Falcons

Draw possession and their own patient offense proved equally effective as No. 8 Severna Park held No. 11 Catonsville to its lowest offensive output of the season en route to a 15-10 victory at Franklin in the Class 4A-3A state semifinals. The defending champion Falcons (17-2) advance to the state final for the 13th time and will go after their 11th title Tuesday or Wednesday night at UMBC against the winner of Saturday's semifinal between Westminster and Churchill. The Falcons defeated Westminster, 14-7, in last year's championship.

After losing to perennial powerhouse Severna Park in last year's Class 4A/3A state championship game, the Westminster girls' lacrosse team had waited for the chance to play the Falcons again. The Owls arrived at UMBC Stadium Wednesday night, but had to hold off for another day when lightning storms forced the postponement of the scheduled meeting between last year's state finalists. But an extra day to prepare for the rematch didn't matter, as Severna Park took an early six-goal lead and cruised to its second consecutive championship victory over the Owls, 13-6, on Thursday at UMBC Stadium.

What was billed as an epic matchup of area football titans in Saturday's inaugural I-95 Kickoff Classic quickly turned into a one-sided affair, as top-ranked Gilman raced to a three-touchdown lead by halftime and rolled to a 28-7 win over Good Counsel, ranked No. 1 by The Washington Post and No. 9 in the nation by USA Today. The win gave Baltimore teams -- considered heavy underdogs in the two-day tournament -- three wins in their four games against Washington-area powers. None, however, was more high-profile than Gilman's.

This championship was for Tracy Vander Kolk. The sophomore on the Severna Park girls lacrosse team died of undisclosed reasons May 10. Even though her teammates have been in mourning, the Falcons still managed to advance through the state playoffs, finding strength from one another and the support of the Anne Arundel community. Their resilience culminated in Thursday night's Class 4A-3A state championship game at UMBC, where No. 8 Severna Park knocked off Westminster, 13-6.

Jaguars at Falcons Staff predictions for Thursday night's game between Jaguars and Falcons: Kevin Cowherd : Falcons Edward Lee : Falcons Mike Preston : Falcons Peter Schmuck : Falcons Kevin Van Valkenburg : Falcons Mark Viviano: Falcons Jeff Zrebiec : Falcons

Ravens run offense vs. Falcons run defense: Ray Rice has averaged 94 yards rushing the past four games. But Rice has been more efficient than electric in the running game. He hasn't broken a run longer than 18 yards during that stretch. The Ravens are 4-1 when they rush for over 100 yards as a team. The Falcons are fast and small, but they've been effective. Over the past six games, the Falcons' run defense has gone from No. 26 in the NFL to No. 6. Atlanta has allowed only three runs over 15 yards during that time, but two came Sunday against Tampa Bay. Curtis Lofton, the Falcons' leading tackler is questionable with a knee injury.

Falcons 26, Ravens 21 Fourth quarter: 0:20 Atlanta Touchdown - 33-yard pass from Matt Ryan to Roddy White. (Matt Ryan pass incomplete, two-point conversion failed). Ravens 21, Falcons 20 Fourth quarter: 1:05 Baltimore Touchdown - 9-yard pass from Joe Flacco to Todd Heap. (Billy Cundiff extra point is good). Falcons 20, Ravens 14 Fourth quarter: 5:42 Baltimore Touchdown - Joe Flacco pass to Derrick Mason for 6 yards. (Billy Cundiff extra point is good)

Ravens 21, Falcons 7 Fourth quarter: 2:37 Damien Berry rushes for a 5-yard touchdown. (Hunter Cantwell throws to Ryan Mahaffey for the 2-point conversion). Ravens 13, Falcons 7 Fourth quarter: 3:03 Billy Cundiff kicks a 44-yard field goal. Ravens 10, Falcons 7 Third quarter: 2:13 Chykie Brown intercepts John Parker Wilson and returns the pick 65 yards for a touchdown. (Billy Cundiff kicks the extra point) Falcons 7, Ravens 3 Third quarter: 9:39 Antone Smith rushes for a 46-yard touchdown.

Severna Park junior Madison Thomas seemed almost to be dancing, as she weaved down the field in the 27th minute of the first half of the Falcons' Maryland Public Secondary School Athletic Association's Class 4A state semifinal match against No. 13 Dulaney on Monday night.. Dulaney's Lions had held their ground and played tough for the first 15 minutes, but then Thomas had broken through, and with the Falcons now leading by three goals, No. 3 Severna Park was well on its way to a 5-0 victory and a 24th appearance in the state championship finals.

