Mustangs

Derrick Brown scored 20 points, and C.J. Anderson added 13 as No. 16 Xavier (12-2, 1-0) rolled to a 70-44 victory over visiting Saint Louis (9-6, 0-1) last night in the Atlantic 10 opener for both teams. No. 20 Arizona State 69, Oregon State 38: : James Harden scored 22 points and the host Sun Devils (13-2, 2-1) won their ninth in the past 10. The Beavers fell to 6-7, 1-2. No. 21 Butler 64, Wright State 48: : Matt Howard scored 14 to lead the host Bulldogs (13-1, 4-0 Horizon League) to their fifth straight victory.

Ronnie Zeberlein C. Milton Wright, baseball The senior second baseman went 6-for-9 with a home run, two doubles and four RBIs this week in helping lead his Mustangs to three wins, one a 4-1 victory over then-No. 1 Calvert Hall. He drove in three of his team's four runs against the Cardinals and knocked in the winning run in the last inning of the Mustangs' 5-4 victory over North Harford. His coach, Tony Blackburn, says Zeberlein is "a tireless worker. He would take ground balls all day if we let him."

Right-hander Elaine Nescio (4-1) pitched a complete game, giving up one run on three hits and striking out 14 as No. 4 Archbishop Spalding beat St. Vincent Pallotti, 2-1, yesterday in softball. Nescio (1-for-3) also had the only extra-base hit of the game, a two-run homer to left in the bottom of the fourth for the host Cavaliers (4-1). Institute of Notre Dame 7, No. 10 Mount de Sales 6: : The host Indians (1-4) got their first win of the season behind right-hander Kayla Mohr (1-2) and Madison Grant (3-for-4)

Snow flurries blew through as the Fallston and C. Milton Wright baseball teams went out to play Tuesday. And though the game went to an extra inning before the Cougars earned a 13-11 victory, left fielder Taylor Nelson was anything but cold when he came to the plate with the bases loaded in the top of the eighth. Mustangs pitcher Bobby Ruse had intentionally walked Shane Hollman to load the bases. Fallston coach Joe Connolly yelled: "Make him pay, Taylor. Make him pay." Nelson took ball one, then sent the next pitch over the Mustangs' center fielder.

Corin Adams scored 16 points to lead four players in double figures, and Morgan State beat American, 80-65, last night. The Eagles (5-4) led 39-31 at the half before the Lady Bears (4-2) outscored them 49-26 in the second half. Omega Boddie's layup gave Morgan State a 57-55 lead with 10:21 left, and the Lady Bears never trailed again. Liz Hayes and freshman Liz Leer had 19 and 18 points, respectively, for American. Hayes had five three-pointers. It was the third consecutive victory for Morgan State and the end of American's three-game winning streak.

Erasing an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit, Mervo beat City, 53-52, last night to capture the Class 3A North regional title. After the Knights routed the Mustangs by 30 points earlier this season, Mervo coach Daryl Wade wasn't hesitant to call his team's victory an upset. "This is definitely a David and Goliath story," he said. Trailing 50-39 with four minutes left, the Mustangs went on a 14-2 run, helped by sophomore guard Tyrone Smothers' six points in that stretch. With 31.7 seconds left, Mustangs junior forward Byron Westmoreland hit two free throws to tie the game.

Tavon Austin had 10 carries for 152 yards and two touchdowns, both in the first quarter, as second-ranked Dunbar shut out host Mervo, 12-0, last night. The Poets (8-0) totaled 367 offensive yards against the Mustangs (5-3). Assistant coach Travis Blackston called the field conditions "terrible" and said, "There were a lot of fumbled snaps. It was hard to keep the ball clean and it was a fumble after every snap. The field was bad and the conditions just got worse and worse." No. 7 Edmondson 48, Northwestern 14 -- Terrence Wilson had rushed for 136 yards and three touchdowns on 13 carries as the Red Storm (6-2)

Unranked Parkville (12-10) scored a surprisingly easy 61-38 upset last night of visiting Catonsville, eliminating the No. 15-ranked Comets from the Class 3A North playoffs.Catonsville ended its season 18-3, but two of those losses came in the Comets' last three games.The Knights' Kareem Hayes led all scorers with 15 points, Earl Smith had 11 points, 13 rebounds and seven blocks, and Craig Jordan had 12 points and 11 assists.Parkville, which outscored Catonsville 27-13 in the fourth period, visits Milford Mill in a second-round game on Monday.

After coming from behind in 11 of its 16 wins a year ago, C. Milton Wright has built a reputation as a team that, no matter how far behind, never seems to be out of a game.So in yesterday's finals of the Rob Spicer Memorial Tournament, No. 11 Glenelg took no chances.The defending Class 1A state champion sent 34 batters to the plate and scored 21 runs -- in the first three innings -- en route to a 22-7 win over the No. 14 Mustangs."It wasn't imperative that we score a lot early, but it was imperative that we come out and try to get on top," said Glenelg coach Tom Thrasher.

Meade senior striker Mike Cheman spent a hot August afternoon in the middle of the Mustangs' home field, just he and a soccer ball.A proper gauge as to how far Cheman has come in the sport he picked up 10 years ago can be found with the 15 or so minutes he was out there sweating. Touch after touch after touch -- an amazing 1,505 in all -- before the ball finally found earth."When I was little growing up, I'd go out in my front yard and juggle with the ball. I'd get 10 and that would be a big deal," he said.

