Championship Game

The following letter was sent to: Ken Zorbach, Director of Athletics, Harford County Public Schools and Christopher Hersl, Director of Athletics, Cecil County Public Schools. A copy was provided for publication. Recently, the Harford Tech girl's lacrosse team chose to concede the 2013 UCBAC Championship to C. Milton Wright and noted the disparity between the two divisions in choosing not to play the game. While reasonable people may disagree with Harford Tech's decision, I would suggest that it took some degree of courage and points at a basic flaw in the UCBAC setup.

The Havre de Grace Warriors U9 Lacrosse team was invited to the annual Overlea Classic Lacrosse tournament Saturday and Sunday. The Warriors' road to the championship went through Overlea, Edgemere, Sparrows Point and Parkville to get into the championship game against Kelly Post. The Warriors fell behind by three goals, twice, in the championship game, but battled back like true Warriors to take the lead. The Warriors were up by a single goal with 20 seconds left in the game when Kelly Post scored to tie the game 8-8 and send it into overtime.

The No. 3-ranked Spalding Cavaliers advanced to today's Maryland Independent Schools State Championship game with a 3-1 win over St. Mary's-Ryken in a semifinal yesterday at Randazzo Park.The Catholic League champion Cavaliers (24-7) will meet Pallotti at 5: 30 p.m. at Riverdale Baptist.Freshman pitcher Jessica Saunders allowed four hits and had eight strikeouts to get the win. The Cavs took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when senior shortstop Sabrina Ryals led off with a double, moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Julie Bahus and scored on a wild pitch.

Here is the fourth installment of a series that checks in with the seven Division I programs in the state to give a glimpse into the past and the future. Teams are scheduled to appear according to the chronological order in which their seasons ended. Thursday's visit was with Johns Hopkins. Friday's visit is with UMBC. REVIEW The good: The Retrievers (7-8 overall and 3-2 in the America East) qualified for the conference tournament for the 10th time in the 10 years the program has been a member of the league, but unlike the previous three seasons, the team advanced beyond the tournament semifinal round with a 15-13 comeback win against Hartford on May 2. UMBC fell to then-No.

SEATTLE -- He left the court 157 seconds into the game, his sprained right wrist dangling and obviously of no use, its limpness a perfect metaphor for UCLA's suddenly reduced chances.Unable to use Tyus Edney against Arkansas in the NCAA championship game last night, the Bruins needed to play a perfect game, or close to one, to win. They had to have a long list of things go right, no exceptions, or Arkansas would run them out of the Kingdome.It was a daunting proposition. Edney had carried the Bruins to the title game with a run of brilliant performances.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Tonight's NCAA women's basketball championship game is bound to make Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma a tad upset, and not just because his Huskies aren't participating.On Thursday, Auriemma delivered a brief but memorable tirade against the heft that the Southeastern Conference displays in this sport, saying that while the conference is the dominant league, there are other good teams.As if on cue, the SEC placed both finalists, Tennessee and Georgia, in tonight's contest, the second time in the 15 years of the NCAA women's tournament that the title-game participants were from the same conference.

A year ago as the professional indoor soccer championship game approached, Blast officials and fans were fuming. This year they were beaming. Simply put, a change of venue made a world of difference to everyone. Saturday night, when the Blast hosts the Rockford (Ill.) Rampage at 1st Mariner Arena for the National Indoor Soccer League title, the biggest event of the indoor season is finally where they believe it belongs - at the home of the top seed and regular-season champion. That was not the case in 2008 when the Major Indoor Soccer League held its finale in Milwaukee (which had won a bidding process)

Many times after a Ravens game, I have had discussions with my son in which he complained about how an official's call cost them the victory. My answer to him always is that, regardless of the correctness of the call, the Ravens were culpable: They shouldn't have put themselves in a position where one referee's decision could tilt the game in their opponents' favor. And that's sort of my position on whether teams other than Florida and Oklahoma should be considered for college football's national championship.

The Loyola lacrosse team barely made the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference playoffs, able to sneak in on the season's final day and then following up with an improbable run to Friday's championship game against undefeated and No. 1 Boys' Latin. But the No. 4 Dons saved their best and most astonishing feat for the title game. Overcoming a six-goal deficit early and then down two goals late in the fourth quarter, the Dons scored the game's last three goals - with senior attackman Devin McNamara providing the game-winner with 1:56 remaining - to come away with a stunning 10-9 upset win over the No. 1 Lakers in front of an announced 6,271 at Towson University's Johnny Unitas Stadium.

There's much more at stake than just a win when the No. 11 South River girls lacrosse team visits No. 10 Severna Park today. Not only will the 5:15 p.m. contest mark the regular-season finale for both teams, but the winner will advance to the county championship game Tuesday at South River to meet eighth-ranked Broadneck. The Bruins, who are 10-2 overall and 10-0 in the county, clinched a spot in the championship game by defeating both Severna Park and South River last week. With regard to tonight's showdown, the host Falcons have played for the title every year since 1996.

