5-1) and Wilde Lake (5-1), which are tied at the top, and Howard (5-1), which is .83 ahead of the Raiders in the state's complicated points formula. Bel Air, Fallston, Reservoir and Long Reach, all 3-3 teams, trail Stephen Decatur by at least a full point for fifth place, meaning they'll all need help to get past Decatur then make a run at Atholton.

In the 3A North region, Hereford (6-0) appears on the verge of wrapping up home-field advantage all the way through the regionals and the 3A semifinals, while Patapsco (5-1), Milford Mill, Catonsville and Mervo are within .83 points of each other for the last three spots, meaning one of them will be home in mid-November, when the playoffs start.

Meanwhile, in the 1A South region, one of the more pleasant surprises of the season, Digital Harbor (5-1), leaped past Surrattsville of Prince George's County for second, and moved into position to host a first-round playoff game if things remain the same. Dunbar (6-0) has a solid lead in the region, and Forest Park (4-2) seems to have the fourth slot sewn up.

Posted by Milton Kent at 11:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

From The Sun's Katherine Dunn:

A year ago, six times as many boys as girls competed on Maryland public school golf teams. And, of course, one way to try to boost the interest among girls is to provide more opportunities for them to play.

Thus, the state Girls Golf Challenge was born.

Saturday, all level of high school players from around the state gathered at Forest Park Golf Course for a day of competition or instruction, depending on each girl’s level of experience. Some played 18 holes, some nine holes and others took part in a clinic.

For Jill Masterman, supervisor of athletics for the Baltimore County public schools who was instrumental in creating the Challenge, it is a way to drum up more interest in golf. Although it is separate from next week’s state championships, it’s also a first step toward possibly having a separate girls state tournament.

Even though the number of girls playing remains small compared to the boys, the numbers are growing, she said, and that growth needs to be encouraged.

"Just from personal experience we’ve had with our grant program and developmental girls golf program (in Baltimore County), we are just acknowledging that all girls are not on the same level," Masterman said.

"When you’re talking about building something, you have to acknowledge where we are and where we are is for some of them, this is the first year they’ve had a club in their hands. For some girls too, it’s intimidating to play 18 holes, but we also acknowledge that we have some young ladies who have had a club in their hands since a very young age. We’ve always had those females; it’s the others we have to cultivate."

Saturday, Milford Mill’s Devonne Richardson finished second in the 18-hole competition. Winters Mills’ Katie Pass won the nine-hole event.

"It wasn’t as much pressure (as the state tournament). It was just fun,” Richardson said. "I liked the atmosphere. I knew girls playing in the tournament were going to be good competition and I was used to the course, because I play there all the time. It gives me a lot of confidence, because that’s the best I’ve shot (79).”

Richardson said she would urge more girls to take up golf.

"A lot of people think it’s a sport for the men,” Richardson said, “because when you watch golf on TV, they’re really big on the men. It’s always Tiger this and Tiger that, but it’s a fun sport for everybody.”

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

We told you earlier that participation in athletics in Maryland public high schools was up five percent from last year, according to the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association. We even told you that football, soccer and track and field were the three highest participation sports across the board.

What we didn't do was break down sports participation rates by gender, which we are pleased to do now. Football led the way among boys with 15,272 playing last year. Track and field came in second, with 6,291 participants, followed by soccer (6,081), lacrosse (5,633) and baseball (5,578). Basketball, in case you were wondering, came in sixth with 5,387 participants.

On the girls side, soccer was the leading sport, with 5,665 girls taking part, followed by softball (5,426), track and field (5,097), basketball (4,722) and volleyball (4,701).

Among the the oddities within the numbers is that eight girls played football and nine girls played baseball in the state last year. Fifty-five boys played softball, while two boys took to the field hockey pitch.

Posted by Milton Kent at 12:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

A few weeks ago, in our very first blog posting, we told you that more than 7.3 million kids across the country participated in high school athletics in the last academic year, the highest total ever. Well, the totals are in for public schools in Maryland, courtesy of the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association, and they show similar growth.

Overall, 109,984 boys and girls played varsity sports in Maryland during the 2006-07 academic year, an increase of 5.1 percent from the previous year. By gender, 63,587 boys played at least one of the 18 sports offered in Maryland, while 46,397 girls participated.

