Five Points

Winters Mill senior center Olivia Fajardo leads the county in scoring with a 15 points-per-game average, and she is in a battle for the county rebounding lead with 8.5 per game. At 6 feet 1, she also averages two blocked shots for the Falcons (5-12). What is it like to be leading the county in scoring and in a duel for the rebounding lead? It's an honor. I've worked hard for it and I know all the work I've put in during the offseason has paid off. Do you enjoy blocking shots? It feels so good when you block a shot.

Henry Sims was named tournament Most Valuable Player as Mount St. Joseph beat Douglass Academy (N.Y.), 48-28, to capture the Leon Brogden Holiday Classic yesterday in Wilmington, N.C. Sims had 18 points and 11 rebounds as the Gaels (9-1) pulled away in the second half. Sophomore Eric Atkins, who had seven points and three steals, was also named to the all-tournament team. Gerald Hill added eight points and 11 rebounds in the victory. No. 10 Broadneck 52, Wheaton 51 -- J.J. Hicks hit a fade-away jumper at the buzzer to lift the visiting Bruins over the Knights in the consolation game of the Nationwide Home Mortgage Gaithersburg Holiday Tournament.

"Are we there yet?"Playing games in the car can make long trips pass more quickly and short trips more enjoyable. Reading games provide the added benefit of improving language and literacy skills. Here are some of our family's favorites; there are numerous vairations to each.Build StoriesOne person begins a story and stops at a crucial point, allowing the next person to continue. The one who ends it says, "The End."I SpyThe first player finds an object out the car window. It must be something common and easy to spot.

Just when it appeared Liberty finally might be able to climb all the way back to a tie, South Carroll senior Ben Carr converted four of six free throws in the last 40 seconds and the visiting Cavaliers escaped with a 59-55 verdict.The win halted a four-game slide that had seen South Carroll tumble from an 8-2 record two weeks ago, and boosted its marks to 9-7, including 4-3 in the Central Maryland Conference and 2-1 in the county.Liberty, involved in its eighth game (3-5) decided by five points or fewer, including an upset 64-61 triumph over Urbana last Friday, dropped back to 4-12, 1-7 in the CMC and 0-3 in the county.

A milestone that few Maryland high school athletes ever achieve is fast approaching for Chapelgate's Chris Davidson.He's only 156 points away from scoring his 2,000th career point.Barring injury, he seems certain to reach that mark, because nine regular-season games and the playoffs remain, and he is averaging 22.9 points.Of course, Davidson's competition hasn't been as tough as it was for Howard County's other 2,000-point scorer, Mount Hebron's Barry Young, holder of the public school record, 2,153 career points.

WASHINGTON -- A key early backer of Texas Gov. George W. Bush defected to a rival presidential campaign yesterday, offering another reminder that the race for the Republican nomination is far from over.Former New York Rep. Guy V. Molinari, a name with considerable power in delegate-rich New York GOP circles, switched his allegiance to Sen. John McCain of Arizona in the latest in a series of bumps for what had been the smooth-running Bush campaign.Molinari, a leader in the effort to coax Bush into the race, said he changed his mind after comparing the candidates.

WASHINGTON -- Juwan Howard would have preferred to forget the 49 points that Antoine Walker dropped in during a Boston Celtics loss to the Washington Wizards at the MCI Center a year ago. And maybe Howard might have forgotten, had he and Walker not shared the same hometown of Chicago."

THE MORE progress you make, the more you want. Perhaps that's why it is difficult to celebrate advancement. The perpetual nature of progress means that you can't rest on your laurels. As soon as you do, progress slows.That's why educators in Anne Arundel welcome the county's rising scores on the national SATs, but cautiously. Combined math and verbal scores on the college preparatory exams rose an average of five points among graduates in the 1998-1999 school year over the previous year. The seniors averaged 1,061 out of a possible 1,600 total score.

Old Mill's defense seemed to disappear along with its free-throw shooting, but the Patriots held on for a sloppy 55-48 victory over Broadneck last night in Cape St. Claire.The 15th-ranked visitors took an 18-point lead (50-32) with about four minutes remaining and scored just five points the rest of the way to 16 by the Bruins.The Patriots' final five points came from the foul line in 12 attempts, while the No. 16 Bruins hit six of 12 from the floor after making only 12 of their first 48 shots.

CAPITOL HEIGHTS -- Long Reach moved up from Class 1A to Class 2A this season, and knew it would be much tougher to make the state final four again.The second-year Lightning, which lost in the state finals last season, indeed will not be going back to College Park.Central of Prince George's County defeated the Lightning last night, 90-70, in the Class 1A South Region championship game. Central moves on to take on Edgewood in the state semifinals Thursday.The game was decided in the first quarter, when Central scored the first 15 points, hit 11 of its first 14 shots and dominated inside and outside.

