Fourth Place

BoysRunner of the YearMike Styczynski, River Hill, senior: He was selected by Lauer as River Hill's most improved runner in both his sophomore and junior years and won the Class 3A state title in the course record time of 16 minutes, 22.47 seconds by knocking almost a full minute off his state time from a year ago. "He may be our most improved runner again," Lauer said.Styczynski, a former soccer player, also set the Centennial course record at regionals at 16: 22, breaking the old mark of 16: 34. He won the county championship over a difficult course in 16: 55, ahead of the runner-up by 12 seconds.

Carroll County athletes who participated in the Maryland Special Olympics Summer Games last weekend at the University of Maryland, College Park, received these awards.Carrie Billings: English equitation, eighth place; team relays, second place; working trails, fourth place.Ray Clark: 50-meter dash and 100-meter dash, second place.Kristen Davis: 4x25-meter free relay, third place; 50-meter backstroke, second place; 50-meter breaststroke, participation ribbon; 50-meter freestyle, sixth place.

Quote: "Before, when I came to the park, I was always ticked off. Now, I'm real happy. I'm having fun. If I don't get a hit tonight? No problem. I'll come back tomorrow." -- Rangers' Juan Gonzalez on his change in attitude since reaching major leagues at 19 in 1989.It's a fact: The Twins' Otis Nixon moved into sole possession of 21st place on the all-time stolen-base list with a steal in the first inning against the White Sox last night, the 569th of his career.Who's hot: The Devil Rays' Wade Boggs singled against the Red Sox to extend his hitting streak to 12 games, longest of the season by a Tampa Bay player.

A number of Carroll County youths participated in the 1998 Special Olympics Summer Games held June 5-7 at the University of Maryland, College Park.Local athletes and their awards were:Stephanie Carpegna: standing long jump, first place; 400-meter dash and softball throw, second place.Ralph Gemmill: working trails, first place; English equitation and team relays, second place.Danny Klein: softball throw, first place; running long jump, second place.Shawn Reiter: running long jump, first place.

COLLEGE PARK -- Westminster freshman John Wah thought he could have played better golf on the first day of his first trip to the state tournament. He probably shouldn't be so hard on himself.Wah overcame five bogeys to play solid golf the rest of the way and shoot a 3-over par 74, the lowest score among area players on the first day of the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association state tournament yesterday at the University of Maryland.The 74 on the par-71, 6,271-yard course put Wah in fourth place overall in the individual competition, five shots behind leader Jimmy Cunningham of Walkersville (69)

Closely watched: For the third year in a row, AT&T was the company tracked by the biggest number of securities analysts, but now it has company -- Motorola. Nelson Information Inc., a supplier of financial data, said each company was followed by analysts at 62 investment and research firms in 1997. Motorola was in fourth place in 1996. Intel and Cisco Systems tied for third place with 58 firms tracking each, and Banc One and Merck tied for fifth place, with 57 firms apiece.Virtual customer: Manufacturing firms will find competition intensifying in the early part of the new century as customer demands and expectations increase, according to a study by consultants at Deloitte & Touche.

The words from the bottom of the world seemed an improbable boast a week ago, as Chessie Racing limped toward Cape Horn for repairs. But the crew aboard the Maryland entry in the Whitbread Round the World Race is making crew mate Gavin Brady more prophet than braggart."

On paper, Johns Hopkins coach George Kennedy had his team pegged to finish eighth or ninth at last weekend's NCAA Division III Men's Swimming and Diving Championships in Atlanta. It would have been an unusually low placement for the Blue Jays, but it seemed realistic.That is, until they ripped the paper, and much of the competition, to shreds.Registering what Kennedy said was "best time after best time," Hopkins came in fourth, just two points behind Union (N.Y.) College. Kenyon (Ohio) College won the title for the 17th straight time.

Howard County fourth-graders won $6,000 last weekend at the Math Mania competition sponsored by Provident Bank of Maryland.In the contest at Towson State University, students were divided into teams of 10 to solve a series of math problems. The prize money won by each team was split evenly among its 10 members to go to each student's school.The schools that received prize money included:Bollman Bridge Elementary, $1,200. Jennifer Pecor was on the first-place team and Aaron Golas was on the fifth-place team.

Does the Harrisburg Heat still have the Spirit's number?That question will be answered when the I-83 rivals meet for the fourth straight year in the National Professional Soccer League's American Division semifinals. The best-of-three series begins Thursday night at 7: 30 at the Baltimore Arena.Unlike last season, when the Spirit entered the playoffs having lost its last five regular-season games, Baltimore has been playing as well as it has all season. Despite a tough season-ending, seven-game road trip, the Spirit is 7-3 in its past 10 games and 12-3 since Mike Stankovic took over as coach Jan. 31."

