Regional Playoffs

During the last four weeks, C. Milton Wright has become one of the hottest boys basketball teams in the county.With Wednesday night's62-58 upset of Fallston, the Mustangs have run up a 5-2 record through their last seven games.Unfortunately for the Mustangs (8-11 overall, 5-7 league), that season-ending rally won't be enough to carry them into the regional playoffs.Because of a playoff system that awards points for victories over teams in a higher classification, C. Milton Wright is at a disadvantage.

Dates and times have been set for next weekend's regional playoffs as teams aim for the chance to play in the finals at M&T Bank Stadium Nov. 29-Dec. 1. Here is the complete schedule: Class 4A North 4. Blake (6-4) at 1. Westminster (10-0), Friday, 7 3. Catonsville (7-3) at 2. Sherwood (8-2), Friday, 7 Class 4A East 4. Meade (8-2) at 1. Arundel (10-0), Friday, 7 3. South River (8-2) at 2. Old Mill (8-2), Friday, 7 Class 4A West 4. Bethesda-Chevy Chase (7-3)

Earlier this month, the Liberty volleyball team ended an era when itknocked off North Carroll in three straight games -- handing the Panthers their first county loss since 1988. The Lions have yet to lose a county game, entering the week with a 5-0 mark and 10-2 overall, while the Panthers have since lost another county game to drop to 3-2.Chances are slim the Panthers will be in position to catch the Lions for the county title, but tomorrow's finale at North Carroll will still have much at stake -- including pride.

With quarterfinal victories in their respective MPSSAA regional tournaments Thursday, the North Harford , Fallston and Bel Air field hockey squads all earned the right to play another day. In the all-Harford Class 3A North matchup between the second-seeded C. Milton Wright girls and seventh-seed North Harford, the North Harford Hawks walked away with a narrow 2-1 win. Though originally slated to be played at CMW, the game was moved to...

9 Points scored by River Hill's girls lacrosse attacker Alex Napoli in the Hawks' 16-9 win over Reservoir that closed out the regular season last week. 16 Runs and hits the Reservoir softball team had in its 16-5 win over Central in the opening round of the Class 3A South regional playoffs on Friday. 20-0 Regular-season record for the No. 1 Centennial baseball team, the first undefeated season by a county team. 254 Strikeouts for Hammond freshman softball pitcher Stephanie Speierman enterting the regional playoffs, a county record.

Before the regional playoffs started, not everyone thought the team from Sparrows Point High School would make it this far. Not little Sparrows Point, the second-smallest public high school in Baltimore County. Not after Tropical Storm Isabel destroyed much of the community and so many of the players' homes. And certainly not after a car wreck on Oct. 1 killed one of their teammates, Adam Parr, and left another student, Zachary Bradley, in a coma at Maryland Shock Trauma Center, clinging to life.

A pair of upsets rocked the Class 2A West regional playoffs in boys soccer yesterday. Host Atholton defeated No. 2-ranked Glenelg, 1-0, and Hammond was victorious over No. 9 Centennial, 2-1, at Howard. Atholton (2-9-1), which had lost six one-goal games, won on a rebound shot by Scott DeFrances in the 27th minute after an attempt by Kevin Daciek. Howard County champion Glenelg (12-3), which had beaten the Raiders, 5-1, during the regular season, outshot them 11-6. Hammond (7-6-1) upset Centennial in the regional playoffs for the second straight year.

No. 8-ranked Centennial scored 13 runs in the first inning and never looked back in a four-inning, 28-7 victory over Fairmont Heights in the first-round of the Class 2A South regional playoffs in Ellicott City yesterday.Centennial (16-4) punched out 25 hits and scored seven runs in the second, three in the third, and five in the fourth against its Prince George's County opponent.The Eagles received contributions from junior first baseman Steve Lazarewicz (3-for-5 with five RBIs), senior catcher Matt Duechler (2-for-3, four RBIs)

Stability might be the best thing going for Wilde Lake's hockey team.For the first time in four years, the Wildecats do not have a new coach. Not only does Karen Doerrler return for her second season, she brings back 10 starters.Although they made it to the first round of the Class 1A regional playoffs, the Wildecats struggled last season. They posted a 2-10 finish, winning just one game against Howard County opponents, and ended up last in the league.A lack of experience hurt the offense as the Wildecats managed just 10 goals.

Kellie Evans was masterful on the mound.No. 6-ranked North County's senior pitcher threw a perfect game to lead the Knights to a 9-0 win over Annapolis in the first round of the Class 4A East regional playoffs in Annapolis yesterday.Evans faced the minimum 21 batters, striking out 17. She also went 3-for-5 at the plate with two RBIs as the Knights improved to 15-6.Junior center fielder Linda Parks went 3-for-5, including a triple and one RBI.North County will play at Glen Burnie at 4 p.m. Monday.

The No. 7 Glenelg boys lacrosse team got a boost of confidence going into the regional playoffs, coming from behind impressively to defeat Severna Park, 9-6, in the District V championship game at Reservoir on Tuesday. Shrugging off a 5-1 deficit to the No. 13 Falcons, the Gladiators dominated possession throughout the second half and patiently executed their attack to pull away. Nick Wynne (3 goals, 1 assist), Tyler Wassen (2 goals, 1 assist), and Mark Darden (1 goal, 2 assists)

Glenelg won its first Howard County girls basketball title since the 1998-99 season Thursday night when the No. 9 Gladiators defeated Oakland Mills, 41-34. The game was a matchup between the top two teams in the county standings. "To win it as a senior is really special," said Glenelg's Liz Ebeling, who took three charges in the game. Those charges had a cumulative effect on Oakland Mills, making the Scorpions hesitant to drive to the basket. "We were afraid to get the charges," Oakland Mills' Jasmine Hill said.

Arundel's leading scorer, Mike Kovach, likes to wander the field, constantly searching for the best place to take control of the ball. In Wednesday night's Anne Arundel County matchup at No. 10 Broadneck, Kovach often jogged back through the midfield to distance himself from the Bruins defenders and find open space. Those types of ballhawking instincts were the difference as Kovach and Billy Fowler scored two first-half goals in four minutes to lead the ninth-ranked Wildcats to a 2-0 victory.

Camille Freeman, a 16-year-old senior at Wilde Lake, captains the Wildecats varsity volleyball team and is, in the words of her coach, Caitlin Geoghan, "the most vocal leader we have." This year's squad is 11-3 overall, 11-2 in the county, compiling the best record in the program's history. Freeman, a first-year varsity player, and the Wildecats will begin play in the Class 3A East regional playoffs tomorrow. Your volleyball team has been something of a surprise this year, hasn't it? Yes. The county didn't expect us to be as good as we are. We weren't expecting it, either.

After losing five of their top eight players from last season's team, which lost in the first round of the regional playoffs, not much was expected from the Fallston volleyball team this season. But everything came together for coach Nicole Hoover's eighth-ranked Fallston team, which set a school record for victories and captured the Upper Chesapeake Bay Athletic Conference title last week. "I think probably the motivating point was people didn't give us much of a chance because we lost [so many]

9 Points scored by River Hill's girls lacrosse attacker Alex Napoli in the Hawks' 16-9 win over Reservoir that closed out the regular season last week. 16 Runs and hits the Reservoir softball team had in its 16-5 win over Central in the opening round of the Class 3A South regional playoffs on Friday. 20-0 Regular-season record for the No. 1 Centennial baseball team, the first undefeated season by a county team. 254 Strikeouts for Hammond freshman softball pitcher Stephanie Speierman enterting the regional playoffs, a county record.