By far, the sport with the largest number of participants was football, which was played by 15,280 students, with soccer next with 11,746 participants and track and field third at 11,388.

We'll further break down participation levels and point out a few oddities in subsequent posts.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

You'll have to go a long way to top a story out of Michigan about how four Lake Fenton High football players and a member of the golf team conspired to honor a friend of theirs by overriding the school's Homecoming king selection to honor a stricken friend.

The five boys, who were all in contention for Homecoming honors, stepped aside so that Eli Florence, a sophomore and former offensive lineman on the football team, could be crowned king. Florence was diagnosed four years ago with acute myelogenous leukemia, which had rendered him unable to speak at times.

However, Eli's teammates and classmates drew strength from his courage and character and broke precedent to take their names out of the running and clear the way for Eli to be chosen Homecoming king, despite the fact that the honor goes to a senior.

The story, alas, does not have a happy ending. Eli, who was supposed to attend the Michigan-Purdue football game Saturday, and who was the subject of a fund-raiser yesterday, died at home Sunday afternoon. However, his life and the example set by his friends serve as terrific testaments to the concepts of friendship and camaraderie.

Posted by Milton Kent at 2:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

They say that everything is bigger in Texas. Well, that must include mistakes, because education officials are about to commit a whopper of a blunder later this month by implementing a draconian steroid testing program.

The Austin American-Statesman reported that the University Interscholastic League, which oversees Texas high school athletics, hopes to have a mandatory testing program in place by the end of October, just in time for the end of football's regular season, which wraps up Nov. 9.

A reported $6 million has been allocated to fund the all-sports encompassing program, which will test more than 23,000 students over the next two years from a selected pool of 30 percent of Texas' 1,246 public high schools.

As bad as the concept of testing high school kids for something that hasn't even been documented to be an issue, namely steroid use, Texas is making it even worse by treating students who refuse to take the test as if they tested positive, which draws a 30-day suspension on the first offense.

This remarkably invasive approach, which relies on testing that, according to experts quoted in the San Antonio Express-News, can't even determine whether the source of the testosterone came from an oral steroid, an injectable steroid or a dietary supplement, is fraught with peril.

Imagine the damage done to the reputation of a kid whose positive test is triggered by taking a perfectly legal dietary supplement? This "hang 'em all now and sort out the guilty ones' approach virtually invites a lawsuit, and if that's what it takes to get cooler heads to prevail in this steroid mania, bring it on.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Is it just me or does anyone else wonder what Michelle Wie's life would have been like if she had played on her high school golf team instead of trying to play with adults?

Wie, who turned 18 yesterday, is an exceptional talent, to be sure, and may, at some point become to the women's golf tour what Tiger Woods has become for men's golf.

But it's also increasingly obvious that she has been rushed onto the world stage well before both her game and her ability to process the highs and lows from the game are ready. Wie's parents, the LPGA and officials at certain men's tour events who have granted her exemptions when she clearly wasn't ready for them, are all complicit in what may become another example of a talented young athlete getting too much too soon.

As quaint as it may sound, there really is a benefit for kids to play games with kids their age, even if their abilities are at an adult level. Besides honing their crafts, athletes who are good in a high school setting learn socialization and how to balance wins and losses. Sure, there are injuries that could cost them college scholarships and professional opportunities, but even those provide opportunities for growth and maturity.

Though she's two years younger than Michelle Wie, Centennial golfer Audra McShane might be able to teach her a few things about grace and maturity.

Posted by Milton Kent at 12:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Heaven forbid if you have more than one child in Anne Arundel County and you try to watch them play in different sports.

The formula through the rest of the fall has the volleyball, field hockey and soccer teams playing on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with the field hockey and volleyball teams playing at one school and the boys and girls varsity soccer teams playing at another school at roughly the same time.

Granted, there are likely a few variables that go into the scheduling formula that contribute to this dilemma, up to and including the availability of buses to transport the teams, getting referees to work the games and the fact that many of the high school playing fields are used by local recreation and parks teams when the high school teams aren't playing.

However, those factors are in play in other counties, and you don't see all their games bunched at the same times. Surely, the schedule can be tweaked slightly so that students and parents who want to see their school play in as many games as possible can accomplish that, at least occasionally.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Here's a quick look at the rest of the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association football playoff scene, as it pertains to the local teams we didn't cover yesterday.

