Matchup

Matchup -- Monterrey La Raza (1-2) at Blast (4-0) Site -- 1st Mariner Arena Time -- 8 TV/Radio -- Fox Soccer Channel/680 AM Outlook -- The Blast seeks to continue its season-opening unbeaten streak in its third straight meeting with an expansion team. This is the first televised game on the Fox Soccer Channel's schedule, and it has the Major Indoor Soccer League leader in its fourth early-season home game. Monterrey has proved competitive with a victory over defending league champion Philadelphia and respectable losses to Chicago and California.

Matchup -- Bowie State (0-0) at Glenville State (0-0) Time -- 6 Site -- Morris Stadium, Glenville, W.Va. Outlook -- Bowie State is coming off a 5-5 season and enters this season picked to finish second behind Elizabeth City State in the Eastern Division of the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association. The Bulldogs are led by two preseason first-team All-CIAA selections: junior left offensive tackle Dwayne Frost (6-6, 300 pounds) and senior nose guard Sherman White (6-4, 350). Glenville State, of the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, was 5-6 last season, had the conference's top pass defense along with the league's second-best pass offense.

Matchup -- California Cougars (3-3) at Blast (5-1) Site -- 1st Mariner Arena Time -- 7:35 Radio -- 680 AM Outlook -- This is the finale of back-to-back games for both squads as California seeks to become the first visitor to beat the Blast at home in five outings. The Blast dominated last year's series, outscoring the Cougars, 82-48, while winning five of six and sweeping three in Baltimore. California lost former rookie of the year Vincente Figueroa to a season-ending injury, but Enrique Tovar has picked up the pace.

Matchup -- Detroit Ignition (4-2) at Blast (5-2) Site -- 1st Mariner Arena Time -- 7:35 Radio -- WCBM (680 AM) Outlook -- Mired in a two-game losing streak for the first time this season, the Blast gets no relief tonight. Detroit has been the team's nemesis since entering the MISL as an expansion team, winning six of the teams' seven matches. The latest was a week ago in Michigan by an 11-4 score. The next night, the Blast fell to California, its first home loss. M Ricardinho leads the Ignition with 15 points, and Mike Apple has 13. Machel Millwood (17)

Matchup -- No. 5 Hereford (13-0) vs. Damascus (12-1) Site -- M&T Bank Stadium Time -- 7:30 How they got here -- Damascus: def. Kennedy, 49-0; def. Seneca Valley, 48-26; def. Wilde Lake, 35-6. Hereford: def. Mervo, 63-0; def. Catonsville, 49-3; def. Lackey, 35-20. State titles -- Hereford 3 (1997, 2001, 2002), Damascus 6 (1981, 1992, 1993, 1996, 2003, 2005) Hereford offense vs. Damascus defense -- The Swarmin' Hornets' 3-4 defense has given up 123 points, an average of 9.5 per game.

Games lost yesterday: 5.Total games missed: 53.Earliest estimated date that season can start: Dec. 8.Negotiations: Nothing scheduled. Union's negotiating committee meets tomorrow in New York.Projected player salary losses (through Dec. 8): $208 million.Today's best canceled game: New Jersey at Chicago. Rematch of first-round playoff matchup in which Michael Jordan stared down Nets coach John Calipari in the clinching Game 3.Pub Date: 11/10/98

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Terrell Stokes against Mike Bibby?Just thinking about that matchup is enough to send Maryland basketball fans to the aspirin bottle.And wait until the reality of it unfolds tonight when the Terps play Arizona in the NCAA West Regional semifinals at the Arrowhead Pond.The Terps believe they can spring an upset on the defending national champions, but the point guard matchup isn't exactly a step in that direction.Bibby is Jason Kidd with a jump shot, a supremely quick sophomore All-American who can shoot, pass, dribble and jump -- jump to the NBA as a lottery pick, that is, maybe as soon as next season.

Organizers are scrambling to reschedule after yesterday's postponement of the annual girls basketball game between rivals Mercy and the Institute of Notre Dame.The game, scheduled for last night at the Towson Center, was called at around 4 p.m. when Baltimore County implemented Phase I of the Snow Emergency Plan."Needless to say we're very disappointed," said Mercy coach Mary Ella Marion. "But for the safety of the kids and all the fans this was the only thing we could do."The annual matchup is more than just a basketball game.

Opponent: Carolina MonarchsSite: Baltimore ArenaTime: 7: 30Radio: WWLG (1360 AM), WASA (1330 AM)Outlook: The Monarchs and Bandits should get to know each other real well over the next several hours. This evening's game will be followed by a 1 o'clock matchup tomorrow afternoon. Carolina laid a 12-1 thumping on the Bandits the last time they met two weeks ago. The home team has won all six games in the series, the Bandits prevailing here, 3-2, 4-1 and 2-1. Carolina has lost 12 straight on the road.