Et cetera Breakers blank Spirit, 2-0, in NWSL The Washington Spirit wrapped up a three-game road swing with a 3-0 loss to the host Boston Breakers on Saturday night in front of an announced 1,246 fans at a cold and rainy Dilboy Stadium in Somerville, Mass. From the opening of the match, Boston was on the offensive, dominating possession and generating more opportunities than the Spirit. U.S. international player Heather O'Reilly broke the deadlock in the 38th minute, receiving a deft flick-on from Lianne Sanderson and firing past Chantel Jones , who started her second straight game for the Spirit (1-4-3)

At the conclusion of Monday's NCAA tournament final between the Syracuse and Duke men's lacrosse teams, the winning squad will exult and exhale at the same time. Both programs have taken long and arduous paths to this stage of the postseason, but one victory can provide the relief each is seeking. The Blue Devils (15-5), who could capture their second national championship in four years, had perhaps the toughest road to the title game. The team opened the season with a 2-4 start - an inauspicious beginning capped by a 16-7 setback by Atlantic Coast Conference rival Maryland that was Duke's worst loss since a 17-7 drubbing to Syracuse in a NCAA tournament semifinal on May 23, 2009.

Back in April, the Glen Burnie softball team managed to bust out of its early-season funk to forge a path that would lead all the way to Saturday's Class 4A state final in College Park. Once there, however, the Gophers simply couldn't pull off another turnaround. Sherwood from Montgomery County scored three runs against Glen Burnie starting pitcher Ali Moos in the first inning, and the Gophers never recovered in a 5-0 loss at the University of Maryland. First baseman Megan McDonough had a double, triple and three RBIs for the Warriors, who extended their winning streak to 42 straight games in capturing their second straight state title.

North Carolina is headed to the NCAA women's lacrosse national championship game for the second time in program history after a dominant defensive performance sparked an 11-4 victory over two-time defending champion Northwestern in Friday night's semifinals. It was the second win this season for the Tar Heels (17-3) over the two-time defending national champions. Third-seeded North Carolina will meet the winner of Friday's late semifinal between No. 1 seed Maryland and fourth-seeded Syracuse.

He brought a swagger to lacrosse with his flashy play and endless array of acrobatic shots which, decades later, still rack up views on YouTube. How many different ways could Tom Marechek, onetime star of the Baltimore Bayhawks, score goals? Behind his back. Between his legs. Off the alley-oop pass. A crowd favorite was Marechek's "celebration goal," a maneuver in which he would fake a shot, then raise his arms in mock triumph. "When the goalie slumped and turned to pick the ball out of the net, that's when I dumped it in," he said.

BOYS LACROSSE (All games at UMBC) CLASS 2A-1A NO. 15 FALLSTON (15-4) VS. PATTERSON MILL (10-9) When: Tuesday, 6 p.m. Outlook:  The Cougars will look to defend last year's championship in an All-Harford County final.  During the regular season, Fallston earned a 9-5 win over the Huskies in a game that was suspended because of inclement weather in late April. Tied at four late in the first half when play was halted, the Cougars dominated when play resumed to win. Kyle D'Onofrio (66 goals, 24 assists)

If, according to veteran coach Terry Leverett, his Southwestern Sabers had the mind-set of the players who wear the gold and maroon at Dunbar, he would be a happy man today, knowing his team took a giant step toward playing in the Baltimore City championship game. Instead, Leverett's No. 4 Sabers lost, 75-67, at No. 3 Dunbar last night, as the Poets took a one-game lead in Division II and all but clinched a berth in the Feb. 23 city title game. Dunbar (13-2) expects to defend its city crown at home, likely against No. 2 Walbrook, which is running away with Division I. Led by Craig Singletary's game-high 22 points, the Poets had five players in double figures, and 6-foot-4 Dilano Johnson dominated the boards with a game-high 16 rebounds.

Everything seems to have fallen conveniently into place for the Blast during the Major Indoor Soccer League's postseason tournament. As the third seed, the Blast faced the only playoff team with a losing record in the quarterfinals and dispatched the expansion New Jersey Ironmen in two straight, the second a grind-it-out game on the road. It encountered a stiffer assignment against Milwaukee in the semifinals but survived a thrilling and rugged game in Wisconsin, 14-13, when the Wave had to play without two of its stars, Marcio Leite (injury)

D-III college softball Gravdahl's homer helps Salisbury stay alive in Series Salisbury senior catcher Michelle Gravdahl (Long Reach) hit her 11th home run of the season in an elimination game in the NCAA Division III softball championship against Anderson (Ind.) University to eliminate the Ravens and stay alive in the World Series with a 2-0 win in Eau Claire, Wis. Gravdahl's homer to left with one out in the bottom of the first inning put Salisbury ahead, and the Sea Gulls added a run in the fifth.