In the 4A East region, made up almost entirely of Anne Arundel schools, Arundel and Old Mill appear to be in good shape for the playoffs, with Broadneck, North County, Severna Park and South River fighting for two slots. In 4A North, Parkville leads the region with North Carroll in third with Perry Hall fighting Thomas Johnson for the fourth and final slot.

In the 3A North region, Hereford, which moved up this year from 2A, has just about wrapped up the top seed, with Mervo in a solid second. Patapsco, Milford Mill and Catonsville are bunched in for the last two places. The 3A East region has no unbeaten teams, so almost everything is in play. Eleven teams -- 10 of them from the Baltimore region -- still have a chance at
a playoff spot, with Atholton, North Harford, Wilde Lake and Howard having the advantage now. We'll examine this region in depth next week.

In 2A West: Winters Mill and Liberty figure to battle for the last playoff position. Meanwhile, the 1A South region appears to be set, with Dunbar holding a sizable lead over Surrattsville of Prince George's County, with Digital Harbor and Forest Park the only other schools in the region with winning records.

There's a decent chance that a school with a .500 or worse record will get a playoff spot in the 1A North region, as four teams, including New Town and Western Tech, have 1-4 records, which, for now, would gain the last postseason berth. Sparrows Point and Chesapeake will likely grab the top two seeds in the region, with North Carroll in place for the third slot. Finally, Joppatowne has the inside track to the top spot in the 1A East region, with Harford Tech in a three-team scramble for the fourth slot.

Posted by Milton Kent at 11:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

On the face of it, the decision of Michael Vick's high school to remove his jersey from the school's display case seems to be a no-brainer. Vick, who has pleaded guilty to federal charges connected to a dogfighting ring operating at his Virginia home, hardly seems deserving of the honor.

But as seemingly increasing numbers of athletes get entangled with the law, schools may have to figure out what the threshold is for bestowing honors on former players who get arrested or worse.

Better yet, how should schools proceed when stars who bring glory and attention to their alma maters, as well as sizable donations of cash and/or goods, get into either legal or moral trouble?

The name and number of Shawne Merriman, the San Diego Chargers linebacker who drew a four-game suspension last year from the NFL for the use of an illegal substance, is attached to the scoreboard at the football stadium at Douglass High in Upper Marlboro. Do you think school officials haven't considered what example they're setting by leaving Merriman's number and name in such a prominent place? Think they should?

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

We promised more of a glance at the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association's football standings in an earlier post, and one of the oddities involves No.2 River Hill.

The Hawks (5-0), though the best public school team in the Baltimore area, are second in the 2A South region, and may have to make an hour bus ride to play the regional final on the road at Patuxent of Calvert County, if the current standings hold. River Hill trails the Panthers (5-0), ranked 18th in this week's Washington Post poll by nearly 1.5 points in the MPSSAA complicated system, which awards more points for beating schools with larger enrollments.

Patuxent still has games against 4A Thomas Stone and 3A Great Mills, which have a combined 1-9 record. River Hill, meanwhile, plays its entire schedule within Howard County, which is the only Baltimore area county that doesn't have a 4A school. Unless the Hawks run the table and the Panthers stumble, River Hill will likely only play at home once in the 2A playoffs. Howard County hasn't produced a state champion since 1998, perhaps, in part, because its teams play an insular schedule. Perhaps if the scheduling formula could be tweaked to allow Howard teams to play one game per year against outside competition, they might fare better at the tournament's later stages.

Also in the 2A South region, Marriott's Ridge (3-2) will need some help to vault Douglass of Prince George's County and Gwynn Park for the last spot, while Southern of Anne Arundel (3-2) looks solid for the No. 3 seed and a first-round game on the road at River Hill.

Posted by Milton Kent at 11:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Each Wednesday, between now and the end of the regular season, we'll take a look at the week's Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Administration football playoff standings, which post on the MPSSAA's site each Tuesday.

A quick primer: Schools are divided into classifications by population size and the classifications are divided by regions. Football is one of the few sports where every school doesn't automatically qualify for the playoffs. Instead, schools advance by way of a scoring system, which awards more points for wins over teams with larger populations. The four teams in each region with the highest points advance to the playoffs.