Organizers are scrambling to reschedule after yesterday's postponement of the annual girls basketball game between rivals Mercy and the Institute of Notre Dame.The game, scheduled for last night at the Towson Center, was called at around 4 p.m. when Baltimore County implemented Phase I of the Snow Emergency Plan."Needless to say we're very disappointed," said Mercy coach Mary Ella Marion. "But for the safety of the kids and all the fans this was the only thing we could do."The annual matchup is more than just a basketball game.

Phillies@Nationals 7 p.m. [MASN] Baltimoreans are stuck in the middle of this matchup between the champs and the chumps. So, which are worse, the Phillies' obnoxious fans or the Nationals' apathetic ones?

BIG FLIES Melvin Mora launched a 432-foot home run into the upper bullpen to lead off the bottom of the second inning, and Aubrey Huff lined a two-run shot over the out-of-town scoreboard in right field in the third inning to give the Orioles a 4-2 lead. The two home runs give the Orioles a total of 30 through 19 games, which ranks them in the middle of the 30 major league teams in that department. KNOCK THREE TIMES Catcher Gregg Zaun came into Thursday night's game batting an anemic .157, but he singled in each of his first three at-bats to raise his average to .192.

Celtics@Cavaliers 3:30 p.m. [chs. 2, 7] Cleveland has already clinched its No. 1 seeding in the Eastern Conference, so Boston can't affect that, but the Celtics could certainly send a message for a possible Eastern finals matchup by beating the Cavs at home.

Let's take a dispassionate look at the tale of the tape for Saturday's playoff showdown between the Ravens and the AFC South champion Tennessee Titans. The Titans are the No. 1 seed in the AFC. They are listed as a three-point favorite. They are playing at home. And they beat the Ravens in a regular-season matchup at M&T Bank Stadium in October. Oh, and I almost forgot. They are coming off their second scheduled bye week of the season, which compares very favorably to the Ravens' none.

1 Let's Fiesta: Now that most of the insignificant bowl games are out of the way, here's a big one - the Fiesta, in which Ohio State plays against Texas (8:15 p.m., chs. 45, 5). 2 Big East battle: Georgetown and Notre Dame, coming off Big East men's basketball losses, face each other as two of the league's favorites try to get on track (7 p.m., ESPN). 3 One happy coach: After yesterday's playoff win, Ravens coach John Harbaugh (left) meets the press at 3:45 p.m. Check out www.baltimoresun.

1 ACC showdown: Miami-Georgia Tech (7:30 p.m., ESPN) is a key football matchup in that other half of the Atlantic Coast Conference. Who wants to play the Terps? 2 Doubly good: TNT has two powerful intraconference matchups starting at 8 p.m.: Celtics-Pistons, then Lakers-Suns. 3 Go get 'em, Chad: Tonight, Ravens fan, you love the Bengals as they take on the Steelers (8, NFL Network). 4 Try the punch: Ballroom Boxing at Michael's Eighth Avenue features a state title bout between Mike Paschall and Marcus Hall (doors open at 6 p.m., first bout 8:15)

As we learned in the first round, the Los Angeles Dodgers are no longer the team that appeared destined to miss the playoffs in August and scraped in with an 84-78 record. They're a versatile outfit with dangerous bats up and down the lineup and a stingy starter in every rotation slot. Their matchup with the Philadelphia Phillies is no easy call, but I'll take the team that's hitting and pitching better than at any point this season. Not only do the Dodgers boast a nuclear-hot Manny Ramirez in the three hole, they have their chief table-setter, Rafael Furcal, back at the top of the lineup.

Villanova@Pennsylvania 3:30 p.m. [CN8] Is this the best college football game of the day? Probably not, but it's a Philadelphia Big Five matchup. Will it fit in the Palestra? Quick, name each school's most famous football product. Don't peek. ... Got it yet? Respectively, Howie Long and Chuck Bednarik. By the way, former Maryland quarterback Scott Zolak (right) is the analyst for this game.

Red Sox@Orioles 7 p.m. [MASN] In a premium matchup, the reborn Daniel Cabrera goes for the Orioles against the star of last year's postseason for Boston, Josh Beckett, in the first game of a weekend series. The Orioles beat Beckett, 5-4, earlier this month, and the next day, Cabrera (5-1) was the winning pitcher in a 6-3 game.

Matchup -- MISL championship, Blast vs. Monterrey La Raza Site -- U.S. Cellular Arena, Milwaukee Time -- 7 TV/Radio -- Fox Soccer Channel/680 AM Outlook -- The Blast, which went a combined 4-0 in playoff series against the New Jersey Ironmen and Milwaukee Wave, has a chance to secure its fourth league title in six seasons. Monterrey, the first-year franchise from Mexico, is 4-2 in the postseason and advanced on Byron Alvarez's golden goal against the Detroit Ignition. Alvarez has eight goals and 17 points in the playoffs, two more than the Blast's Denison Cabral, who had 11 points in one victory over Milwaukee.