Easterly

ROCKVILLE -- The 3-meter springboard competition at the HTH Classic at the Montgomery Aquatic Center ended with two surprise winners.In a field that contained an Olympic medalist and a current NCAA champion, a recent high school graduate dominated the women's side, and a gold medalist, supposedly using the post-Olympic year as a rest, came back to capture the men's title.By scoring in the high 50s in three of her final four dives, Doris Glen Easterly easily defeated her closest competitor, NCAA 3-meter champion Eileen Richetelli of Stanford, by nearly 20 points.

A moment as mysterious as the sacred idea it celebrates - the crucified Christ's decent into Hades before his resurrection - arrived Saturday morning at St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church in a cascade of rose petals and a cacophony of bells, hands drumming on wood pews and a church elder chanting in his ancestral tongue. It was a rich, even raucous moment affirming belief in Christ's conquest of evil and heralding the arrival of the church's most significant holiday. This year, the Eastern Orthodox Church - the faith of an estimated 300 million people from the United States through Eastern Europe and the Middle East - celebrates Easter a month after the Western Christian observance, capping 40 days of fasting and a week of services marking different stages of the paschal narrative.

James Easterly, the huge lineman who played a big role in two straight state championship football seasons at Wilde Lake, has announced he will attend Georgia Tech on a full football scholarship.The 6-foot-6, 300-pound Easterly, who had never played organized football until transferring to Wilde Lake from Oxon Hill High School in Prince George's County two years ago, plans to sign a letter of intent Wednesday.Easterly decided on Georgia Tech -- which recruited him to play defensive tackle -- after strongly considering Syracuse and Virginia Tech.

In case you forgot it's April Fools day, Google is there to remind you. Today's top " cold searches " will return you to the 90's with  Y2K , Pogs hologram slammers , Macarena step-by-step and prom scrunchies making you want to jump jumping like a mac daddy. In other trends this fine, slap-happy morning, Game of Thrones returns to its legion of fans after a ten month hiatus, Pope Francis calls for peace on Easter and Louisville fans recover from witnessing guard Kevin Ware break his leg on live TV. *shutter* Luckily, Google is displaying an "Image Not Available" icon for that last search result.

James Easterly might not qualify as a larger-than-life figure yet. But, since he and Wilde Lake football coach Doug DuVall met two summers ago, the 6-foot-5, 290-pound Easterly has occupied more than a hugechunk of ground on the line of scrimmage.He owns places in DuVall's heart and the coach's personal football history book."He (Easterly) is one of the two or three best linemen ever to come out of the county," DuVall says. "He's a real sincere, honest kid,a decent person, a hard-worker. He's the consummate lineman, a natural offensive lineman.

Coach: Doug DuVall, 19th year1990 record: 13-0.Returnees: Seniors Phil White (QB), Damon Hamlin (RB/S), Ira Crawley (WR), Steve Alleyne (WR), Pat Brown (FL), James Easterly (T/DT), Tony Farace (G/DT), Blaize Duggan (G/DT), Kevin Norris (T), Brent Guyton (LB), Brian Schmidt (DT), Mike Scott (DT), Brandon Easterling (G), Eric Swayze (FL/LB).Newcomers to watch: Seniors Andre Martin (FL), Shane Allen (DE), George Bradford (S), Cedric Benning (DL); juniors Craig Butler (FL), Nate Casella (LB/DE)

The National Weather Service is calling for Friday to be sunny in the Baltimore area, with a high near 56 degrees and winds becoming westerly between 5 and 8 miles per hour. Friday night is expected to be clear, with a low around 38 and north winds of 6 to 8 miles per hour. A small craft advisory is in effect Friday night for portions of the tidal Potomac River and the Maryland Chesapeake Bay. Saturday is expected to be sunny, with a high near 50 and north winds around 6 miles per hour becoming easterly.

The Maryland roster announced yesterday for the July 25 Big 33 Football Classic in Hershey, Pa., includes six players who were members of The Sun's All-Metro football team last fall, four of them members of Class 1A state champion Wilde Lake.Heading the list is Wilde Lake linebacker Brent Guyton, The Sun's Defensive Player of the Year. Other All-Metro selections are Wilde Lake quarterback Phil White, Wilde Lake defensive back Andre Martin, Wilde Lake offensive lineman James Easterly, Overlea tight end Bernard Hopkins and North County linebacker Anthony Walker.

Wilde Lake football coach Doug DuVall said something about his team three months ago that, in hindsight, served as a preview for an unforgettable season.Minutes after the Wildecats had turned back a stubborn, physical South Carroll team with a three-touchdown, fourth-quarter rally to win, 28-7, DuVall talked about a special chemistry he sensed among his players."I can see it in their eyes. These kids are scared to lose, scared to not play well," DuVall said. "It shows in the way they listen to us. When we walk into the locker room and have something to say, it gets so quiet you can hear a pin drop.