For now, one of the best races in the state is shaping up in the 2A North region, consisting exclusively of schools from the city and Baltimore County. Five teams, Poly (5-0), Eastern Tech (5-0), Randallstown (5-0), defending champion Edmondson and City, both 3-2, are bunched in tight for four slots in that order.

Three intra-regional games figure to decide not only who gets in, but who gets the higher seeds, and thus, home field when the playoffs start next month. The first of them, Friday's Randallstown-Eastern Tech match at CCBC-Essex, will likely determine which of these teams draws the top seed. Poly, meanwhile, will play at Edmondson on Nov. 2, then finish the regular season the following week against City at M&T Bank Stadium in a game that may very well determine if one of them advances to the playoffs.

More later.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

The road to the state public school soccer and field hockey championships may run through Anne Arundel County figuratively, with strong entrants in those sports. But it will run through there literally because of site changes, dictated by conflicts at the University of Maryland and at UMBC.

The boys soccer finals, which had been scheduled for three days -- Nov. 15, 16 and 17 -- at UMBC, will now take place on Nov. 17 at South River, with all four titles being decided on the same day. Meanwhile, the girls soccer championships, also originally slated for Nov. 15-17 at UMBC, will now take place at Broadneck, with a pair of games being played on Nov. 15 and the other two scheduled for Nov. 17.

Meanwhile, the field hockey title matches, which were scheduled for College Park on Nov. 12 and 13, will now be held at Broadneck, with the 2A and 4A games going at 5 and 7 p.m. on Nov. 12, and the 1A and 3A matches to be played also at 5 and 7 p.m. on Nov. 13.

There's been a slight change in the volleyball semifinals and finals in College Park. Originally, some of the semifinals were scheduled to be played at the Comcast Center's auxiliary gym, with others to be played at Ritchie Coliseum Nov. 13-14. Now, all eight semifinals will take place at Ritchie Coliseum over four nights, with the 1A semis to be held on Nov. 12 at 6 and 8 p.m. The 2A semifinals are scheduled for the next night at the same times, with the 3A and 4A semis on succeeding evenings at the same times. The championship matches will remain as originally scheduled, to be contested at Ritchie on Nov. 17.

Posted by Milton Kent at 12:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

From The Sun's Katherine Dunn:

Talk about parity. You can barely get a piece of tissue paper between any of the top five field hockey teams in Baltimore County.

Every game played between Catonsville, No. 10 Towson, No. 11 Loch Raven, No. 13 Hereford and Dulaney has been decided by a single goal or gone to a shootout.

Of the nine games these teams have played against each other, including two non-league games, six ended in one-goal decisions and three went to penalty-stroke shootouts with one ending in a tie after one round of strokes.

“I’m telling you this county, it’s hopping,” said Towson coach Holly West. “It’s good. It’s nice to see Loch Raven in the mix and Catonsville is doing great. It’s more competitive and it’s nice. You don’t get better playing weak teams; you get better playing good strong competition.”

Hereford, Dulaney and Towson have dominated the county since 2001. Not only have they won every county championship but no other team has even made the final. It’s possible that this year’s title game could have a new look.

Catonsville, which tied Dulaney for the title in 2000, is unbeaten in the county at 5-0. Towson and Loch Raven are close behind at 4-1. Hereford is 3-2 and defending champ Dulaney is 2-3.

Today’s games could clear up everything. If Catonsville beats Hereford and Towson beats Loch Raven, the winners would all but clinch their berths in the final. Any other outcome would complicate things at least until Friday — when Catonsville plays host to Loch Raven — or maybe longer.

Don’t be surprised if there’s a tie for second. That’s just the way the season’s going and we’ll just wait to sort out the tie-breaker if that happens.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Maryland high school football has lost one of its most passionate supporters with the passing of John Cox, who served as chairman of the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association's football committee.

Cox, who was also an assistant superintendent of the Charles County school system, died last Monday at the age of 60 after a long battle with cancer. He coached at his alma mater, La Plata, for nearly 10 years and was named state Football Coach of the Year in 1975.

Cox helped develop uniform rules for state play and chaired the MPSSAA football committee for 18 years, where, among other things, he kept and compiled the points system for the state playoffs. During his tenure as either chair or co-chair, the tournament field doubled twice, reaching the current level with 16 teams per class.