Marriotts Ridge has found ways to beat top-ranked River Hill like no other team in Howard County, and Friday night, the No. 8 Mustangs continued that recent dominance with solid finishing and flawless defense. Josh Stover scored two goals and the Mustangs defenders never gave host River Hill enough space to create many chances in a 4-0 victory. As a result, Marriotts Ridge will play No. 6 Severna Park, the top team from Anne Arundel, in the District V championship Tuesday at Long Reach.

Navy (4-2) at Southern Methodist (3-2) Time: : 8 TV: : MASN Radio: : 1090 AM, 1430 AM Line: : Navy by 7 Series: : SMU leads 7-6 Last meeting: : Navy won, 34-7, on Oct. 25, 2008 Here he comes again: : Navy's victory over SMU last season was the breakout game for the Midshipmen QB Ricky Dobbs; the then-sophomore was thrown into action when starter Jarod Bryant injured his shoulder, and he responded with 224 rushing yards (the fourth-highest total...

The C. Milton Wright girls soccer team's combination of stingy defense and timely offense proved to be too much for Fallston on Monday night. Megan Will and Rachel Neff scored goals for the visiting Mustangs, who constantly slowed the No. 12 Cougars' repeated offensive pressure and pulled out a 2-0 victory in an Upper Chesapeake Bay Athletic Conference Chesapeake Division game. Fallston (5-4, 2-1) was aggressive on offense throughout. The Cougars made a number of long runs, sent several balls deep into the Mustangs' end and kept the pressure on, but they couldn't finish as C.M. Wright stopped them time and again.

The John Carroll girls soccer team is a mix of new and old this season, with a different approach toward getting to goal: moving forward as one with short passes. Before the season, coach Gary Lynch believed it would take time for things to come together. But early indications are the No. 4 Patriots are way ahead of schedule. In Saturday's home game against No. 13 C. Milton Wright, the Patriots attacked with poise and persistence, coming away with a sturdy 3-0 win over the Mustangs. Sophomore Leah Pace scored in the first half, with senior Colleen O'Connell and freshman Olivia DiFonso finishing chances in the second half.

The Stevenson men's lacrosse team's fledgling run through the NCAA Division III tournament ground to a halt. On the heels of beating eight-time national champion Salisbury, the No. 1 Mustangs could not sustain that effort and fell to No. 5 Gettysburg, 12-7, in the semifinal round at Caves Athletic Complex in Owings Mills on Sunday. Stevenson (17-2), which became the first athletic program at the school to advance to a national tournament semifinal, played like a newcomer, committing costly turnovers and taking quick, low-percentage shots against a Bullets program that has played in eight semifinals.

Nearly three weeks ago, after Salisbury had embarrassed Stevenson in the Capital Athletic Conference championship game, Sea Gulls coach Jim Berkman said it wasn't time to count out his team nationally. As of Wednesday evening, the time had come. Host Stevenson avenged the April 19 rout by Salisbury with an 11-9 win Wednesday in the NCAA Division III quarterfinals, beating the two-time defending national champion before an announced 1,302. The Mustangs (17-1) will host Gettysburg (15-3)

Harry Slade allowed just two hits over four innings and hit the game-winning three-run homer in the third inning as the No. 7 Loyola baseball team edged Gilman, 3-2, on Friday. The host Dons (16-6) held the Greyhounds scoreless until the seventh inning, in which they scored both of their runs. Gilman's Ryan Ripken pitched five innings in the loss. No. 4 C. Milton Wright 28, Southwestern 0: : Bobby Ruse and Ryan Corn combined to throw a no-hitter for the host Mustangs (13-5) in the opening round of the Class 4A North playoffs.

No. 5 C. Milton Wright used two big innings and four double plays to end No. 2 Fallston's dream of a perfect season with a 9-4 victory over the host Cougars in an Upper Chesapeake Bay Athletic Conference game Wednesday. Fallston (14-1, 9-1) still needs one victory in its last two UCBAC games to clinch a division title. C.M. Wright (12-5, 8-4) took charge early. The Mustangs scored three in the top of the first and added four more in the fourth for a 7-1 lead. Starter Sam O'Hare went the distance, scattering nine hits, four of which came in the last two innings.

Attackmen Jake DeLillo and Matt Cannone combined for seven goals, and visiting Salisbury held Stevenson scoreless for the first half as the No. 10 Sea Gulls easily defeated No. 1 and previously unbeaten Stevenson, 13-5, in the Capital Athletic Conference championship game in Owings Mills. Salisbury (14-3), the defending Division III champion, won its 15th consecutive conference championship and avenged a 12-8 loss to Stevenson (14-1) this season. The Sea Gulls looked as if they were rounding into their usual championship form while the Mustangs appeared to be doing the opposite.

Fourteenth-ranked Marriotts Ridge does not have the type of lineup that strikes fear into its opponents, so the Mustangs rely on sound defense and good pitching to win games. In Saturday's Howard County matchup against No. 8 Hammond, Marriotts Ridge made enough plays on offense and locked down the host Golden Bears' potent lineup for a 4-3 victory. The Mustangs handed Hammond its first loss of the season, but they still remain a game back in the conference standings. "We really tried to focus on our game," said Marriotts Ridge assistant coach Michael Doyle, who was filling in for head coach Paul Eckert, who had a family commitment.