Knight

Home Turf: 355 Ronsdale Road, Sykesville Head Coach: Jim Holzman (fourth season) 2011 Record: 4-6 overall; 3-4 county After making the playoffs in 2008 and 2009, the Century Knights have fallen short the past two years. Coach Jim Holzman's team might have made the Class 2A West Region field last fall, but a series of injuries to key players led to a four-game midseason slide that extinguished the Knights' postseason hopes. If Century can avoid injuries and another untimely slump, it should be able to make a legitimate playoff run. A huge and physical offensive line will be the key to a running game that must rebuild after losing the county's top rusher, Nick Schaffer, to graduation.

She said she had a boyfriend but he didn't come to Artscape. “Well then, I was wondering, can I be your boyfriend for the next five or six minutes,” asked the multi-platinum R&B singer Brian McKnight to the fan he plucked from the crowd. As she sat on a stool in the middle of the Wells Fargo stage in mid-town Belvedere Friday night, her smile beamed on the big screen. To the surprise of no one (except perhaps that boyfriend), she agreed. McKnight, in the middle of his 75-minute headlining set, began serenading her with “Another You,” from his 2009 album “Evolution of a Man.” Toward the end of the song, the new couple stood up and McKnight embraced her in a tender hug, to envious screams.

Police in the Baltimore area increased patrols around movie theaters, and local theater owners added security precautions - including banning face masks and fake weapons - after the mass shooting early Friday in suburban Denver sparked fears of copycat attacks. The shooting rampage at a midnight showing of"The Dark Knight Rises"in Aurora, Colo., shattered the perception of safety in yet another public place in a nation that has seen attacks at schools, shopping centers and workplaces.

For the past seven years, Darnella Parks and her entire family - from toddler nieces to her 84-year-old grandmother - have attended Artscape. They come for the crafts, the food and, most of all, the live entertainment. But this year, the 33-year-old Towson resident and her family are skipping Friday's opening night - not because of the heat or the crowds, but because of the music. Brian McKnight, the 16-time Grammy nominee who for years built a reputation as a clean-cut, R&B ladies' man, is scheduled to take Artscape's main stage Friday night.

Under Armour, a company that angles to outfit the country's most prominent sports stars, has managed to get in on one of the most highly anticipated movies of the year -- "The Dark Knight Rises. " The Baltimore sportswear maker has declared itself the "official outfitter" of the movie's football team, the Gotham Rogues. Under Armour made the team's uniforms featured in the movie. And they're making the fanwear that people can buy. There are jerseys, jackets and hats, all in the team colors that look suspiciously similar to a certain team from Pittsburgh.

The long-awaited “The Dark Knight Rises” -- the latest big-screen treatment of DC Comics' Batman -- will hit screens this week, and the early movie reviews are looking good. The movie builds on the 2008 hit "The Dark Knight," and maintains its dark, brooding tenor. Though the mayhem is not for everyone (were comic books?), I'm glad that the Caped Crusader has developed into a strong movie franchise in director Christopher Nolan's trilogy. The Superman movies never achieved this sort of complexity, and some other recent super-hero movies have turned into an amalgam of special effects.

David Knight helped Edgewood to a historic season as the Rams broke 12school records and became one of the area's strongest teams. The No. 10 Rams won the Upper Chesapeake Bay Athletic Conference title, took second in the Class 2A East region and finished fifth in the state meet, showing their consistency throughout the spring. First-team All-Metro pick Brandon Chase played a big role in the team's success. Knight also credited the coaches he works with - Donald Smith and Jevon Berry - as well as plenty of hard work from the team.

Katie Schwarzmann left Century High School in 2009 as the all-time leading goal scorer in Carroll County lacrosse history. Three years later, she has reached the pinnacle of collegiate lacrosse. Last week, the junior midfielder from the University of Maryland won the Tewaaraton Award, presented annually to the top women's collegiate player in the nation. Schwarzmann beat out four other premier college players for the award - Brittany Dashiell of Florida, North Carolina's Becky Lynch, Taylor Thornton of two-time defending national champion Northwestern, and Syracuse's Michelle Tumolo.

As a Baltimore City resident, I have enjoyed attending the Artscape Festival every year. Each year it's been a wonderful and fun family event where I can take my children and they can enjoy the food, craft booths, kids' activities and music. This year, however, something has come up that concerns me and threatens my ability to enjoy this event with my children. Recently it was announced that Brian McKnight, a popular R&B artist, would headline this year's festival, performing on the main stage July 20. I have to imagine that the event's organizers and those responsible for booking musical talent were aware of the recent controversy over Mr. McKnight's disgusting music, which makes me wonder all the more why anyone would think he is appropriate as a headliner for a family event.

R&B artist Brian McKnight, rockers Clutch and funksters the Rebirth Brass Band will headline this year's Artscape festival, set for July 20-22. The performance lineup, along with other details of the three-day festival that attracts about 350,000 visitors each year, was announced Wednesday by Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. McKnight, a 16-time Grammy nominee whose albums have sold millions of copies, will perform at 7:30 p.m. July 20. Clutch, whose four members hail from Germantown, has released nine albums, most recently 2009's "Strange Cousins from the West.