4 Arundel

Chris Moran, Old Mill's No. 9 batter, started two crucial rallies without a hit and Alex Buchholz pitched and batted the host Patriots to a 6-5 victory over top-ranked and previously unbeaten Chesapeake of Anne Arundel yesterday in Millersville. Buchholz, a junior right-hander, got the win and the game-winning RBI. Moran's leadoff walk in the bottom of the fifth led to two runs as the No. 5 Patriots (11-3) tied the score at 5. Buchholz doubled in a run and Shawn Summers, who hit a three-run homer off losing pitcher Tommy Schlein (5-1)

Getting a team to peak at the end of the playoffs is the hope of every coach. For Broadneck volleyball coach Romonzo Beans, that hope became a reality last night at CCBC-Essex. The defending state-champion Bruins rolled over previously unbeaten Gaithersburg, 15-4, 15-8, 15-12, in the Class 4A state semifinals. It was the third straight year that the teams have met in the state semis, and Broadneck has taken the past two meetings. Last year, the Bruins needed five games to put away the Trojans.

The No. 4 volleyball team visited No. 5 last night, and No. 4 won in five games - just the way it's supposed to go. It's not quite that simple, however, when No. 4 is Arundel and No. 5 is Severna Park. It's the first time Arundel has beaten Severna Park in volleyball in at least 15 years. The Wildcats outlasted the host Falcons by 13-15, 15-11, 12-15, 15-8, 15-12. Arundel had not beaten the Falcons since Greg Legrand took over as Wildcats coach five years ago and never in the 13 years (1987-99)

Shara Greulich would like to tell you that she planned it all along, but she knows that sometimes it's better to be lucky than good. The senior midfielder's perfectly struck corner kick gave host and No. 4 South River a one-goal lead en route to a 2-0 win over sixth-ranked Arundel in a key Anne Arundel County league soccer game. Just 9:58 into the game, Greulich's shot went directly from her foot over Arundel goalie Catie Bukowski's outstretched arms and into the far side of the net. The goal seemed to take all of the pressure off the Seahawks (4-1, 3-0)

Defending Class 4A state champion Arundel survived Kyle Jefferson's resolute effort last night and escaped the wide-open spaces at C. Milton Wright High in Harford County with a first-round East Region baseball victory by 7-6 in nine innings. Junior catcher Jason Clemons dumped a one-out bloop single just inches in front of C. Milton Wright sophomore center fielder Jon Thurston in the top of the ninth to score Jesse Trout (3-for-5) with the winning run. Thurston had made two diving catches earlier in the game to deny at least three runs.

Jon Pavlis found the curveball he had been looking for all day in the seventh inning, and with it, the No. 2 Old Mill baseball team found victory over No. 4 Arundel, 5-4, yesterday. Down 4-0 after two innings, visiting Old Mill scored three runs in the third with Justin Dove's two-run single the key hit. Tyler Young, who, along with Dove, had two doubles among his three hits, doubled in the tying run in the sixth, and Dove scored the game-winner on a throwing error in the seventh. With one game left in the regular season, Old Mill (15-4, 12-3 Anne Arundel County)

The Severna Park girls basketball team hung around long enough to take advantage at the end last night against visiting Arundel, relying on limited resources to come away with a 54-52 upset win. Only four of the No. 11-ranked Falcons scored -- senior starters Kim Lawton, Natalie Hicks, Meg Miller and Lauren Bessire -- each taking turns coming up with big baskets to hold off the No. 4 Wildcats. The Falcons (10-3) remained perfect in Anne Arundel County play at 8-0, and took over sole possession of first place.

The Arundel Wildcats have been a good basketball team for quite a while now, always considered a state contender as well as playing the role of measuring stick for the rest of the county. Last night in Gambrills, an emerging Glen Burnie team went in looking to find out just how close it was. The answer? Inches. The No. 4-ranked Wildcats needed an unconventional seven-point play in the middle of the fourth quarter with junior guard Jill Marano providing the necessary spark off the bench in a 62-59 win over the No. 17 Gophers.

Call it The Bite, part deux.In a scene reminiscent of the 1997 Mike Tyson-Evander Holyfield bout, Old Mill heavyweight wrestler Dave Kim was disqualified for biting Arundel's Jeff Blachly, giving the Wildcats a 26-25 upset of the defending Anne Arundel County, region, and state dual champs.The third-ranked Patriots lost their first dual meet of the winter, slipping to 13-1. No. 4 Arundel (also 13-1) went home as the Class 3A-4A East dual-meet regional champions. Arundel, last year's open tournament champ, won the dual-meet state title two years ago. Old Mill won it last year.