Laramore

Arundel High football coach Chuck Markiewicz missed out on a celebration last season, a celebration that was being planned for this week. Nearly everyone, including Markiewicz, thought he started this season with 96 career wins and would be going for No. 100 on Friday at Northeast. But it turned out Markiewicz recorded his 100th win last season in a 39-0 victory over Northeast. He is now 106-77 in his 18 seasons as a head coach, the past four at his alma mater, Arundel. "The kids told me they were going to throw a bucket of water on me this Friday if we win at Northeast, and I told them they better not," said Markiewicz, whose No. 12 Wildcats are 3-1. "Now, they don't have to."

Passing has always been looked at as a necessary evil at Annapolis High, but now it's a weapon doing evil things to opponents. Arundel found out last night at Al Laramore Field in the capital city.Traditionally known for its power running and smash-mouth style, No. 7 Annapolis now strikes fear with its passing. Faced with trying to stop too many offensive facets, No. 15 Arundel (2-3, 1-1) fell, 28-8.The Panthers still don't pass much, but when they do it's not just a decoy to keep opposing defenses honest, but to get results.

Arundel's football team is on the same path that Broadneck was a year ago. To get to the Class 4A state championship game at M&T Bank Stadium means going through Suitland of Prince George's County in the state semifinals. The Wildcats will travel to Suitland in District Heights for a 1 p.m. kickoff Saturday in a matchup of 12-0 teams. The Rams, who are on a 25-game winning streak, seek their second straight state title and third in four years. No. 4 Arundel advanced with a 49-20 victory over then-No.

Ninth-ranked Annapolis (8-1) struck for 26 first-half points and went on to a 40-7 homecoming victory last night over Chesapeake (2-7) at Al Laramore Field, Richard Ensor Stadium.Senior back Shawn Taylor ran for 150 yards on 15 attempts, scoring the first and next-to-last Panthers touchdowns and surpassing 1,000 yards rushing for the season.Taylor, who ran for 116 yards on nine carries in the first half, scored the first Annapolis touchdown on a 54-yard run with 9:05 left in the first period.

Thursday's bad weather created a lot of havoc with Easter holiday tournaments in baseball, softball and lacrosse. Public school teams are not allowed to play on Good Friday or Saturday, which was the Jewish Passover.As a result, teams scrambled to play some games tomorrow or next weekend. Some games had to be canceled all together.The annual Annapolis (5-1) vs. No. 5-ranked St. Mary's (4-4) boys lacrosse clash was wiped out Thursday, and the two teams can't play tomorrow because of league commitments.

Is there any doubt who plays the best high school baseball in the metro area?Big league scouts like Jim Gilbert of the Orioles and Walter Youse of the Milwaukee Brewers, who have coached high school-ageteams, flat out give the nod to Anne Arundel County. They say the caliber of baseball here is better than anywhere else.After what happened this weekend, who can disagree?Inconsistent Glen Burnie (5-6) went against highly touted Mount St. Joseph thisweekend, embarrassed the host Gaels and won the St. Joe Easter Tournament.

College soccer scholarships in Anne Arundel County are rare, even at schools like Chesapeake, which has a rich tradition in the sport. So, when the Cougars' Chris Saul signed a national letter of intent two weeks ago to accept a full Division I scholarship to Longwood University in Farmville, Va., it was noteworthy. Saul is just the third Chesapeake soccer player to receive a Division I scholarship. A two-time second-team All-State forward, Saul scored six goals and had eight assists to finish his three-year varsity career with 23 goals and 18 assists.

Pikesville (15-0) topped visiting Dulaney, 9-2, in the Baltimore County badminton championship yesterday. Brian Grochal, Jared Scheff, Sarah Kahn and Jay Turakhai won their singles matches, while Rachel Blank and Erin Geller, Mike Guberman and Shawn Shapiro, David Brownstein and Carly Pitler, Ian Levy and Mike Soforenko, and Hyein Yoo and Prethi Gaddam took the doubles matches in convincing fashion. The win marks the Panthers' ninth title in 12 years, including a streak of three straight.

Anne Arundel County's sports program is about to undergo a renaissance. Changes are happening fast and have been for the past couple of years.The loss of three great football coaches, each of whom was an athletic director at one time or another in his career, in the lastcouple of years signaled the beginning of big changes to come. At the time, we may not have realized what was on the horizon.Those changes included the retirements of the two people who ran the show -- county supervisors of physical education Paul Rusko and Jean Boyd as well as a few athletic directors.

The Baltimore Farmers Market was abustle with earnest, good-natured shoppers seeking the country-fresh makings of Thanksgiving dinner yesterday, the biggest day of the year for the grower-sellers, who had set up their tables by sunrise.Awash in dazzling autumn sunlight relieved by shade from the overhead Jones Falls Expressway, the market drew a mixed crowd of weekly regulars, Sunday sightseers and new shoppers exploring its reputed choice and bargains.The crowds leisurely inspected the piles of cabbage aneggplant, savored sample cups of cider, learned about the relative merits ofdifferent sweet potatoes or inquired about dried flower arrangements.