http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/ The Baltimore Sun's blog covering high school sports en Copyright 2009 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:12:22 -0500 http://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/ http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss today's Alumni Report. She said she wanted to run to Australia. “In elementary school, we had this gym teacher from Australia and she did this program to get kids interested in running. She said, ‘We’re going to run to Australia.’ We had these little cards, 50 miles on a card and they were broken into 50 squares and each square was broken into fours for a quarter mile. You could run at recess and the teacher could tally it for you or you could run at home and parents could initial them. “What always worked with me was some motivational thing like that, trying to reach some goal, so this was very cool, because in our hallway, she had this big line and as the kids ran more and more on their cards, the line got longer and we started getting closer to Australia.” Except for the occasional 5K, she didn’t run much after her sophomore year at Dulaney, concentrating mostly on swimming and playing a few other sports. Still, an elementary school teacher with an irresistible goal introduced her to the sport she still can't leave behind. Oh, and by the way, it’s 9,785 miles from Baltimore to Sydney, Australia. Years later, Pagon raced in a triathlon there. ]]> http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/running_to_australia.html http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/running_to_australia.html Cross country Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:12:22 -0500 Caringbridge.org website attest to that. Wall had been an active, healthy young man until one day about six months ago when he collapsed while working in a field at an organic farm in Makawao, Hawaii. He was rushed to the hospital and found to have a brain tumor. He was returned to Maryland and had been in the care of his family in Annapolis since. "I heard and his former teammates, who were some of his best friends, heard when it happened," said Tom Sfakiyanudis, who coached wrestling for 10 years at Annapolis High, including those years when Wall competed. "It has hit everyone around here pretty hard. He had a lot of close friends on the team and they were all keeping in touch through the entire ordeal." Sfakiyanudis described Wall as "a wonderful kid", who didn't start wrestling until high school but worked hard in practice to excel. "Andrew worked his way up quickly," Sfakiyanudis said. "I remember he won us a big match his junior year when he was wrestling at 171 pounds. We were competing against Broadneck and it came down to his match. He pinned the guy to win us the whole match." Messages at Caringbridge.org come from friends he had made at age 7, from ICU nurses who took care of him in Hawaii after he collapsed, from the Severn women's rugby organization, from Mount St. Mary's rugby captain and a classmate, from friends in California, Texas and Utah, from friends he made three years ago on a United Kingdom study trip. They come from his former teachers at the Mount, from families of his former wrestling teammates and from the family whose farm he lived and worked on in Hawaii, who say he made such an impression on them they are building a memorial on the farm to him. All of those messengers, first expressing support for his recovery and then sympathy and compassion at his loss, all talk about a young man who was kind and caring, patient, thoughtful, genuine, and a "lover of all things food." They talk about his huge smile, his king-sized hugs and his gentleness. And all of them talk about the impression he made on their lives and how much they'll miss him. A wonderful legacy for his family, now saddened by his loss, to remember.]]> http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/_andrew_wall_a_former.html http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/_andrew_wall_a_former.html Wrestling Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:40:08 -0500 The soccer teams at Fallston enjoyed a rarity last year when both made it to the state championship game, each falling just short of bringing home titles. This year brings an even more impressive surprise: Both teams are right there again. The Fallston boys brought back only three starters, but picked up where it left off with standout forward Mikey Antinozzi leading the way. The girls team lost its entire front line and key players at midfield, but relied on defender McKenzie Hannahs and the back line while the new offense came together. Saturday night at UMBC Stadium, the Fallston supporters will get a double dose of soccer as the team compete in the Class 2A state championship games. The Fallston girls will take on Winters Mill at 5 p.m. with the boys game against Marriotts Ridge to follow at 7:30. http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/fallston_soccer_maintains_excellence.html http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/fallston_soccer_maintains_excellence.html Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:34:16 -0500 ]]> http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/qa_with_reservoir_soccer_player_katlyn_axenfeld.html http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/qa_with_reservoir_soccer_player_katlyn_axenfeld.