Pat Flynn

If she can avoid it, North Laurel resident Pat Flynn steers clear of the Route 216 and Baltimore Avenue intersection.The crossroads is a disaster waiting to happen, say Mrs. Flynn and others in the community, who for years have been asking State Highway Administration officials to install a traffic light."

Things are heating up already for Saturday night's lacrosse rematch between Johns Hopkins and Towson State at Towson's Minnegan Stadium in the NCAA quarterfinals.Hopkins, the No. 5 seed, advanced to that round yesterday by beating No. 12 seed Notre Dame, 15-7, in the first round at Homewood.The Blue Jays were sloppy in spots, but their coach, Tony Seaman, was not concerned."We're playing Saturday," Seaman said, getting right to the heart of the matter.Towson, which beat Hopkins, 14-13, in the final second of play at Homewood nine days ago, is the No. 4 seed.

Three years after state-of-the-art speed humps were installed on Baltimore Avenue in North Laurel, residents say the county needn't have bothered."God forbid, one of my children should chase a ball," said Pat Flynn, a Baltimore Avenue resident. "We don't let them play out ** there unless we're there with them."It's a lack of respect for other people," she said. "There's no reason to speed through a residential neighborhood."Unlike speed bumps, which make contact with front and rear wheels separately, the speed humps are 3-inch-high, 12-foot-wide slabs on which all four wheels of a car rest at one time.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Brian Burlace was a true defenseman in name only. When he wasn't scoring a goal on an untouched length-of-the-field sprint, he was kicking a Brown shot out of the net after Maryland goalie Steve Kavovit lost the ball 15 yards from the net.Burlace's opportunistic play typified Maryland's 16-13 NCAA quarterfinal lacrosse victory over Brown yesterday afternoon at Stevenson Field. Perhaps it also typifies the Terps' surprising return to the Final Four after a four-year absence.

REPORT CARDS have been issued a little later than usual at area schools because of inclement weather. They bring with them the usual anxiety generated by our children's performance reviews -- and an opportunity to notice some of the wonderful things our students have been doing. Here's a sampling. At Hammond Middle School, children have been busy with the school's science fair -- Science Expo 2000. Sophia Berruz won the competition with her project, "Let's Make Paper." Yao Lu won second place with "Which Fabric Is the Best Insulator," and Paige Lewis and Lauren Greer won third prize for "The Flame Game."

Pat Flynn, a 145-pound wrestler for Annapolis, is 16-0.Still, his season has been up and down."I've wrestled up a lot at 152 and 160, but I like that role," said Flynn, the Maryland State Wrestling Association's top-ranked wrestler at 145. "I kind of expected it, since I'm a senior and a team captain. And it's what I can do to help the team."In the eighth annual Arundel Invitational tournament Saturday, Flynn helped Annapolis win the team title for the first time, as the Panthers (146 points)

A standing-room-only crowd of more than 275 residents packed the hearing room in the county office building last night to tell the Planning Board their concerns about capital budget requests for the fiscal year beginning July 1.Nancy Perkins of Vista Road wanted to make sure a $132,000storm drainage project for her street was included among the recommendations. The project is not scheduled to begin until July 1997, but that may be too late to do any good, Ms. Perkins told the board.Properties continue to be developed without adequate storm drainage, she said, because the county has been granting the developer waivers and accepting fees in lieu of construction.

WHEN PRINCIPAL Sterlind Burke joined the Patuxent Valley Middle School staff three years ago, he invited some relatives to visit for Thanksgiving.The Burke family, which sings professionally, decided to present a community concert and donate the proceeds to charity.For the third consecutive year, the gospel group will perform in a concert called "Songs for Our Harvest" at 6: 30 p.m. Nov. 14 at the school, 9151 Vollmerhausen Road, Jessup.The concert will be a fund-raiser for the Savage Food Bank, and admission is a canned food item.

DeMatha lost by four points to No. 2 Mount St. Joseph in the Archbishop Curley Tournament eight days ago, but one week made a big difference.The Hyattsville wrestlers, coached by Columbia resident Dick Messier, exacted revenge at yesterday's Annapolis Tournament. The Stags (217 points) had four individual champs in routing the runner-up Gaels (179.5, two champs) and dethroning two-time champion Altoona, Pa. (168, one).Howard county's only participant in the 13-school tournament was Centennial, which finished last on just 12 team points.

BUSINESSES interested in tax credits -- and community kudos -- should contact Murray Hill Middle School.Our newest neighborhood school is getting the kinks out of its system. Construction was finished just before the beginning of the fall term.In the flurry of activity that comes with the start of school, PTA and school officials have not called businesses to set up partnerships.Here is an opportunity to make a difference in children's lives, get a tax break and create goodwill among a student body of several hundred.