Forfeit

Trying to transform a perennial loser into a winner takes hard work, patience and the ability to bounce back from frequent setbacks that bedevil such a program.Meade's stunning 5-4 upset of Baltimore area baseball's top-ranked Arundel (5-3) Monday might have been a reward of sorts for coach Royal Webster, who is facing head-on the ups and downs of trying to gain respect.It certainly lifted his spirits.Webster, 7-32 in his first two seasons at Meade, experienced the dejection of forfeiting a game the morning of the upset.

Loch Raven's baseball team learned yesterday that a coaching error had cost it the school's first trip to a state championship game Saturday, instead making the squad part of a state-tournament oddity -- a double forfeit.State officials wiped out Loch Raven's Class 2A 10-5 semifinal win over Atholton on Tuesday -- and Atholton's loss, too -- because coaches of both teams allowed their pitchers each to pitch in one more inning in seven days than regulations allow.The double forfeit, because each pitcher totaled 15 innings instead of the state-limit 14, means that the Eastern Shore's North Caroline will have to wait a few more days for its championship opponent to be determined.

IF CHUCK ECKER, the Howard County executive, is right about the schools' unwise spending, the system could save millions in a hurry. Instead of administrators, just hire one person armed with a fat volume of procedures. When a question arises about a student, that person could cite the infraction and dispose of the guilty party. Who needs brains when you have a rule book? A case in point is a decision that Atholton High forfeit its softball games for 1997-1998 because of confusion involving a student who transferred there.

Mount Hebron's Mike Stromberg takes a back seat to no one in Howard County when it comes to consistent all-around performance.The 6-foot-2, 175-pound senior co-captain, averaging a team-high 16.4 points, has scored in double figures in 17 of 19 games, and as point guard has led the Vikings to a remarkable season."

The Southern Bulldogs knew they had to get busy right from the start last night against visiting county foe North County.They did just that.Winning the first four matches, including pins from Ben Thornton and Matt Bender to go with a pivotal decision from Ryan Spannare, the Bulldogs were able to survive North County's strength at the heavier weights to come away with a solid 36-34 win.With the Knights (1-2) missing a heavyweight -- yielding six points via forfeit -- the Bulldogs clinched the match at 152 when Brian Youmans' 10-0 major decision over Shawn Kisner gave them a 30-16 lead.

Howard High's tennis team has forfeited its first seven matches because of it played with an academically ineligible player.The Lions are the second Howard County tennis team this season to forfeit matches. Centennial forfeited its first six matches last Friday, also because it played an academically ineligible player.The March 27 match between Howard and Centennial has become a double forfeit. The violation also wipes out Howard's only victory on the court, a 5-4 decision last Friday against Long Reach.

An administrative oversight involving a substitute player's discipline for violating Howard County schools' alcohol policy ruined Mount Hebron's hopes for a county boys basketball championship yesterday.Mount Hebron's team will forfeit eight games because one of its players was still ineligible to participate in extra-curricular activities after being disciplined for having beer on school property on Aug. 27, the second day of the current school year."I feel bad for the kids, who've worked hard.

Glenelg's defending state champion baseball team must forfeit its game against Liberty because one of its players cut a class the day of the game.Although the forfeiture penalty handed down by the Violations and Infractions Committee set a precedent, Glenelg has decided not to appeal.The school had until 4 p.m. yesterday to appeal the decision, which becomes official today."If we had been under the old system for playoffs where points were an issue, we might have appealed it. But it doesn't matter other than that some people are upset by the ruling," Glenelg athletic director Mike Williams said.

State officials yesterday overruled a previously announced forfeit that had followed Monday night's Class 3A North regional boys basketball game between visiting Fallston and Parkville.As a result, the Knights' 91-72 victory becomes official, and coach Steve Baker's 17-6 team will play at Randallstown tomorrow night. Randallstown defeated Woodlawn, 72-65, yesterday.Fallston's protest was on the basis of Parkville's dressing 16 players and entering their names in the score book. The State Tournament Bulletin for winter sports lists, "No team may dress more than 15 players," as one of its guidelines.

A Baltimore man who faces a possible 25-year mandatory prison sentence on drug charges failed to appear at a hearing in Carroll County Circuit Court yesterday, skipping out on a $125,000 corporate bond.David C. Brandon, 27, was arrested March 2 by police responding to a tip that two men were selling heroin in Westminster. Police stopped a car and, after a drug-sniffing dog signaled the presence of drugs, Brandon and a 19-year-old co-defendant were arrested.No drugs were found in the car, but 52 packages of crack cocaine were found during a strip search of one of the men, police said.