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 13:33:13 -0500 With Garrison Forest, Broadneck, Severna Park, Westminster and South River all huddled at or near the top of the Field Hockey Poll all season, Bryn Mawr, 18-3-1, may have been surprised to find itself at the top of heap in the final poll published in Tuesday’s Sun. But while all those other teams got the attention during the season, the Mawrtians quietly set about building a resume that deserved the final nod. “I was surprised when I heard,” said Bryn Mawr coach Jeanette Budzik, who noted Garrison Forest’s No. 1 ranking the last two years and Severna Park’s long domination before that. “But I think it was something our kids deserve and accomplished. “It is an honor to be No. 1. Everyone works really hard to get to that spot and if you’re in that position you’re in such strong, great company. No. 1, the Top 10, 15 or Top 20, it’s a great place to be. And the kids appreciate being recognized this year. To be at the top, it’s really incredible. “There’s a lot of excitement at our school.” Westminster was headed for No. 1, going into the final game with an 18-0 record. But Severna Park, who knows how to win championships, stopped the Owls, 2-1, in the title game for a state record 19th 4A state crown. The Falcons went into the championship game ranked No. 3 and finished 16-2. They made an argument for No. 1 with the victory over Westminster and with its semifinal and regular season wins over No. 5 South River. But the Falcons lost twice -- to unranked Severn, 1-0, and to No. 8 Broadneck, 3-0, when the Bruins were ranked No. 1. But besides South River and Broadneck, who did Severna Park play? The Falcons played the hand they were dealt. Positioned in Anne Arundel County they have to play the other Anne Arundel County teams. And the Falcons played them hard, beating up on the competition -- 11 shutouts and 121 goals scored attest to that. But through the regular season and playoffs they faced only three ranked teams, Broadneck, South River, a team they beat by a goal in the regular season and by strokes in the playoffs, and Westminster. Then there was Bryn Mawr. http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/bryn_mawr_deserving_no_1.html http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/bryn_mawr_deserving_no_1.html Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:28:18 -0500 -- Glenn Graham]]> http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/loch_raven_boys_soccer_on_an_unexpected_roll.html http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/loch_raven_boys_soccer_on_an_unexpected_roll.html Wed, 18 Nov 2009 11:23:12 -0500 Joppatowne football coach Bill Waibel was named the Ravens' High School Coach of the Week after guiding the No. 5 Mariners to a 49-30 regional semifinal victory over Bohemia Manor Friday night. The Mariners (11-0) had not allowed that many points all season, but Waibel said the defense, which came into the game giving up an average of 5.2 points and had not allowed more than 14, played well. “We had three turnovers in the first half, and it gave them a short field,” Waibel said in a news release. “But we were able to take care of the football in the second half and make adjustments on the offensive line, as far as blocking schemes go. We challenged our team to go out and play to our ability.” http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/joppatownes_waibel_is_ravens_coach_of_the_week.html http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/joppatownes_waibel_is_ravens_coach_of_the_week.html Football Wed, 18 Nov 2009 09:56:07 -0500 In last weekend’s regional football semifinal, Pikesville probably faced the most highly-motivated team in the entire state tournament bracket – Sparrows Point. A week earlier, the Pointers had a chance to beat Pikesville on the last play of the regular-season finale, but Panthers linebacker Nolan Hart tipped the ball away from a Sparrows Point player in the end zone to seal a 35-28 Pikesville win and the top spot among Baltimore County’s Class 1A teams. That brought up Part Two for the rivals: the Class 1A North region opener. “We knew Sparrows Point was going to come out and be excited, because the week before they lost on the last play of the game, so they knew they could beat us and our kids knew that too,” said Panthers coach Jamie Willis. “I told them they’re going to come out on top of their game, especially emotionally, and they did. They jumped on us. They threw the ball down two series in a row and went up 14-0.” The Panthers didn’t fold. Shortly after Sparrows Point's second touchdown, quarterback Jeremy Downing wanted to pass on third-and-12, but the Pointers covered his receivers, so he scrambled for a first down that led to Pikesville’s first touchdown. “He makes