Caught

MOM, WE REALLY appreciate your cheering at our lacrosse games but ," my younger son paused as he searched for the right words. "You might want to think about what you're saying before you actually shout it across the stands, the field and the parking lot."Puzzled, I tried to imagine what he was talking about. Granted, I am a somewhat verbal person, known for an occasional outburst of good-natured enthusiasm, but why would he want me to stifle that ebullience at a sporting match? Isn't that why they invented cheerleaders?"

Mike Kobus is a native Baltimorean, born and raised in Highlandtown. His interest in crabbing began when he was a child spending summers at a shore home in Pasadena. For the past 25 years, Mike has crabbed every nook and cranny of the Chesapeake Bay region, from the back bays of Ocean City to the C&D Canal. He has produced an hourlong video, "Crabbing the Chesapeake," that includes crab facts, crabbing tips and steaming instructions. For more information, visit his Web site at http: //www.

FISHERMEN through age 15 turned out at Walnut Pond in Manchester on June 19 for the annual Youth Fishing Derby sponsored by Manchester Parks Foundation.The Northern Maryland Bassmasters Association members measured and weighed each fish caught by the children before releasing them. Live bait and prizes were provided by Reisterstown Bait and Tackle.The first group, about 20 children up to age 9, fished for 90 minutes. Brian Snyder had the first lucky nibble, and caught the first fish and a prize.

Howard County police ran their second sting operation this year, targeting convicted drunken drivers who continue to get behind the wheel though their licenses have been revoked.By 5 p.m. yesterday, police had caught 16 illegal drivers as they left appointments with their probation monitors, said police spokesman Sgt. John Superson.About 165 people were sent notices to come to District Court for appointments between noon and 5: 45 p.m. yesterday. Police stopped those who got into their cars after their appointments and started to drive away.

1 Quarterback Tony Banks was successful with audibles and caught the Titans' cornerbacks in one-on-one coverage several times, resulting in big plays.2 The Ravens' receivers played their best game of the season as a unit, averaging 18.4 yards per catch.3 After failing to secure several games in the fourth quarter, the Ravens put the Titans away with 17 unanswered points in the final quarter.

Three years ago, while much of the country was enjoying a housing boom, homebuilders in Maryland were complaining about the sluggish state economy depressing new-home sales.There was plenty of inventory and land. Yet, builders and developers were cautious; shouldering additional land positions could be a fatal strategy. But by last year, everything snapped to life. The state's economy turned vibrant. Unemployment sagged. Consumer confidence soared. Mortgage rates dropped below 7 percent.First-time homebuyers were coming into the market in droves, allowing move-up buyers to purchase existing, as well as new, homes in numbers not seen since the mid-1980s.

OCEAN CITY -- Through the first four days of this year's White Marlin Open, 225 white marlin were caught, but none met the tournament's minimum weight of 65 pounds.Yesterday, nearly $800,000 hung in the balance as some 260 boats ran out to the offshore canyons."That's what one 65-pound white marlin would be worth across the board," Open co-chairman Andy Motsko said shortly after the scales opened at Harbor Island Marina. "But that's if only one white is weighed in."Or, if the same boat weighed in the top two white marlins of the week, which tournament officials said never had been done.

The guy who threw the ball was a third-stringer last season. So was the guy who caught it.Stoney Case's overtime strike to Justin Armour in Atlanta on Sunday was an enormous play for the Ravens, but it was about as unlikely as a game-winning pass could be.Imagine, two guys who were barely on the NFL radar a year ago throwing a knockout punch on the road against the reigning NFC champions."

Don Wilson, a 16-year-old from Fort Washington, set a state record for blue catfish when he caught a 39-pound, 4-ouncer Wednesday.The fish was caught on Swan Creek, a tributary of the Potomac River, about halfway between the mouth of the creek and Fort Washington Park.The fish was checked in at Garys Market in Marbury. Department of Natural Resources freshwater fisheries biologist Tim Groves met Wilson at Grays, certified the weight and measured its length at 41.63 inches and girth at 25.75 inches.

Top performances300-yard passersPlayer, Team ...................C-A ............Yds. ..............TDJohnson, Was. .............32-47 ............471 ..................2Warner, St.L. ...............24-35 ............334 ..................3Harbaugh, S.D. ...........23-36 ............325 ..................2100-yard rushersPlayer, Team ....................No. ............Yds. ...............TDSmith, Min. .......................16 ..............146 ..................1Bettis, Pit. ............

