Kick

As reported Aug. 25, 1982, in The Sun: Columbia Kick coach Rudy Storch is not about to let the team trophy - symbol of under-16 North American soccer supremacy - collect dust for the next 365 days in a shopping mall. "Each of my 18 players will get to keep our trophy in his bedroom for 20 days," said Storch. "After all, they are the ones who practiced five days a week since February to reach our goal. It will mean more to them that way." After proving to be the best among over 5,000 teams in this country and Canada, the Kick focused international attention on the youth program in Columbia.

Matt Stover on his routines "I would say that 20 percent of it is spent on the field, believe it or not. Another 60 percent is done in the weight room, training. The other 20 percent is more mental training, visualization, trying to get my mind right mentally and emotionally to perform well. "Wednesdays ... I train to kick field goals. I'll back myself up a little bit and get myself some longer field goals. I'll work myself around the field, try to visualize the stadium that I have already looked at on film or I've played in it. "Thursday is a day of kickoffs and kickoff returns.

Snap. Set the ball. Kick. In 1.2 seconds - or less. That's the goal of Navy's field-goal unit. This week, getting the job done and done right was the emphasis of special teams practice as the Midshipmen (1-2) head into today's game against visiting Duke (1-2). The Blue Devils, who broke a 22-game losing streak last week with a 20-14 win at Northwestern, lead the Atlantic Coast Conference in blocked field goals with three. On most afternoons at Navy, the kickers work on their own. This week, they set up the ball about 6 yards from the crossbar to practice getting the ball higher into the air quicker.

FREDERICK -- The North Carroll scoring express derailed last night as Thomas Johnson defeated the visiting Panthers in a sudden-death, penalty-kick shootout, 7-6, in the Class 3A West Regional girls soccer final.Each team scored a goal in regulation, but went scoreless in two 10-minute overtime periods. With the shootout tied at 5, Thomas Johnson junior striker Mollie Merkel kicked a shot into the right corner to give the Patriots a 6-5 lead in the shootout.After Panthers freshman midfielder Heather Tomko and Patriots senior back Karen Hamilton both missed, junior goalie Liz Hammel blocked away a shot by North Carroll senior goalie Beth Reeb.

COLLEGE PARK -- Urbana of Frederick County, a program in its fourth year of existence, scored 21 unanswered points to dethrone defending champion Fort Hill, 24-7, in the Class 2A state championship game yesterday at the University of Maryland's Byrd Stadium.Down 7-3 at halftime, Urbana (13-0) took a 10-7 lead on Greg Hill's momentum-shifting 81-yard punt return with 4: 06 left in the third quarter. Zack Mills' 4-yard touchdown run in the fourth-quarter, followed by Wayne Parrish's 3-yard run for a score finished off the Sentinels (10-3)

The Baltimore Police Department kicked off its spring soccer league yesterday afternoon at a municipal park that was once a haven for drug dealers.More than 500 children packed Frank C. Bocek Park, on East Madison Street at the edge of some of East Baltimore's most dangerous neighborhoods. Provident Bank of Maryland donated $25,000 to pay for referees and uniforms."I came to have fun," said Shatel Veazy, 10, a fifth-grader at Frederick Elementary School. "I have no experience with soccer, but I like to kick things."

Westminster, outplayed in the first half, rallied from a goal down in the second to get past visiting South Carroll, 2-1, on a penalty kick by Mandy Komar with three and a half minutes left yesterday.The win was the fourth in a row for No. 12 Westminster (4-3), but it did not come easily.South Carroll (3-2) playing for the first time in a week, got its goal from sophomore Jen Conaway 20 minutes into the action, and missed several other chances before intermission.Two different teams showed up for the second half.

Jon Cole was slowed by a bad cold. But McDonogh's best player shook it off and helped the No. 2-ranked Eagles win their first Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference soccer championship last night before a large crowd at Johns Hopkins University.Cole's 26-yard direct kick with 3 minutes, 35 seconds to play was the winning goal in the 2-1 victory over No. 1-ranked and previously unbeaten Archbishop Curley."I had trouble getting up and down the field and just did what I could," said Cole, who also made a couple of key defensive plays from a sweeper position late in the game.

Much of the football knowledge and human civility that Baltimore once demonstrated has vanished to the winds. Regrettable. Why else would such an unwarranted display of resentment be directed toward a highly professional coach who stands as the epitome of a gentleman? A model for us all.An exemplary leader, teacher and citizen. The name is Ted Marchibroda.Yes, times change and, in this case, not for the better. It must be admitted, and with some embarrassment, that Marchibroda has been battered beyond what's measured as fair criticism.

A defense that would not budge, coupled with a safety the home team had to take in the final 1: 11, enabled No. 10-ranked Annapolis to hold off Paint Branch, 12-9, at Al Laramore Field in Annapolis last night.Annapolis (2-0) stopped the visitors from Montgomery County inches shy of a first-down at their 3-yard line with 3: 39 left. The home team then played it safe, keeping the ball on the ground with a light rain falling.After taking a delay of game penalty on fourth down at the nine, Annapolis coach Roy Brown ordered Donnell Foote to take the intentional safety by running out of the end zone.