plays,” Willis said. “He’s that kind of kid, so it got us moving a little bit and got us into the game emotionally and from that point on, we played probably our best football.” The Panthers reeled off five unanswered touchdowns to take the lead for good, led offensively by Downing, Bradley Garfield, Daniel Shear, Kion Wright and DeVohn Gilmore. They went on to win, 42-20, and earn a trip to Thurmont to meet Catoctin (10-0) for the regional crown Friday night. That was the eighth straight win for Pikesville, which started the season 0-2. Willis said the leadership of his 21 seniors played a key role in their success in a season in which they matched a program-best 8-2 record. “We started the year 0-2 with a bunch of turnovers and then we got a bye week,” Willis said. “We knew we had to get better and they just continued to lead us. Right now we're playing our best football, so they led us to where we are today.” Willis, a second-year head coach who took the Panthers to the regional final last season after they had gone through five losing seasons, also noted the defensive play of linemen Robert Gibson, Pat Murdock, Brent Hiken and Jaron McQueen, defensive ends Shear and Taymar Davenport, linebackers Hart and Tim Bailey, corners David Johnson and Shawn Markow and safeties Gilmore and Corey Cutler. Next up for the Panthers, who had never gone past the first round of playoffs until last season, is another familiar foe: Catoctin. They fell to the Cougars, 50-13, a year ago at home. “We played them last year in the same game,” said Willis, “so we know who they are. I think they expected us to be here again and we knew they were going to be here again. My kids are looking forward to it. We’re going to have to play a flawless game to beat them. They’re a very good team.” http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/pikesville_football_double_trouble_for_sparrows_point.html http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/pikesville_football_double_trouble_for_sparrows_point.html Football Tue, 17 Nov 2009 18:01:05 -0500 Lake Clifton's new point guard Josh Selby is on the front of the Sports section in Tuesday's USA Today. The story that goes with the photo is about the hotbed of point guards in the Baltimore/D.C. area that will be on display in the coming season. Selby, who transferred from DeMatha, is the second-ranked point guard and No. 4 overall by Rivals.com. Mount St. Joseph senior guard Eric Atkins, last year's Baltimore Catholic League Player of the Year, also was mentioned in the article. He is the No. 14 rated point guard in the country. http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/lake_cliftons_shelby_showcased_in_usa_today.html http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/lake_cliftons_shelby_showcased_in_usa_today.html Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:09:16 -0500 Jack Degele, Commissioner, Baltimore Catholic League (BCL), a highly competitive high school boys’ basketball league currently comprising seven private schools, has announced the establishment of the Baltimore Catholic League Hall of Fame to honor past players, coaches and administrators beginning with the first year of the league in 1971-72. Fans of the BCL can nominate candidates for the inaugural class of 15 inductees from Nov. 13 through Dec.31 by logging onto http://www.baltimorecatholicleague.com/. The class will be announced at the annual BCL luncheon on Feb. 24, and will be honored at a banquet on March 13. Criteria for nomination includes: http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/bcl_to_establish_hall_of_fame.html http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/bcl_to_establish_hall_of_fame.html Tue, 17 Nov 2009 13:34:07 -0500 There’s more than one state record setter on Arundel’s No. 1 football team. R.J. Harris can sometimes get overshadowed by quarterback Billy Cosh, who breaks his own state passing records every game. Harris, however, is setting some records of his own. He’s the one catching most of those passes. The senior wide receiver scored one touchdown in Friday’s regional semifinal win over Annapolis to boost a couple of his own state records. He has 25 receiving touchdowns this season, breaking the old mark of 23 shared by two of his former Wildcats teammates, Brandon Johnson-Farrell in 2007 and Alec Lemon in 2008. He also holds the state career mark for most receiving touchdowns with 45, which also broke a two-year old Johnson-Farrell record of 40. When asked recently about the state records, Harris said he didn't even know he was getting close to any state records. "To tell you the truth, I had no idea about it. My dad told me about it (after he broke the first one), but I had no idea. It felt great, because I worked hard, but that wasn't my goal. My goal wasn't to set records. Of course, it's fun and all, but our main goal is to win a state title." http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/arundels_harris_worth_watching_too.html http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/arundels_harris_worth_watching_too.html Football Tue, 17 Nov 