On a personal note, Cox was a patient, thoughtful man who always took time to explain the playoff system with reporters, and relished the chance to talk football. He will be sorely missed.

Posted by Milton Kent at 12:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

It's becoming increasingly clear that the best, and perhaps only chance for anyone to put a dent in the Dunbar football machinery will be their game Oct. 18 at Poly.

Even so, the Engineers, who like the Poets are unbeaten, may not have enough firepower and speed, especially on their turf, to stay with No. 4 Dunbar, which has scored 105 points in its last two games against City and Edmondson, two teams that began the year in The Sun's Top 10 poll.

And, parenthetically, I don't have a vote on The Sun's All-Metro and Player of the Year awards, and rightfully so. I don't see enough of any one sport to make a call on who the best players are in those sports, and frankly, my colleagues who do are among the most knowledgeable anywhere.

All that said, and with all due respect to anyone else in the field, it's hard to draw up a scenario by which anyone other than Dunbar junior Tavon Austin wins Offensive Player of the Year honors. In the last two weeks alone, Austin, who won the honors last season, has put up video-game numbers, running for 446 yards on 33 carries (13.6 yards per carry) and scoring seven touchdowns against two pretty good teams.

The season, to be sure, isn't even half over, and there's a lot more football to be played, but Austin looks like the runaway leader heading toward the turn for home.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Before you head out to a game or to dinner or where ever your Friday night plans may take you, be sure and set the TiVo or VCR for Channel 11 at 9 p.m. for the season premiere of Friday Night Lights this evening.

The television show, which follows a fictional Texas high school football team and chronicles the goings-on in the town they live in, was last year's best new drama, Emmy voters notwithstanding. Few shows have ever gotten teenage life as right as Friday Night Lights does, and yet, because people have come to think of the show, which is loosely based on Buzz Bissinger's splendid book, as a football show.

And NBC, which is too busy pumping shows about time travel and bionic women, didn't help matters by jerking the show around to different time slots last season and by giving it very little promotional love this year. In addition, the executive who championed FNL got fired, and the show was plopped into a horrible time slot on Friday nights, the evening with the second lowest viewership of the week and the evening when most of the people who should be watching it are out living their lives.

The November sweeps begin on Nov. 1, and networks waste no time yanking shows that underperform in the ratings during sweeps months, meaning Friday Night Lights essentially has four weeks to pull its ratings up to stay on the air.
Do yourself a favor and tune in or record it to watch later, and if you can't, click here to watch it online.

Posted by Milton Kent at 12:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

If you needed proof that football in this area is considered a secondary sport, at best, here it is: There is precisely one player from the state of Maryland on a list that purports to rank the 100 top high school football players in the country, and exactly none from the Baltimore area. But that's hardly the chief thing wrong with the Takkle.com Top 100.

This list, which is distributed through Sports Illustrated.com, is a prime example of a serious inherent flaw with the trend of nationalization of high school athletics. How in the name of Amos Alonzo Stagg can anyone purport to know which of the millions of kids who play prep football is the best? There are too many kids, too many schools and too many variables in the level of play among the 50 states and the District of Columbia to make an informed call on which team is the best, much less, which kid.

And to make matters worse, the list allows readers to vote on whether a kid is overrated or underrated. Are you kidding? With all due respect to you, the dear reader, there's no way that a guy sitting at a computer in Woodlawn or Columbia or Bel Air should pass judgment on the skills and abilities of a kid in another area, especially if his only frame of reference is his kid and a short video clip on the site. Officials at Sports Illustrated, arguably the most revered name in American sports journalism, should be ashamed to take part in such nonsense.

For the record, the only Maryland-based player on the list is DeMatha receiver Kenny Tate, who comes in at No. 57.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

The fall of the Severna Park field hockey team from first to third in this week's Sun Poll marks the first time in 49 polls that the Falcons have not enjoyed the view from the top.

Severna Park, which has won 16 state championships and seven of the last nine, not only has stiff competition in the state and Anne Arundel County for best field hockey program, but also nationally from the Walpole (Mass.) Porkers, who have captured 10 straight state titles.

By the way, the Porkers' nickname is apparently exclusive to the field hockey program, and has been in use for more than 40 years. That leads to the question: What, was Slobs not available?