The Severna Park girls soccer team has been forced to forfeit two regular-season wins after violating a state rule concerning coaching players on a team other than their school team, according to Anne Arundel County supervisor of athletics Greg LeGrand. According to Rule .04G (2) in the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association handbook, only 80 percent of a starting lineup in a sport (eight players in soccer) can play for any of their school's coaches on a club team or any other soccer team during the school year.

Man found in burning home was also beaten City police say a man found last week in a burning residence moments after police responded to a report of an armed person had been beaten before he died in the fire. The victim was identified Monday as Edward M. Davis, 39, but few details were available as police investigate the incident. Davis was found June 24 in the 1800 block of St. Paul St., just south of North Avenue. Police said at the time that the fire, which broke out at 6:30 p.m., was preceded by a report of an armed man in the vicinity, but officers who responded found no one. The fire was reported minutes later, and fire officials said the body was found on a burning couch.

The Broadneck girls soccer team will forfeit its first game of the 2008 season after it was determined the team held too many practices in conjunction with its summer league program, according to a news release issued by Anne Arundel public schools. Under a rule adopted by the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association during the 2007-08 school year, high school teams can compete in summer league under the guidance of their regular-season coach provided practices are held in proportion to the number of games played and do not extend beyond the summer league season.

Can we carry our own sealed bottled water through airport security checkpoints yet? I really resent having to pay $3 for water at the airport. How can we get this policy changed? This does seem ridiculous. But if you recall the coverage of the trials of the men accused of plotting to blow up trans-Atlantic flights, you might ask why would anyone want to risk national security for a bottle of Evian. Bottom line: You can't take even a sealed water bottle through airport security. Don't even think about it. But you don't have to pay $3 for a bottle of water.

The Carver A&T and Chesapeake boys basketball teams will each forfeit two games this week as punishment for a fight involving numerous players during a game at Carver A&T last Friday, Baltimore County coordinator of athletics Ron Belinko confirmed yesterday. Carver A&T (3-4) will forfeit home games against Towson today and Pikesville on Friday. Chesapeake (5-1) will forfeit its home game today against Dundalk and its away game at Sparrows Point on Friday. "There will be tremendous repercussions that the schools are sorting out now," Belinko said.

Florida State coach Bobby Bowden isn't concerned the Seminoles will have to forfeit games for using ineligible players this season. "We didn't intentionally play an ineligible player," he said yesterday. "We didn't know anyone was ineligible. We held out two guys, [Kevin] McNeil and [Joslin] Shaw. We felt like it was the right thing to do." Bowden has 373 career victories, the most in major college history. One of Bowden's wins came by forfeit in 1983 when Tulane's 34-28 victory was reversed because it used ineligible players.

Poly football coach Roger Wrenn was not too surprised with how well his Engineers played at No. 7 Edmondson yesterday. The coach could see it coming in practice this week that his team would do well, but maybe not as well as it did in shocking the defending Class 2A state champion Red Storm, 38-14, to clinch its first playoff berth since 1998. "I knew we were going to win as soon as we stepped off the bus -- had a great feeling, " said Poly senior running back Lee Reynolds, who ran for 125 yards and his 22nd and 23rd touchdowns.

1 Year of varsity basketball for Southwestern senior guard Torrey Gilmore, who earned a starting spot as a result of a solid performance during last month's Basketball Academy at Morgan State. Considered the team's unsung hero, Gilmore is averaging nine points and nearly seven assists. 20 Minutes in which Douglass was beaten, 63-18, by Hereford in last week's Class 2A-1A North regional wrestling semifinal. The Ducks' only points came from a first-period pin by Jerrell Armstrong (125)

Deon Roberts wanted to be the go-to guy with the match on the line. Yesterday against visiting Douglass, the Poly 145-pounder got his wish. Roberts flattened Chris Stainback at 3:01 of their wild clash to put the match away with one bout left in a 52-30 victory as the Engineers (6-3 overall, 6-0 league) clinched at least a tie for their second straight Baltimore City League dual-meet crown. Part of a five-bout sweep, Roberts' pin preceded a forfeit to Daniel Savage (152) as well as pins by Justin Patillo (130)

The 15th-ranked Douglass football team must forfeit its season for using an academically ineligible player, erasing the Ducks' nine victories and what would have been only their third winning season since 1989. The Ducks had won Baltimore City's Division II title and clinched the program's first playoff berth since city schools football teams joined the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association in 1993. Douglass defeated visiting Southwestern, 39-0, yesterday afternoon to complete its 9-1 regular season.