2009 10:40:05 -0500 Add yet another state record to Arundel quarterback Billy Cosh’s resume. With 14 completed passes in Friday night’s 18-6 regional semifinal win over Annapolis, the senior raised his career total to 562. That breaks the record of 548 set by North County’s Mike Pfisterer in 2000, a record Cosh tied the previous week. Cosh now holds 11 state records -- 10 outright and one shared. Eight of those records, including the shared mark of seven touchdown passes in a game, are overall state records. The other two are public school records. With 108 career touchdown passes, Cosh needs six more to break the state overall record of 113. Cosh, who is headed to Kansas State, is creeping up on one more Pfisterer record. He has 849 career pass attempts behind Pfisterer’s 902. Time is winding down on Cosh’s high school career with only three more weeks left to play if the No. 1 Wildcats make it all the way to the state Class 4A final. Of course, he will be playing in the Maryland Crab Bowl on Dec. 19 at Towson University's Johnny Unitas Stadium, but those stats won't count toward his high school totals. http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/the_cosh_watch_4.html http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/the_cosh_watch_4.html Football Tue, 17 Nov 2009 10:30:36 -0500 No. 1 Arundel The Wildcats had one of their tightest margins of victory this fall in getting past Anne Arundel County rival Annapolis, 18-6. It was their 21st straight win over a county opponent. All-Metro quarterback Billy Cosh completed 14 of 21 passes for 112 yards and two touchdowns. Joseph Blackwell had 21 carries for 132 yards and a touchdown. Defensively, Michael Coombs had three interceptions and Bobby Partilla made 13 tackles. Next up: No. 6 Old Mill (9-2) at home Friday at 7 p.m. for the Class 4A East crown. Coach Chuck Markiewicz’s Wildcats aim to end their top county rival’s season the same way it started – with a loss to Arundel. On Sept. 5, Arundel won the opener, 34-27, and that remains their closest game this season. The teams combined for nearly 1,000 yards of total offense and Cosh was 29-for-45 for 347yards with four touchdowns. Blackwell, in his Wildcats’ debut after transferring from Spalding, ran for 174 yards on 28 carries and one touchdown but also caught three touchdown passes from Cosh. R.J. Harris caught 13 passes for 206 yards. For Old Mill, which knocked off previously unbeaten North Point Saturday, Josh Furman gained 219 yards on 13 carries and scored two touchdowns in that first meeting while Jason Clements gained 143 yards on 24 carries. No. 2 River Hill The Hawks, who moved to Class 3A after winning back-to-back state 2A titles, are posting some impressive numbers, including a school record 70 points scored in Friday night’s shutout of James M. Bennett. That was their 39th straight win and the 100th career victory for head coach Brian Van Deusen. It was also the fifth shutout for a defense that allows only 6.5 points per game. In rolling over the Clippers, Kevin Johnson scored three touchdowns and Nick Bonhag had three as seven different Hawks scored touchdowns. Next up: No. 15 Atholton (10-1) at home Friday at 7 p.m. in the Class 3A East regional final. The Hawks were the only team to beat the much-improved Raiders this season, coming from behind for a 35-14 decision three weeks ago. The Raiders got the jump on River Hill when Kalvin Seamonson threw 90- and 80-yard touchdown passes to Matt Robinson to take a 14-7 lead into halftime. River Hill quarterback Harry McLaughlin turned that around with a 13-yard touchdown pass to John Michael on the opening drive of the second half. The Hawks kept rolling with 212 of their 393 yards of offense in the second half while the defense stopped the Raiders, who managed to gain just 38 yards in the half. Johnson and Brent Kluge each scored a Hawks touchdown. No. 5 Joppatowne The Mariners had a little trouble holding onto the ball early in Friday’s game leading to three Bohemia Manor touchdowns, but their stingy defense continued to play well and Jake McGinnis had 15 tackles en route to a 49-30 victory. Epe Henriques ran for four touchdowns, gaining 292 yards on 25 carries as the Mariners made up for allowing more points than they had allowed in a game all season. Next up: Havre de Grace (7-4) at home Friday at 7 p.m. in the Class 1A East region final. The Mariners rolled over their Harford County rival, 35-0, three weeks ago, and coach Bill Waibel said the hardest part of coaching toward this week’s game is convincing his players that the Warriors are capable of beating them. He said his team played particularly well in their first meeting with Henriques and Chris Wright combining for almost 300 yards rushing. The Warriors like to throw the ball and they rebounded with a 45-24 win over Fallston and then a 12-6 win over Snow Hill Saturday in terrible field conditions on the Eastern Shore. Forest Park The Foresters have won some close, exciting games this season, but perhaps none tighter than Friday night’s 19-18 win over Carver. Delron Dantzler scored the game-winning touchdown late