Broadneck

With the new open-playoff format this year in high school soccer, every team will have an automatic bid to the postseason. For some coaches, that has drained every bit of importance from the regular season.For Chesapeake coach Earl Eckhardt, however, dreams of an Anne Arundel County championship provide all the incentive he needs.Last night at Broadneck, his Cougars gave their coach an indication they share that dream.Trailing 3-2, midfielder Keith Hare scored with 40 seconds left in regulation to tie the game, then teammate Ryan Frommelt scored 2:50 into the first sudden-death overtime to give No. 10 Chesapeake a stunning 4-3 win over the 13th-ranked Bruins.

With his team having just lost a marathon second game in the regional volleyball finals, evening the match at 1-1, Severna Park coach TimDunbar gathered his players and issued a little reminder."

A recent loss to Severna Park has become nothing more than a bump in the road for No. 5 Glen Burnie.The Gophers have won three straight matches since then, including yesterday's 19-17, 15-10, 15-6 sweep of No. 3 Broadneck. And they are steering toward another showdown with the Falcons on Nov. 1 at Arundel, this time for the county championship."This was exciting volleyball," said Glen Burnie coach Juanita Milani, whose team still must face Annapolis and No. 14 Chesapeake. "This is the level of play we wanted to see all year.

Most high school football teams feel pretty confident about scoring once they move into the red zone. At Broadneck, the Bruins only have to reach the Greene zone. With All-Metro kicker Adam Greene, the Bruins have a chance to score every time they cross midfield. Last season as a junior, he kicked an Anne Arundel County record 55-yard field goal - just shy of the state record of 59 set by Havre de Grace's Shane West in 2003. Greene, who has hit 31 of his last 32 extra points and has put 16 of 17 kickoffs in the end zone this fall, also hit a 50-yard field goal last season.

After losing by a run to Glen Burnie on Wednesday, No. 11 C. Milton Wright's softball team bounced back with a 14-hit performance to upset host and No. 6 Broadneck, 6-3, Thursday. The Mustangs (1-1) lost their season opener, 2-1, to the unranked Gophers. Winner Brittany Stein gave up five hits in five innings. C. Milton Wright scored in each of the first four innings. Caroline Weimer hit an RBI double and scored a run in the first inning. The Mustangs' defense limited Broadneck to one run in the sixth before the Bruins finished with a two-run rally in the seventh.

Old Mill's football players came into their home opener Friday night with a chip on their collective shoulder. They wanted to prove it's time to talk about current Patriots such as Marcus Hicks, Jalen Jones and Carl Chance instead of dwelling on the talent they lost from last year's Class 4A state championship team. Against Anne Arundel County foe Broadneck, the host Patriots proved they could pick up right where the state title team left off despite graduating 16 starters, including running back Rob Chesson and his state-record 49 touchdowns.

Broadneck senior Alli Graf just shrugs her shoulders when asked where she likes to play on the volleyball court. "Anywhere," she says. "Whatever works. " Well, "whatever works" worked well Tuesday night as the senior led No. 10 Broadneck to a 25-19, 24-26, 25-19, 25-19 victory over second-ranked Centennial in the season opener for both teams. Graf is playing the defensive specialist role after injuring her shoulder in a beach volleyball game this summer. Though she prefers to play outside hitter, Graf's leadership is key to the Bruins' success.

The coaches and players for No. 12 Broadneck and Meade didn't bother with updates from another key game to get a better idea if they would advance to postseason play following their Anne Arundel matchup Friday night. Instead, they focused on the most direct route: win and earn a playoff berth. Visiting Meade held the ball more than twice as long as Broadneck, forced six turnovers and came away with a methodical 14-0 upset victory to clinch a playoff spot for the first time since 2001.

Gov. William Donald Schaefer has proclaimed today through Saturday as Jaycee Week, commending the Broadneck Peninsula Jaycees for contributing to the community's well-being, said Pamela A. Hull, publicity relations director for the Broadneck Jaycees.They have been involved in projects such as CPR training, Homelessness Assistance, "Just say No" clubs and various community fund-raisers. The governor urged peninsula citizens to take note of the chapter's contributions and support future chapter efforts.

Broadneck's balance, especially among its lower weights, is going to be trouble for a lot of wrestling teams this year. Just ask No. 14 Arundel's Isaac Haertel. "We thought we'd get a win at some point before I got out there," said Haertel, a 152-pound sophomore, after a 43-18 loss to Broadneck. "But the way their little guys came out really surprised us. They're a handful." Few expected the sixth-ranked Bruins (3-0), who beat Annapolis (1-2), 56-12, in last night's other tri-match, to soundly thrash Arundel (2-1)