Laurel

Yawar Raza and Catherine Turner , both of Laurel, were named to the dean's list for the winter quarter at Rochester Institute of Technology, in Rochester, N.Y. Raza is a third-year student in the B. Thomas Golisano College of Computing and Information Sciences, while Turner, a second-years student, is in the College of Imaging Arts and Sciences. Alexandra Durso and Jacqueline Sams, both of Laurel, were among the 300 James Madison University students who embarked on 30 spring break trips around the country and world.

What is it about Anne Arundel County that makes it so desirable to outsiders? The water? The air? If so, it ought to be packaged in flasks and sold to tourists.A few years ago, some of the county's neighbors in Baltimore's Brooklyn community wanted to defect from the Queen City of the Patapsco Drainage Basin (a name journalist John Goodspeed coined decades ago) and secede to Anne Arundel. They felt neglected by the city in spite of the high property taxes they pay. The secession effort eventually withered.

Today: The Grade III, $100,000 Laurel Futurity is a steppingstone toward the 1999 Triple Crown series, most notably of late the prep for Captain Bodgit. It has drawn six, with Millions looming as a strong favorite.Tomorrow: Six young fillies are entered in the Grade III, $100,000 Selima Stakes at 1 1/8 miles. With Edgar Prado aboard, the closer Magic Broad is the likely post-time choice.Pub Date: 10/31/98

Races three through nine were canceled yesterday at Laurel Park because of extreme cold and wind. This week's inclement weather resulted in the cancellation of races four through nine on Monday, the full card of nine races on Thursday and seven races yesterday. Live racing is scheduled to resume today with 10 races, with the first post scheduled for 12: 15 p.m. The Twin Trifecta carryover for today is $27,600.

Today Three stakes races highlight the weekend at Laurel Park. Seven horses are scheduled to run in the $75,000 Deputed Testamony Stakes, while nine horses are expected for the $60,000 Maryland Racing Media Handicap, including a pair of 2001 stakes winners - Too Too Devine and Irving's Baby. Tomorrow Six horses will compete in the $75,000 Horatius Stakes.

Prado keeps the faith in 2 long shotsMaryland's leading jockey, Edgar Prado, will ride two long shots in the $10 million Breeders' Cup Championships tomorrow, but he is not discounting his chances.Prado says he has a decent shot in the $1 million Juvenile Fillies race on Booly, the Laurel-based filly trained by Vinnie Blengs. "The only time she went long, she won," said Prado, referring to the Selima Stakes at Laurel on Oct. 18. "But that was on grass." This race is 1 1/16 miles, the same distance as the Selima.

KinderMender Walk-In Pediatric Center is celebrating the grand opening of its newest location, Saturday, March 16, at 805 Washington Blvd., in Laurel. The festivities will feature food, drinks, balloon animals, a clown, tour of the new facility and door prizes attendees can win every half hour. The new center houses six urgent care/sick care rooms, a medication dispensary, a state of the art X-ray machine on site and three segregated rooms for well children, which help prevent the spread of infection.