With days to go, this is already one of the wettest Mays since record-keeping began here in 1871. The airport total through Tuesday was 7.1 inches, drowning the long-term average of 3.89 inches. The record is 8.71 inches, set in 1989. The second-wettest was just last year, when 7.77 inches fell at BWI. The third-wettest was 7.26 inches in 1894. This month's dunking has tied with May 1960 for fourth place.

Boys Runner of the Year Will Meadows, Gilman Meadows was a freshman this season, but he ran like a veteran. He gave the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association a good look at what might be coming over the next three seasons. He finished seventh in the MIAA championship meet, playing a big role in helping Gilman take fourth place. Three days later, he took 34th in the private schools state meet. Coach of the Year Joe Duncan, Gilman Duncan did a good job helping a young Greyhounds team come together and take fourth place in the MIAA A Conference title meet.

This is a rewrite. In the column originally prepared for this space, I said that Troy Davis was scheduled to die today - to be killed, actually, by an executioner for the state of Georgia. But - stop the presses! - that's no longer accurate. On Friday, an appeals court granted him a stay. If his next round of legal actions is unsuccessful, Mr. Davis, 40, will once again face death. This is Mr. Davis' third stay, his third hairsbreadth escape from execution. If there is any justice, it will be his last.

Baseball Blue Jays@Orioles 7 p.m. [MASN]: The battle for fourth place in the American League East is joined with Garrett Olson pitching for the Orioles against the Jays' Shaun Marcum, who has an impressive 2.65 ERA. Meanwhile, at 8 p.m., on ESPN, the first-run episodes begin of this year's World Series of Poker.

What: 133rd Preakness, second leg of thoroughbred racing's Triple Crown When: Saturday, 6:09 p.m. post time Where: Pimlico Race Course Distance: 1 3/16 miles TV: Chs. 11, 4 2007 winner: Curlin Purse: $1 million. First place: $650,000. Second place: $200,000. Third place: $100,000. Fourth place: $50,000. Pre-race events Today: Preakness Crab Derby, noon, Lexington Market; Preakness Balloon Festival, 3 p.m., Turf Valley Resort; Miller Lite Nites, 7:30 p.m., Power Plant. Tomorrow: Ryan Shaw concert, 6 p.m., Harbor East.

PHILADELPHIA -- The Meade Mustangs were in exclusive company. They had reached the final of the boys scholastic "Championship of America" 1,600-meter relay with a sizzling time of 3 minutes, 14.68 seconds in the morning session of yesterday's concluding day of the 114th Penn Relays. Just two other American teams - Bethel of Virginia and Long Beach Poly of California - had been fast enough to join the four Jamaican squads and one from the Bahamas in the final. But the Mustangs weren't about to cruise home on their laurels.

Yourturn Last week, we asked with the Ravens at 4-3 and facing a difficult remaining schedule, how do you think they'll end the season? The results: Finish in third place (54.7 percent) Qualify for playoffs as a wild card (23.3 percent) Finish in fourth place (12.1 percent) Win AFC North (9.9 percent) This week's question: What should the Ravens do to improve their offense? A. Bench McNair B. Change play-calling C. Run McGahee more D. Change offensive line To vote, go to baltimoresun.

OSAKA, Japan -- James Carter couldn't get out of Nagai Stadium fast enough. Frustrated and irritated by his fourth-place finish in the men's 400-meter hurdles final at the track and field world championships yesterday - a race he knew he could win, if the breaks went his way - he stormed off the track, barged over a barrier to detour past the media, grabbed his gear, and headed out of the stadium. A reporter was barely able to catch up to him as he left. "I was hit," the Mervo graduate at last said.

Now that the Orioles have all but conceded that they are focused on 2008, it's fair to ask everyone with a stake in the team a very relevant question. When I say everyone, I mean the owner, the front office, the manager, the players and the fans. I mean everyone, so think hard about this: Can you detach yourself from the outcome for the next 48 games? Let me explain. When the Orioles made their mini-roster shuffle Thursday, team president Andy MacPhail chalked up the departure of Chris Gomez and John Parrish to evaluating the team and adjusting the roster to best prepare for the 2008 season.

Good morning --1972 Dolphins -- You still chilling that champagne? From the looks of the Colts, it could get pretty cold. Question of the day How much will B.J. Ryan's departure hurt the Orioles? Forget fourth place -- a string of fifth-place finishes is now in the offing for this embarrassment of an organization. When will O's fans wise up and stop letting Peter Angelos pick their pockets? Morton D. Marcus Baltimore Mr. Ryan's fastball is solvable. I'm willing to bet an icy draft beer that he will never have the caliber of success that he experienced this past season.