Posted by Milton Kent at 12:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

From The Sun's Stefen Lovelace:

Dunbar's Tavon Austin has received a full football scholarship offer from Boston College. Austin, a junior, who is listed on the Poets' roster as "athlete," rather than by position, said Tuesday that BC coach Jeff Jagozdinzki hadn't promised him that he'd start if he were to come in 2009, but did say that he would want Austin to play specifically at running back.

This is the second full scholarship offer Austin has received. His first one came from Maryland, and he said he's still undecided about which school he will attend.

Austin, the reigning Sun Offensive Player of the Year, is this week's Male Athlete of the Week. He ran for 102 yards and three touchdowns in Dunbar's 56-6 pasting of City last Friday night.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Today's second notice posting serves as a sweet reminder that basketball season is just a short time away (and isn't that good news?)

Former Cardinal Gibbons and Duke star guard Steve Wojochiechowski will be the featured guest at a basketball clinic to be held at the Sure Shots gym in Lansdowne Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to noon.

The fee for the clinic is $25 and the session is open to parents, coaches and fans -- not potential recruits. For more information, call 410-737-2117 or visit the Leadership Through Athletics Web site.

Posted by Milton Kent at 1:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

From time to time, we'll post notices of coming events that might be of interest to high school athletes and their parents in the Varsity Letters space.

For instance, HC DrugFree will host a free program, "Powered By Me: Playing Safe, Fair and Sober," tomorrow night from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the Jim Rouse Theater at Wilde Lake High School at 5460 Trumpeter Road in Columbia.

The Powered By Me program, sponsored by the St. Joseph's Medical Center and moderated by Michael Gimbel, director of substance-abuse education at Sheppard Pratt, is NCAA-certified.

Tomorrow night's presentation will address a wide range of issues, including the uses of anabolic steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs, as well as the consumption of energy drinks and underage alcohol use, as well as peer pressure.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

From The Sun's Katherine Dunn:

It’s tough to be homeless. Roland Park’s field hockey team has found that out this season. The installation of artificial turf on both of their fields has forced the Reds to play all of their games on the road. The fields, part of a huge renovation of the school’s athletic facilities, are scheduled to be finished in August, just in time for the fall season.

That doesn’t help much right now.

The Reds picked up their first win Tuesday, 2-0 at Notre Dame Prep, but they are 1-8 overall. Still, the Reds couldn’t be much closer to a winning record: Six of those loses have been by one goal and three came in overtime.

“Any team needs a little confidence,” said Reds coach Debbie Bloodsworth, “and I just think kids have confidence when they’re on their home field and they know they have a few people they know around them, like more fans. It’s hard going away and always being the stepchild.”

As the second half of the season begins, it’s not likely to be any easier on the Reds, who play at No. 10 Archbishop Spalding today at 3:45 p.m.

“It’s going to be draining,” said Bloodsworth. “That’s going to be the challenge — to stay up for everything — but they’re a pretty spunky group.”

You can never count out the Reds. In 2002, they won only six regular-season games and ended up tying St. Paul’s for the Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland A Conference tournament championship.

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

If you thought my recent column calling for the regulation of nationally televised high school football games was dire, take a gander at a recent Slate online piece from author Robert Andrew Powell.

Powell, who wrote the book, "We Own This Game: A Year in the Adult World of Youth Football,' a chronicle of a year in the life of two Florida Pop Warner teams, is far more dark and pessimistic than I could be.

Just because Powell is pessimistic doesn't mean he's wrong or that his warnings aren't valid. Indeed, he has very important observations to make about the price all parties involved pay for attempting to make high school football bigger than it is or should be.

Posted by Milton Kent at 12:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

From The Sun's Stefen Lovelace:

The City boys soccer team had a nice week last week. The Knights played their first two home games of the season, getting an 8-0 win over Mervo and a 2-1 win over Patterson. It looked as if all the Knights needed to get on track were soccer goals to practice on.

The City team had been practicing without soccer goals up until last week. The goals were stolen before the season started, but new ones were ordered and received in time for the team's first home game.

"We finally got [the soccer goals] last week," first-year coach George Sfikas said. "It was the first time we were able to take a couple shots on goal. It's not that it’s an excuse, but it definitely takes a while to get used to it."

Posted by Milton Kent at 6:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)