Potomac

With Potomac senior forward Regan Carter having her offensive way for 15 points early in the first half, Wilde Lake coach Kelly Storr knew who to turn to during a critical second-quarter timeout in last night's Class 2A South region quarterfinal.Up just 17-16, Storr employed a box-and-one defense to stop Carter and assigned Wildecats sophomore forward Bridget White (10 rebounds) the unenviable task of shadowing the Braves premier scorer (25.0 ppg).All White did was hold Carter scoreless during a critical nine-minute juncture that saw Wilde Lake eventually build a 16-point second-half lead.

Opponents of the development of National Harbor on the shores of the Potomac in Prince George's County have played their trump card, sending "notice of intent to sue" the developer over wrecking bald eagle habitat on the property. The formal notice, sent Thursday to developer Milton V. Peterson, says that he violated the Endangered Species Act when one of his employees cut down a cherry tree that held a bald eagle's nest on the 534-acre tract south of the Woodrow Wilson Memorial Bridge.

OXON HILL -- McDonogh quarterback Bobby Sabelhaus said he was confident that the top-ranked Eagles could get their highly touted passing game into high gear yesterday against host Potomac of Prince George's County.But with one ill-advised passing play, that offense and McDonogh's dream of a second straight perfect season both came to a crashing halt.After marching most of the way back from a 19-point first-half deficit and being poised to take the lead early in the fourth quarter, McDonogh threw away its chances for victory when receiver Jason Taylor's option pass was picked off and returned for a touchdown, giving the Braves a 25-14 lead that held up as the final score.

MARBURY -- Come on, get away from the hustle and bustle. Get on the rejuvenated Potomac where fish and wildlife abound, and where some humans are making an effort to restore waters while other environmentalists are cleaning up shoreside.The average largemouth bass of Matawoman Creek are considered by the Department of Natural Resources to be the biggest in the state. So it's not easy to forget about them while casting the shoreline in spring when the biggest of the biggies are on the rampage.

March is probably the best time for Carroll fishing fans to catch a tiger muskellunge from the nearby Potomac River. You will find them at the mouths of the larger feeder streams and rivers that flow into the Potomac as these sharp-toothed trophies feed on suckers.Maryland began stocking hybrid tiger muskies in the mid and upper Potomac in 1989 by crossing male northern pike with female true muskellunge. The result is an extremely aggressive fish of large size with little or no reproductive capacity.

POTOMAC -- The view from Mitch and Bill's Exxon in these days of economic distress includes an occasional hint of trouble in this wealthy enclave, the telling of a worrisome tale usually involving exotic cars.When the Jaguars and the BMWs and the Ferraris pull in to fill up, the driver is likely to be Ted Koppel or Sugar Ray Leonard or the actress Linda Carter or Arnold Schwarzenegger or a big-time Capitol Hill lobbyist.Under a proposal still pending in Annapolis, automobiles would be hit with a 2 percent personal property tax. For the cars driven by these celebrities -- Mr. Koppel drives a fire-engine-red Mercedes 500, according to station owner Mike Mitchell -- that tax would be hefty.

OXON HILL -- In a game pitting two teams making their first playoff appearances, No. 7 Southern (10-1) held on for a 14-12 Class 2A quarterfinal victory over Potomac (9-2) of Prince George's County.With the win, fifth seed Southern will play host to eighth seed Dunbar on Friday in Harwood in the semifinals. No. 12 Dunbar (9-2) was a 22-10 victor over No. 4 Overlea (10-1) on Friday night.Yesterday, it was speed against power as Southern jumped out to an early 14-0 lead.B. J. Summers (20-for-123 rushing)

The Potomac River, to this point, seems to have escaped the recent diesel-fuel spill on Sugarland Run with minimal damage to its fish and wildlife, according to Ken Penrod, a bass guide and conservation chairman for the Maryland B.A.S.S. Federation.Penrod, who spends virtually every day between late March anNovember on the Potomac guiding bass fishing parties orparticipating in volunteer work with state and federal fisheries groups, said that by Thursday there was little remaining evidence of the spill below Little Falls near Washington.

And now, some good news about the environment.While many species of plants and animals are vanishing, a new freshwater fish has been "discovered" in the cold, rushing waters of streams that feed the Potomac River in western Maryland.Only a handful of new fish are found each year around the world, so spotting one in a densely populated state is remarkable.Richard Raesly, a biologist at Frostburg State University, identified the bizarre-looking member of the sculpin family, a fish with a big, flat head and upward-gazing eyes.

On my first cast of the day, I scored a bulls-eye on a submerged stump. Bass pro Bob Parker attempted to conceal his amusement while nudging his boat toward the Mattawoman Creek shoreline so that we could free my lure. It was the first of a series of mishaps and the beginning of a great largemouth bass safari.If I had to limit all my bass fishing to a single spot, the choice would be this section of the lower Potomac River. Most bass fans finger this area as the East Coast's finest largemouth waters.