Leafing through his mail Monday, Jim Mutscheller assumed it was just another autograph request - until he examined the postmark. The letter was from the Czech Republic. In his best English, the writer asked Mutscheller, 79, to sign two bubble-gum cards of the Baltimore Colts tight end in his heyday. Mutscheller complied and sent the football cards back. "In all these years, this is the first time I ever got [fan mail] from a foreign country," he said. "I thought, 'Man, I'm really getting popular.

The void left by the sudden retirement of Ravens wide receiver Derrick Mason has been partially filled by another former Tennessee Titan. The club announced a one-year deal with Drew Bennett after the 30-year-old veteran completed a tryout with three other receivers Friday morning and passed a physical later that afternoon. "At this time of year, it's good to be able to pick up a player who has been very productive in the league, and that includes against our defense," Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome said in a statement.

Good and not-so Center fielder Adam Jones took away another home run at Camden Yards, this time in the fourth, when he jumped at the wall and caught Alex Rios' fly. But it wasn't a flawless day in the field for the club's lone All-Star. He caught Marco Scutaro's flyout in the seventh and held onto it as David Dellucci scored from third and Raul Chavez moved up to second. Afterward, Jones acknowledged that he had lost track of the number of outs. Umpire switcheroo The game was delayed for a few minutes in the bottom of the third when plate umpire Ron Kulpa left the game because of a slight concussion.

Until yesterday, I hadn't missed an intrasquad game in nearly a year, so I'm feeling like I let everyone down by taking a half day off to play golf. OK, you just caught me in my first lie. ( For more, go to baltimoresun.com/ schmuckblog)

The Ravens aren't expected to show any interest in wide receiver Terrell Owens, a team source said yesterday. Owens, 35, released by the Dallas Cowboys, isn't considered a good fit in the Ravens' "team-first" philosophy, the source added. It's likely the Ravens still have bitter feelings toward Owens. In March 2004, after a paperwork error prevented Owens from becoming an unrestricted free agent, the Ravens traded a second-round pick to the San Francisco 49ers for him. But Owens refused to report for a physical to complete the deal and got the NFL Players Association to file a grievance on his behalf in an attempt to go to the Philadelphia Eagles.

It's apparent that Ravens coach John Harbaugh won his battle with tight end Todd Heap. Harbaugh was unhappy with Heap's absences in training camp practices and told him so. He also told Heap he had to learn how to block better. Notice that Heap didn't get many passes thrown his way. Last week against the Houston Texans, he had his best game ever as a blocker. He also caught some passes. ( For more, go to baltimoresun.com/ravensinsider)

Anyone who wants to catch a crab in Maryland from the shore or a pier might have to pay to do so. The state is considering regulations that would require all recreational crabbers to get licenses next year, according to a spokeswoman for the Department of Natural Resources. The fee may be as low as $2 for casual dockside crabbers who net or trap no more than two dozen crabs in a day. Olivia Campbell, the DNR spokeswoman, said officials are considering the new rules so they can get a better understanding of how many crabs are caught by recreational crabbers.

I owned the original "Pocket Fisherman," one of Ron Popeil's early inventions advertised on television with gusto in the 1970s. It really did transform amateur fishing into a more spur-of-the-moment activity, especially for kids. No longer did I have to persuade my dad to put down his New York Times and spend an hour untangling the lines of the big poles stored in the basement. Now I could grab my own Pocket Fisherman and spend an hour untangling its line myself. But this was only because I kept it under my bed with my Fun Flowers molds, Colorforms and Click-Clacks.

Royals@Orioles 7:05 p.m. [MASN] This four-game series ends tonight. Around the ninth inning, the ball that Alex Gordon hit onto Eutaw Street on Tuesday night should finally stop rolling. Don't get caught in the stampede to retrieve it.

If a Utah high school javelin thrower had a little more loft on his state tournament-winning toss, this story would not be so amusing. Luckily, the throw by Provo High's Anthony Miles caught newspaper photographer Ryan McGeeney just below the knee, causing far less damage than if it had struck him in, say, the torso. McGeeney, a former Marine, works as an intern for the Ogden Standard-Examiner. The description of the injury is a pip. The javelin pierced McGeeney's leg, and an emergency medical technician cut off most of the javelin - sort of the way they cut off the end of an arrow sticking in a guy's shoulder in an old cowboy movie - but left about a foot and a half through McGeeney's leg. As far as McGeeney's condition is concerned, the javelin didn't hit any major blood vessels, ligaments or tendons and caught all skin and a little meat (I realize that's probably not standard medical terminology)