Doves

Western's girls soccer team won its sixth straight Baltimore City championship with an 8-0 record against league foes.Since 1993, the Doves have won five titles outright, including the last three, and shared one with Patterson. The only time they did not win was the first year of city soccer, 1992, when City took the crown.This year, the Doves clinched the title with a 7-1 win over Southern last week and polished off the perfect league record by beating Patterson, 4-0, on Monday.Freshman striker Melinda McLaughlin scored three goals against Patterson, boosting her to the top of the Doves scoring chart.

The short-cropped cornfield spread before me was topped with a fresh layer of snow, and a cold wind carried away any warmth that the sun may have summoned. I huddled near a fence corner, depending on the bare limbs of a wild thicket for cover.Suddenly, a pair of doves sliced across the field. They were high, and I wished that my skeetchoked, 12-gauge, side-by-side shotgun had a little more choke. I crouched a little lower as the birds banked sharply and barreled straight for my corner of the field.

At the conclusion of last season's Class 4A state championship game, the Western players hung their heads and wept as the taunting chant of "overrated" rang throughout the arena.The memory of that loss lingered in the minds of the Doves.Yesterday, however, there were no taunts or tears for Western.Just a title.Junior forward Chanel Wright scored 30 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead second-ranked Western to a 61-48 victory over Montgomery County's Sherwood in the Class 4A state final at UMBC.

Spectators packed Lake Clifton's gymnasium yesterday anticipating a close contest between the area's top two teams.On the same court 10 months ago, the Lakers' upset bid against Western went down to the final second before falling a point short.There was no drama this time.All-America forward Chanel Wright scored 19 points and All-Metro guard Kimberly Smith added 14, as Western tightened its hold on the area's No. 1 ranking with a 69-41 rout of No. 2 Lake Clifton in a City-Wide 4A League game.

Western coach Tiffany Silver stressed one thing at halftime in yesterday's game against Riverdale Baptist: cutting down on turnovers. Still the turnovers continued to hinder the No. 2 Doves as they gave the ball away 30 times - 15 in each half - in a 55-45 loss to The Washington Post's No. 1 girls team yesterday at the 13th annual Basketball Academy at Morgan State's Hill Field House. "We've got to take care of the ball," Silver said. "We cut the lead from 16 to seven and then, four straight turnovers.

Northwestern was just in too big a hurry yesterday to get past No. 14 Western.The visiting Wildcats rushed everything, spotted the Doves a 14-point lead and trailed by 21 at the end of the first quarter. Western rode that early tide to a 74-37 victory.Going into yesterday's game, the Doves (16-3) and the Wildcats (13-3) were the only two teams unbeaten against city competition, but the game certainly did not live up to its potential."We were too anxious," said Wildcats senior Keisha Todd, who led all scorers with 18 points.

You could feel the intensity in Western's sold-out gym last night as the Doves took on rival City in a battle of Baltimore City teams who were unbeaten in the division. Instead of turning it up a notch, Western turned the intensity down in the second half, and the result was a 54-44 win in a Baltimore City league game. Western (18-3, 12-0) was the more athletic team all night, but the Doves were their own worst enemies in the first half. After numerous missed layups and poor rebounding led to an 18-17 halftime deficit, Western coach Tiffany Silver told her team to settle down during the break.

Western's leading scorer, Latia Few, hit only one basket in last night's state Class 4A semifinal at UMBC, but it was the biggest shot of the game.With 11 seconds left, Few drove for a layup to seal the No. 5 Doves' 47-42 victory over Frederick."

Two-time defending city champion Western had a message for upstart Dunbar yesterday -- "Not yet."The No. 12 Poets went into No. 10 Western's gym looking for an upset, but the poise of the Doves' senior-laden squad overcame the Poets' youthful enthusiasm. The Doves (9-3) broke away in the third quarter en route to a 68-53 victory."With the four seniors that play for them and the youth we have, that makes a difference," said Dunbar coach Wardell Selby, who starts two freshmen. "They were home and they have a big tradition here.

Jannah Tucker and Tenicia Spence each scored 13 points to lead four Doves in double figures as the No. 8 Western basketball team beat host Towson, 81-21, in the opening round of the Class 3A North regional playoffs Friday. The Doves' defense limited the Generals to nine field goals. Western plays the Parkville-North Harford winner in Tuesday's quarterfinals. Severna Park 48, Great Mills 45: Maddi Keating and Christina Choi each had 11 points to lead the visiting Falcons (9-11)