Atholton running back Matt Winger had experienced both his school's first playoff berth in 20 years and its initial playoff win primarily because of his school-record rushing totals. Last night, Winger experienced another first in a Class 2A South final loss to visiting defending state champion Potomac: A zero on his team's side of the scoreboard. Winger was held to a season-low 26 yards in a 12-0 shutout defeat. And as a defensive back, neither he nor a Raiders defense that included Jeff Easterly (one sack)

The National Weather Service is projecting a good chance of some Easter showers on Sunday. Rain is forecast for much of the greater Baltimore area, with highs in the mid-50s, and winds at 5 to 10 mph in most areas, though perhaps gusting to 15 mph. The chance of some rain is 90 percent, according to the NWS. Tonight will be mostly cloudy, with lows in the lower 40s.  

Worshipers at a West Baltimore church donated more than 1,000 pieces of clothing to a prison re-entry program as part of their Easter Sunday services. Members of the Empowerment Temple Church were asked to forgo buying new outfits for Easter in favor of donating new and gently used clothing to be distributed among men and women released from prison and looking to re-enter the workplace. "We want to help our brothers and sisters who have been newly released make a fresh start and put their best foot forward," said the Rev. Jamal H. Bryant, founder and senior pastor of Empowerment Temple.

Jonylah Watkins died on a Tuesday. She was with her father, who was sitting in a minivan in Chicago on the night of March 11 when someone opened fire. Doctors worked 17 hours trying to repair what a bullet had done to her body, but to no avail. She died the next morning. Her funeral was about two weeks ago. She was 6 months old. Antonio Santiago was 7 months older when his mother put him in a stroller and took him for a walk in their Brunswick, Ga., neighborhood. Sherry West says they were accosted by two teenagers demanding money.

An early-morning fire on Saturday destroyed a maintenance building on the property of St. Joseph Church in Fullerton, according to church and county fire officials. But church officials said the parish's celebration of Easter services on Sunday would not be affected by the incident. Church officials, in a statement on the church website, said the blaze was the result of arson, though county fire officials have not given an official cause. Emergency units were dispatched at 3:25 a.m. and arrived at the church in the 8400 block of Bel Air Road about 3:30 a.m. to find the building in flames, said Lt. Julia Dillard, a county fire spokeswoman.

Mount St. Joseph lacrosse coach Dave Slafkosky wasn't looking for cupcakes for his team's Easter Lax Day. Tough challenges, he thought, could only help his young squad heading into the core of its Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference schedule. The No. 13 Gaels found more than they could handle in their opener Saturday against Westminster. The Owls, who lost to South River in the Class 4A-3A state final last season, took 14 of the game's first 15 shots, getting four goals each from midfielder C.J. Nichols and attackman Ryan Drenner in a 15-7 win. "Westminster ran by us and played tougher than us in every aspect," Slafkosky said.

From many little yellow peeps, one artistic family saw a giant yellow bird. At the sixth annual "Peep Show" in downtown Westminster, the massive 3,810-marshmallow-strong Big Bird drew the biggest oohs and ahhs among the young kids and older fans who filled the Carroll County Arts Council building on Main Street Saturday, all there to take in a host of candy-inspired creations. The "Long Live Sesame Peep" display, complete with a trash-canned Oscar the Grouch, was created by Robert Mondor and his family - wife Ann, son Sean, 10, and daughter Lauren, 8, all of Westminster - and was just one of many pop-culture-inspired displays at the Easter event, which has become a major fundraiser for the council each year.

The signing period for high school seniors who intend to play football at Division I schools begins tomorrow, presenting a bit of a dilemma for Overlea two-sport standout Bernard Hopkins.Hopkins, 6 feet 6, 225 pounds, is considered the area's top prospect at tight end. He was an All-Metro selection last fall for the Falcons, who went 11-1 and finished fourth in The Baltimore Sun's top 20.But Hopkins also is a fast-improving basketball player who has impressed scouts with his quickness, versatility and scoring ability.

On Aug, 24, 2011, the earthquake that jolted the East Coast from Georgia to Quebec rattled through the bricks, plaster and paint of one of Baltimore's architectural jewels, the Basilica of the Assumption, sending nearly 1,000 linear feet of cracks through its ceilings and walls. On Sunday, as Christians worldwide commemorate the resurrection of Christ on Easter, the 207-year-old cathedral, too, will enjoy a rebirth. Construction workers have put the finishing touches on a seven-month, $3 million restoration job, and Sunday morning's Mass will mark the formal reopening.

A warm-up to seasonable early spring weather is in the forecast for this weekend, but rain could arrive for any egg hunts and picnics scheduled for Easter Sunday. Saturday is forecast to be a nice day to be outside, with highs around 60, calm winds and clear, sunny skies. Temperatures could stay as mild for Easter Sunday, as well, but any Easter egg hunts set for around midday or later could be wet. A 60 percent chance of showers is forecast from around noon into the evening, according to the National Weather Service.