Bollinger

Carroll County's business leaders left their stuffy offices yesterday for the wide-open spaces of some of the county's largest farms. They fed calves, petted foals and counted how many piglets one sow could suckle. When they returned to the Carroll County Agriculture Center to wash up for a home-style fried chicken lunch, they all had tales to tell. "I had cows licking my fingers," said Kathy Menasche, director of continuing education at Carroll Community College. "I'll trade you some horse spit," said Jim Steele, manager of Shamrock Farms in Woodbine and vice president of the Carroll County Farm Bureau.

By all rights, it should've been a blowout. Facing Central Maryland Conference power Linganore last night, the host Westminster girls committed 35 turnovers and were out-rebounded on the offensive end 19-1. Even so, it took a 10-0 Lancers run over the final 3:36 to send the Owls to a 47-36 loss last night in their final regular-season basketball game. "You can't fault the hustle. I think we just kind of ran out of gas a little bit toward the end," Westminster coach Sue Conklin said. "It was almost as if we had worked so hard to get back into it, then we took a breath and they took [advantage]

Board of Education to meet Wednesday; agenda on Web site The Carroll County Board of Education will hold its monthly meeting at 5 p.m. Wednesday in Room 007 of the board offices, 125 N. Court St., Westminster. The regular meeting agenda will be posted on the school system's Web site at www.carr.org/ccps. The meeting will be broadcast live on CETV, Channel 21 on Adelphia cable television. It will be rebroadcast at 8 p.m. Thursday and Feb. 20; at 9 a.m. Saturday ; and 8 p.m. Feb. 16. Information: 410-751-3020.

Westminster forward/center Emily Bollinger stood near her team's bench and tried to explain how it fell apart in the fourth quarter last night at South Carroll. The Owls couldn't find good shots, kept making turnovers and saw the game fall away from them. "It was a lot to deal with [today]," Bollinger said quietly. This was a long day for the Westminster girls. It began with coach Dick Ebersole's surprise resignation, and a few hours later, the Owls had to play South Carroll. Westminster hung in for a while but ran out of gas in the fourth quarter as the Cavaliers pulled away for a 57-47 victory in a Carroll County game.

Century's girls basketball team put itself in an unusual position last night for a first-year team - moving one step from winning at least a part of the Carroll County championship. Katlyn Williard scored a team-high 17 points as Century held off a furious late Westminster rally for a 43-40 victory over the host Owls. If the Knights win their final county game next Friday against Liberty, they'll gain at least a share of the championship - something Westminster would have done with a win in this game.

Amid the backdrop of TV cameras, dozens of curious onlookers and a section of hardcore fans eager to stand and applaud at every opportunity, the No. 19 Westminster girls basketball team took the court last night for the first time since nine of its 12 players were ruled ineligible for the season, and delivered a resounding message to the rest of Carroll County. We're not done yet. Pairing their three returning players with five JV call-ups, the Owls at times looked as dominating as ever, racing to a commanding lead on their way to a 67-40 victory over host Liberty.

With three returning first-team All-County players, the Westminster girls basketball team is out to prove that it can elevate its play this season. That ascension began in earnest last night. The Owls used their inside height advantage to control the tempo and the game against visiting Urbana, a Class 3A state semifinalist last season, emerging from a difficult early-season test with a 65-53 victory. "This was a game that was circled on our calendar," said Westminster coach Dick Ebersole, whose team lost to Glen Burnie in the 4A East semifinals last season.

In a game in which Westminster controlled the boards, host Glen Burnie controlled the basket. Despite being out-rebounded 52-35 and giving up 33 offensive rebounds, the Gophers used 49 percent shooting to bump the Owls, 70-63, last night in the Class 4A East Regional girls basketball quarterfinals. Using their superior athletic ability, the smaller, quicker Gophers, led by senior Essence Greer (26 points), consistently broke Westminster's press and worked the ball for high-percentage shots.

Sophomore Emily Bollinger missed Westminster's first game against Carroll County rival Liberty with a sprained foot. In last night's rematch, the 6-foot-1 forward returned to give the Owls a huge leg up. Bollinger produced 16 points and 13 rebounds to go along with 15 points and 12 rebounds from Jennifer Walkling, as Westminster avenged an earlier loss in cruising to a 56-30 victory over the much shorter Lions. "It was revenge. Our whole attitude was different," said Bollinger, a front-runner for county Player of the Year.

BOYS Tyler Smith Douglass, basketball The 6-foot-2 senior guard continues to be a catalyst for the Ducks. At the Mayor's Academy tournament over the weekend at the Coppin Center, Smith registered 10 points, three rebounds and three steals in a 48-47 win over Martin Luther King of Philadelphia and 28 points, six assists, four rebounds, and two steals in a 68-64 victory over Overbrook of Philadelphia. Smith also posted 19 points, five assists, four steals and three rebounds against No. 8 Lake Clifton when the game was suspended in the third quarter.