Broadneck

The No.1 Broadneck Bruins, fast, aggressive and quick, set the tone early Thursday night, swinging strong sticks that kept No. 3 Severna Park scrambling. The end result was a 3-0 victory for the Bruins. The three goals were the most allowed in a game by the Falcons in three years. "Severna Park is a fantastic team and played an excellent game," said Broadneck coach Jen Parks, whose Bruins remain undefeated at 8-0. "We were a little nervous at the start, but I just told my players to just go play their game.

The Broadneck boys lacrosse team played almost flawlessly Friday night against visiting Arundel by controlling the majority of loose balls, shutting down the Wildcats' offense with crunching checks and capitalizing on its opportunities on the attack. The Bruins are looking to make a deep run in the playoffs with seven returning seniors, and their poise and some big plays by underclassmen were the difference in the 10-4 victory. Sophomore Mark Brashears led Broadneck with four goals, and senior goalie Houston Zemanski came up big with nine saves when Arundel managed to find an opening in Broadneck's aggressive defense.

On the volleyball court, Broadneck senior Bridgette Smith has seen just about everything. That turned out to be a good thing for the fourth-ranked Bruins last night. Smith's nine digs and 6-for-8 serving performance were impressive enough, but her calming influence on the court pulled the host Bruins out of a funk and led to a 25-22, 25-19, 14-25, 27-25 win over rival and No. 7 Severna Park (6-1, 3-1) in a key Anne Arundel County league game. Broadneck (5-0, 4-0) took the 2-0 lead in games but then had to fight off a furious rally by the Falcons to put the match away.

Player of the Year Hope Battista South River Battista's skill and leadership on defense were main reasons why the Seahawks went 14-0 in the regular season and allowed just six goals. Relentless in the backfield, the senior made smart decisions and showed the poise and patience required of a top-notch defender. She led the Seahawks to the Class 4A East regional final, in which they had a strong showing before falling to Severna Park in a shootout. Battista scored a goal in the shootout - one of seven goals she scored this season, mostly on penalty corners.

Severna Park's No. 1 field hockey team loses so rarely that even a 1-0 setback in a 25-minute preseason scrimmage sticks with the Falcons. Yesterday, they called upon that loss to Bethesda-Chevy Chase at Pocomoke's playday to fuel a 6-0 victory over the Barons when it counted - at Roland Park's annual Sally E. Nyborg Invitational. Not far away in Annapolis, No. 5 Broadneck and Chesapeake-AA scored similarly big victories over No. 7 Archbishop Spalding and St. Mary's, as public schools ruled the day at the St. Mary's Tournament.

Two weeks ago, Broadneck coach Jeff Herrick predicted that the county football league would have more parity than at any other time he could remember. "The county looks to me like it's extremely competitive for the first time in a really long time," said Herrick, who is in his 19th season, after his Bruins came from behind to knock off Old Mill, 31-28. Herrick's assessment is proving accurate. Last weekend's results included two road upsets. Northeast (1-2), 1-9 last season, got its first win of the year and handed Southern (2-1)

One thing's for sure in the Anne Arundel County girls lacrosse championship: When Severna Park and Broadneck play, it will be a nailbiter. Before last night, the two had met in four of the past five title games. The biggest gap was three goals. The closest game went to double overtime. The other two were decided by one goal each. Last night's game fit the usual mold to perfection. In their 12-8 victory, the No. 3 Falcons came from behind early. The game was within three goals until the final 12 minutes, when Severna Park completed a five- goal run to pull ahead 11-5.

As the announcement came declaring No. 5 Broadneck the Anne Arundel County softball champion last night at Randazzo Park, there was a brief hesitation before four teammates scurried up to collect the plaque. It was unfamiliar territory for the Bruins, who were making their first championship game appearance. But their poised play in coming away with a 2-1 win over No. 3 Chesapeake looked nothing like a first-time group's. Broadneck improved to 17-2 and the Cougars fell to 18-3 as the teams now prepare for the Class 4A East region playoffs.

Player of the Year Julie Gardner Severna Park A multitalented midfielder, the junior brought a little bit of everything to the state 4A-3A state champions. Gardner showed off slick moves in the arc and finished with 50 goals, including four in the Class 4A-3A state title game, a 13-9 win over Dulaney. Small but slippery, Gardner also proved key on controlling the draw and dished out 15 assists. A prolific scorer against the best teams, Gardner had five goals in the Anne Arundel County championship game victory over Broadneck and three more in the regional final over the defending champion Bruins.