The similarity was not lost on Steve Hauschka. Two weeks after narrowly missing a game-winning 44-yard field-goal attempt in the waning seconds of the Ravens' 33-31 loss to the Minnesota Vikings, the second-year kicker found himself staring at a 43-yard attempt with 56 seconds left in the first quarter of Sunday's game against the Denver Broncos. "It was almost the exact same 44-yarder," Hauschka said. "I learned my lesson, and I stayed down on that one and kicked it straight." The successful kick set the tone for Hauschka, who made all three field-goal tries in the Ravens' 30-7 victory over Denver.

If he was unable to kick for the Ravens any longer, Matt Stover wanted the chance to kick for a Super Bowl contender. He got his wish Wednesday when his resume and the Indianapolis Colts' need matched up nicely. "That's why I've been so patient," Stover said after his introductory news conference in Indianapolis. "I made all these decisions in the offseason to give myself options. It wasn't about money; it was about the opportunity to go to the Super Bowl." The former Ravens kicker signed a guaranteed one-year contract with the Colts after acing a Tuesday workout in which he hit a pair of 53-yard field-goal attempts.

The potent Hereford offense started four consecutive drives deep in Parkville territory midway through Saturday's game. The Bulls scored touchdowns on each one en route to a 43-28 victory at Parkville. No. 8 Hereford (3-1) led 14-7 when getting the ball at the Parkville 23 after a short punt. A good punt return gave the Bulls possession at the Knights' 24 next time. Hereford then started the second half at the Parkville 35 following Zach Witkowski's long kickoff return. The Bulls recovered a fumble to start the next drive at the Knights' 26. Parkville (3-2)

Billy Cosh knew that his team's game against Annapolis last night was a big one. Fortunately for Cosh, he knew just where to look for instant offense. The senior quarterback, who is headed to Kansas State to play football next year, found receiver Ronnie Harris for touchdown catches of 43, 3 and 34 yards to lead host and No. 3 Arundel (5-0, 5-0) to a 38-7 win over the Panthers (4-1, 4-1) in an Anne Arundel County League game. The duo combined for three touchdowns and 179 yards in the win. "We both tried out for quarterback our freshman year, and he beat me out," said Harris.

Loyola's No. 1 football team had been a little concerned about Edmondson's defense after the No. 10 Red Storm's performance last week against Mount St. Joseph, but the Dons didn't have nearly as much trouble as their Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference counterpart. Connor Bruns threw for two touchdowns and ran for one in the first 10 minutes Saturday to open a 21-point Loyola lead en route to a 47-14 win in on-and-off drizzly rain. A week ago, the Red Storm didn't let Mount St. Joseph's offense within 19 yards of its end zone but lost a 9-6 heartbreaker because the Gaels recovered a fumble in the end zone.

Darius Jennings tried to carry Gilman to victory Saturday against visiting DeMatha. The junior quarterback finished with 347 yards of total offense and five touchdowns in a memorable individual performance on a drizzly afternoon. But DeMatha running back Marcus Coker stole the show. Coker rushed for 392 yards and five touchdowns, constantly hurting No. 2 Gilman with big runs at the right times as the Stags rolled up 624 yards of total offense in a 56-35 victory. Jennings finished with 222 yards and two touchdowns rushing.

This isn't about nostalgia or sentiment because in the NFL it rarely is. If it were just about the good ol' days, Matt Stover would walk away on his own terms, rather than get nudged out. Then again, it is a little bit about going out on one's own terms. The Ravens are contemplating the first change at kicker in the franchise's history in town, and when Stover, a free agent, last week expressed his doubts that they really wanted him back, Ozzie Newsome quickly stepped in with an emphatic "We'll see."

All Steve Hauschka wanted from his athletic career was a spot on the varsity soccer team at Division III Middlebury College. But he wasn't fast enough. That would have been it for most kids with dreams of a medical career. But Hauschka had loved swinging his leg violently into balls since he was a little boy. Though he had never even kicked a football in high school, he decided to give it a whirl. Five years later, he's in the NFL as the Ravens' kickoff and long-field-goal specialist. The thing is, Hauschka's strange route to the NFL wasn't much stranger than those of many of his peers.

COLLEGE PARK - Rain had been falling for much of the afternoon as Obi Egekeze steeled himself for a 20-yard field-goal attempt in the final seconds of a tie game against North Carolina State on Oct. 25. The footing was becoming increasingly treacherous, but Maryland's senior kicker wasn't fazed. "My career long is 54 in the rain [in high school]. That definitely gave me confidence about the ability to kick in the rain," Egekeze said. True to form, Egekeze converted the game-winning kick.

Sam Koch always had the leg. Now he has the drop. That combination could soon deliver the Ravens' third-year player into the upper echelon of NFL punters. Through six games this season, Koch leads the league with a 42.9-yard net punting average. And he hasn't taken full advantage of his newest weapon, the "rugby." The rugby is what Koch and special teams coordinator Jerry Rosburg call the new drop Rosburg brought with him from Atlanta this year when he joined John Harbaugh's staff. Rather than hold the ball horizontally in his left hand on release, Koch now drops his palm and fingers to allow the ball to drop nose-first on certain punts.