Kevin Cowherd Ravens 24, Falcons 21: Ravens coaches overcome short week of preparation by buying 16 cases of Red Bull at Sam's Club. Jamison Hensley Falcons 21-10: The power running of Michael Turner and the home dominance of Matt Ryan (he's 17-1 at the Georgia Dome) are too much for the Ravens to overcome. Edward Lee Falcons 23, Ravens 20: The Ravens should remain competitive for a majority of the game, but a physical win against the Miami Dolphins and a short week of recovery will be enough for the host Falcons to escape with a narrow decision.

For Fallston to win its second state girls lacrosse championship, the Cougars were going to have to get past two-time defending champion Winters Mill for the second time this season. Jenna Mosketti sparked the senior-laden Cougars to a quick three-goal lead and they held Winters Mill scoreless for nearly 23 minutes through the middle of the game to beat the Falcons, 13-9, for the state Class 2A-1A championship Tuesday night at UMBC. "I'm proud of our defense," said Fallston coach Mike McTeague, whose team also won a 2009 state title.

Draw possession and their own patient offense proved equally effective as No. 8 Severna Park held No. 11 Catonsville to its lowest offensive output of the season en route to a 15-10 victory at Franklin in the Class 4A-3A state semifinals. The defending champion Falcons (17-2) advance to the state final for the 13th time and will go after their 11th title Tuesday or Wednesday night at UMBC against the winner of Saturday's semifinal between Westminster and Churchill. The Falcons defeated Westminster, 14-7, in last year's championship.

Olivia Ravadge hit a sacrfice fly to left field and Alex Braun scored the winning run as visiting No. 15 Chesapeake-AA upset No. 1 Severna Park, 5-4, on Wednesday. The Cougars (10-5) trailed 4-0 before Danielle Myers and Deja Sutton homered in the three-run fourth inning. Chesapeake-AA tied the game in the sixth on a wild pitch. The Falcons fell to 12-2. No. 2 Eastern Tech 13, Sparrows Point 0: Winner Jordan Cargile pitched a five-inning four-hitter and struck out seven as the host Mavericks (14-2)

As part of Saturday's Milford Mill Alumni activities, Millers graduate Brian Jordan, who went on to become a two-sport professional athlete, will be running a baseball clinic, called Camp Jordan 2012 Baltimore. Registration, which cost $20 per child, has already hit capacity with 101 kids signed up between the ages of 5 and 13. "I want to make a huge impact on my hometown," Jordan said from the Brian Jordan Foundation offices in Atlanta, where he played for the Braves and Falcons.

Morgan Torggler knows girls lacrosse games last 50 minutes in high school. She also knows that her No. 7-ranked Severna Park team needed to be on point for all 50 of them to defeat No. 10 Broadneck, 8-7, in a pivotal Anne Arundel County game Friday night. Torggler's four goals keyed the No. 7 Falcons' (10-0) offense, but it was Severna Park's defense - and a key save by keeper Camille King with 1:31 left - that won the game for the home team. "That was sure stressful at the end," said Torggler, a junior.

The 2012 Cavalier Classic Softball Tournament featured a dominant performance by Archbishop Spalding freshman pitcher Ali Caulkins, a game-saving putout by Severna Park left fielder Claire Hanratty and a walk-off single by Howard sophomore Taylor McGrann. The 12-team tournament included eight squads that were part of last week's Baltimore Sun poll. In the end, Severna Park won both its games and a third tie-breaker against Northern-Calvert County and host Spalding to claim the championship.

1. Falcons running back Michael Turner runs wild. The Ravens have had trouble with power running backs in the past. Turner has been on a tear, gaining 100 yards in three of his past four games. 2. Ravens can't stop Atlanta in red zone. In their past two games, the Falcons have scored seven touchdowns in eight trips inside the 20-yard line. The Ravens have the NFL's fourth-best red-zone defense. 3. Ravens get into an early hole. The Falcons, who have averaged 30.7 points in four home games this season, are dangerous with a lead.

Severna Park's girls lacrosse players celebrated just about as much after Thursday night's win over neighborhood rival Severn as they had after winning last year's state championship. In many ways, this victory was just as important. The No. 7 Falcons (4-0) held on for an 11-9 victory at the Anne Arundel Community College tournament, avenging last season's loss to Severn in the same event. After Ryan Bathras scored the game-winner with 4:36 to go and Morgan Torggler added her fourth goal of the game for a little insurance, goalie Camille King made a pair of big saves in the final two minutes to preserve the win. "This is just a big rivalry game for us," Torggler said.