The Annapolis boys and Old Mill girls both earned top seeds in the regional basketball playoffs that are set to start this weekend. Ninth-ranked Annapolis (18-4) gained the No. 1 seed in Class 3A East over River Hill by virtue of a coin flip, while No. 12 Old Mill (19-3) easily captured the top spot in Class 4A East. As No. 1 seeds, both teams earn first-round byes and will have home-court advantage throughout the regionals. The seventh-ranked Broadneck boys (21-2) lost a coin toss with Thomas Stone (20-2)

Guy Skord scored the game-winner with 20 minutes left to lift visiting No. 8 Broadneck over No. 9 South River, 2-1, Thursday in a Class 4A East regional semifinal. The Bruins (13-2-1) advance to Tuesday's regional final, where they will host Leonardtown. Josh Schwartz gave Broadneck a 1-0 lead five minutes into the game, which held up in the first half. Anase N'Gadi knotted the score, 1-1, at the 50th minute of the second half for the Seahawks (15-2). Atholton 3, Centennial 1: : Christian Villorroel scored twice to power the host Raiders (9-5)

South River dominated most opponents this season and had trailed in only two of its first 16 games heading into Tuesday's Class 4A East semifinal against visiting Broadneck. But the Seahawks didn't get rattled when they fell behind early. In fact, they played better. Brooke Griffin tied the score with an early second-half goal, and Kaitlin Maloy recorded the winner with 14:25 left to give No. 5 South River a 2-1 victory over No. 2 Broadneck. South River (16-1) will host No. 6 Severna Park on Thursday in the regional title game.

South River senior midfielder Brooke Griffin wasted little time Thursday night letting the No. 1 Broadneck Bruins' field hockey team know their days of being undefeated were numbered. Just six minutes into the match, with No. 5 South River on a rare corner, Griffin took a pass from Shannon Denno and sent the ball through a thicket of legs and into the Bruins' goal. The goal turned out to be the game-winner as South River (9-1) ended the Bruins' winning streak and sent the area's No. 1 team to its first loss, 1-0. "It's awesome to beat them," Griffin said.

The No.1 Broadneck Bruins, fast, aggressive and quick, set the tone early Thursday night, swinging strong sticks that kept No. 3 Severna Park scrambling. The end result was a 3-0 victory for the Bruins. The three goals were the most allowed in a game by the Falcons in three years. "Severna Park is a fantastic team and played an excellent game," said Broadneck coach Jen Parks, whose Bruins remain undefeated at 8-0. "We were a little nervous at the start, but I just told my players to just go play their game.

FIELD HOCKEY No. 1 Broadneck at No. 3 Severna Park WHEN: Tonight, 7 OUTLOOK: This week, the 6-0 Bruins captured the No. 1 spot in The Baltimore Sun's poll. In tonight's meeting, the Falcons (4-1), led by G Ashley Dalisera and F Hannah Balleza, hope to reclaim the reputation as the county's glamour team and move up the rankings. BOYS SOCCER No. 2 Severna Park at No. 4 Broadneck WHEN: Friday, 7 p.m. OUTLOOK: The Bruins (5-1-1) like to get to the ball first and take what a defense permits.

In recent years, the Broadneck-Chesapeake-Anne Arundel boys soccer rivalry has showcased tight marking, with an emphasis on taking advantage of rare opportunities on offense. One goal usually makes the difference. That was the case Tuesday at Chesapeake, where the No. 4 Bruins got a goal from junior Ryan Bugarin midway through the first half and protected the lead with an organized effort in back to come away with a 1-0 win over the No. 15 Cougars. Broadneck improved to 3-1-1 overall and 2-0 in Anne Arundel County, while the Cougars fell to 2-2 overall and 1-1 in league play.

In the first half of Thursday night's game against visiting Broadneck, third-ranked Arundel's high-flying offense struggled with penalties and an interception inside the red zone that killed a 10-play drive. The Wildcats' defense, however, was dominant all night, finishing with five takeaways, and set the tone for a 28-6 victory. The Wildcats improved to 3-0 in Anne Arundel County and appear to have all the pieces to make a deep playoff run. "We need to stop the penalties," Arundel coach Chuck Markiewicz said.

3 Metro-area schools that won state titles last year (Broadneck, Class 4A; Centennial, Class 3A; Liberty, Class 2A). 5 State titles won by both No. 2 Broadneck and No. 1 Centennial this decade, more than any other school in Maryland. 6 Howard County schools in the preseason poll.

Most of Anne Arundel County's 74,000 students returned to classes Monday and were greeted by a new teacher in a different classroom. Except for one second-grade class. Sherryl Barton, who taught first grade last year at Broadneck Elementary School in Arnold, has graduated with her class and Monday began teaching the same class of children as second-graders, in a process called "looping." "It takes away the whole 'getting-to-know-you' period,' " said Barton, who has taught first, second, and third grades for 16 years, a decade of that at Broadneck.

SOFTBALL Player of the Year Kourtney Salvarola Broadneck, pitcher Also the Metro Player of the Year, the junior standout took her game and the No. 1 Bruins (20-0) to the next level by leading them to the Class 4A state championship. Salvarola, a first-team All-Metro selection her first two seasons as well, went 12-0 with a 0.10 ERA and 88 strikeouts this season, which was capped with a 5-2 win over North Carroll to bring home the program's first state crown. She was equally dominant at the plate, batting .619 with seven home runs, six triples, 28 RBIs and 30 runs.