in the first half after Travis Fonseca’s long pass to Andrew Allen set up the short run. The Foresters held on and got a big defensive play when Carver pulled within 19-18 and went for the conversion to win. Facing a quarterback sweep to the outside, Forresters Allen, James Queen and Abel Hill got through the line and smothered the ball. Next up: No. 8 Dunbar (10-1) at Poly Saturday at 1 p.m. in the Class 1A North regional final. The competition gets a whole lot tougher for the Baltimore City Division II champion Foresters when they meet the co-Division I champion Poets, who have won three straight state 1A titles and seven straight regional crowns. Foresters coach Damon Bomar said his players were disappointed that the Poets were not on their regular-season schedule, but as the team continued to win, he told the Foresters they might get to play them in the playoffs. “If they want to be the champions, they’ve got to beat the champions,” said Bomar. “I think it could be a good game, but it’s a great opportunity for Forest Park.” ]]> http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/unbeaten_football_teams_down_to_four.html http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/unbeaten_football_teams_down_to_four.html Mon, 16 Nov 2009 20:50:05 -0500 Sportsmanship at the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Assocation's state field hockey championships over the past three weeks has been first class on and off the field. Along the way teams have won by the slimmest of margins — take Severna Park's 4-3 strokes victory over South River in the 4A East Regional final. While others have been blown away. Some teams played in good weather, others in the worst, with heavy rain, cold and swirling winds. But in all cases fans and players took the weather, the refs' calls and the outcome of games with grace. Paint Branch lost to Westminster, 4-0, in the state semifinals, and its fans earned the MPSSAA sportsmanship award for the tournament. But my on own personal sportsmanship nod goes to the young boy who was hanging over the grandstand railing Saturday after his previously undefeated Westminster Owls had lost in the 4A title game. Most of the young women who had seen their undefeated dream ended by Severna Park, 2-1, at Washington College were in tears as they crossed the playing field to cheers from fans for both teams. As they stood waiting to receive their second-place tournament awards, this young boy shouted: "No matter what," he yelled, "you'll always be good." It was so purely from the heart it had to bring a smile. And one of the nicest things about it is that it could have been directed at any of this year's tournament teams in appreciation of jobs well done. Sandra McKee http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/youll_always_be_good_an_anthem_for_field_hockeys_tournament.html http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/youll_always_be_good_an_anthem_for_field_hockeys_tournament.html Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:01:26 -0500 There have been plenty of standout performances in the girls soccer playoffs so far, but Reservoir senior forward Stephanie Zaycer stood out in the crowd this weekend as she helped the Gators advance to their first Class 3A state championship game. In the team's 2-0 semifinal win over Hereford, Zaycer battled hard to win a ball in the right corner before sending a perfect pass in front that led to the game-winning goal early in the second half. Later in the half, she headed home a header in front for insurance. What's special about Zaycer's performance was the work she put in long before the second half of Saturday's win. The senior barely saw playing time in the beginning of the season at midfield, but when coach Josh Sullivan was looking for some help at striker midway through, Zaycer jumped at the chance. "In the middle of the season, I was working my butt off at practice and I started getting more playing time as the season went on. And then finally near the end of the season, I really picked it up and for the playoffs I've started," she said. After creating some fine scoring chances in the first half only to see shots go off the post or stopped by Hereford goalie Kelsey Wirtz, Zaycer stayed with it in the second half to find a big reward at the end of the day. "Steph is a great story because she didn't play a whole lot at the beginning of the year and about halfway through I was searching for another striker," Sullivan said. "The last six or seven games, she's been unbelievable. She's the workhorse." The Gators will play Tuscarora in Thursday's state final set for 5 p.m. at UMBC. The teams met in a season-opening tournament and the Gators came away with a 2-1 win. Zaycer didn't see any time in that game, but she will certainly be a factor this time around. http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/hard_work_pays_off_for_reservoirs_zaycer.html http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/sports/highschool/varsityletters/2009/11/hard_work_pays_off_for_reservoirs_zaycer.html Girls soccer Mon, 16 Nov 2009 14:09:06 -0500