Capitals Ovechkin selected as one of NHL's 'Three Stars' of week Washington left wing Alex Ovechkin was named one of the NHL's "Three Stars" for the week ending Sunday. He led all scorers for the week with six points (four goals, two assists) as the Capitals (4-2-2) gained five points and moved into first place in the Southeast Division. Ovechkin began the week by recording two assists in a 3-2 shootout loss to the New Jersey Devils Oct. 12. He recorded two goals in a 4-1 victory over the San Jose Sharks Thursday and tallied two more plus the shootout winner in a 3-2 victory over the Nashville Predators Saturday.

Defense is what Lake Clifton coach Herman Harried continually reinforces to his group, and he got plenty of it Tuesday. The Lakers held Digital Harbor to one field goal and just five points in the decisive second half. ( For more, go to baltimoresun.com/varsityletters)

Darryl Proctor had 25 points and 11 rebounds in helping UMBC rally for a 76-71 victory over Quinnipiac in the opening round of the Tyler Ugolyn Columbia Classic in New York yesterday. Matt Spadafora added 15 points for UMBC (2-1), Justin Fry had 11, and Jay Greene and Rich Flemming scored 10 each. James Johnson led Quinnipiac (2-1) with 17 points, Jeremy Baker and Bryan Geffen had 12 apiece, and Justin Rutty and James Feldeine added 10 each. Quinnipiac led 43-35 with 18:22 to play when UMBC went on a 13-2 run to take a 48-45 lead with 14:29 left.

Significantly more African-American seniors in Maryland are taking and passing rigorous Advanced Placement tests, a key measure of high academic achievement, according to results released yesterday by the College Board. The number of African-American students among last year's senior class taking the exams rose by nearly 30 percent from the year before to 7,812. Nearly half of those students - 3,498 - received a passing score on at least one of those exams. The increasing participation by minorities around the state reflects the priority that state and local school systems have placed on getting more students to take tougher courses in high school that will prepare them for college.

What percentage of the 389,031 speeding tickets issued in Maryland last year went to folks charged with driving more than 30 mph over the speed limit? Go on, take a guess. How many of your fellow drivers were in such a hurry, or were so into the thrill of speed, or were so stinking drunk that they were willing to put your life and their own in such extreme jeopardy during calendar year 2006? How many people not only violated Transportation Article 21.801.1 - exceeding the speed limit - but stomped all over it?

Henry Sims was named tournament Most Valuable Player as Mount St. Joseph beat Douglass Academy (N.Y.), 48-28, to capture the Leon Brogden Holiday Classic yesterday in Wilmington, N.C. Sims had 18 points and 11 rebounds as the Gaels (9-1) pulled away in the second half. Sophomore Eric Atkins, who had seven points and three steals, was also named to the all-tournament team. Gerald Hill added eight points and 11 rebounds in the victory. No. 10 Broadneck 52, Wheaton 51 -- J.J. Hicks hit a fade-away jumper at the buzzer to lift the visiting Bruins over the Knights in the consolation game of the Nationwide Home Mortgage Gaithersburg Holiday Tournament.

Winters Mill senior center Olivia Fajardo leads the county in scoring with a 15 points-per-game average, and she is in a battle for the county rebounding lead with 8.5 per game. At 6 feet 1, she also averages two blocked shots for the Falcons (5-12). What is it like to be leading the county in scoring and in a duel for the rebounding lead? It's an honor. I've worked hard for it and I know all the work I've put in during the offseason has paid off. Do you enjoy blocking shots? It feels so good when you block a shot.

When Mercy and the Institute of Notre Dame meet in their annual matchup known simply as "The Game" to the two schools, the records of the teams are usually irrelevant as soon as the referee throws the tip-off. The game means grabbing the bragging rights for an entire year, and last night Mercy used a methodical offense and some clutch shooting down the stretch for a 47-34 win over the Indians at a sold-out Towson Center. The win ended a five-game losing streak for the Magic in "The Game" series.

Braxton Dupree scored 27 points as visiting Calvert Hall upset No. 11 Loyola, 55-51, yesterday in boys basketball in a crowded Loyola gym. Dupree, who committed to play at Maryland next season, dominated the game in the first half. The 6-foot-8 center scored 14 of his points in the half, helping the Cardinals (10-6) build a 34-18 halftime lead. Loyola cut the lead in the second half, helped by six three-pointers. The Dons (10-2) had a chance to tie the game with 10 seconds remaining but missed a layup.

Virginia-bound All-Metro attackman Gavin Gill scored seven points (two goals and five assists) to lead the way for St. Paul's boys lacrosse team as it defeated Archbishop Spalding, 13-6, in a Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference game at the newly minted Lax Under The Lights tournament at Johns Hopkins. Junior midfielder Cryder DiPietro scored three goals to contribute to the victory for the No. 1 Crusaders (8-1, 3-1). Stuart Wheeler had 12 saves for St. Paul's. Matt Antonelli had 10 saves for the Cavaliers.