Richmond

RICHMOND, Va. - Kristi Toliver scored 21 points yesterday to lead five Terps in double figures as No. 14 Maryland overcame a five-point halftime deficit to beat Richmond, 83-65. Demauria Liles (12 points, 11 rebounds) and Lynetta Kizer (12 points, 10 rebounds) each had double doubles to help the Terps control the boards and shut down the Spiders in the second half. "We made some adjustments in the locker room [at halftime] to our defense," Maryland coach Brenda Frese said. "I think the execution by our team was tremendous in the second half.

Avoiding the purgatory that is Interstate 95 on a holiday weekend is not all that difficult if you're heading from Baltimore to the Northeast. Pennsylvania offers a wide choice of routes to scoot to the west of Philadelphia and invade New Jersey. Going south is more difficult. There aren't that many great options when you're heading to Richmond or beyond at peak travel times. The obvious route is to take the Capital Beltway to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge and follow I-95 south. But I-95 in Northern Virginia frequently makes the New Jersey Turnpike look like a quiet country road.

RICHMOND, Va. - Richmond intercepted Towson five times, converting those turnovers into 31 points en route to a 45-14 rout of the Tigers yesterday in the Colonial Athletic Association opener for both teams. Richmond (2-1), the defending CAA champion, rushed for 184 yards against Towson (1-2), led by Josh Vaughn's 103 yards. The Spiders shut down Towson's rushing game (55 yards), forcing the Tigers to rely on the passing of senior quarterback Sean Schaefer (21-for-32, 214 yards, two touchdowns)

George J. Bernier Jr., a third-generation brewer who was the last brewmaster of the old F. & M. Schaefer Brewery in Highlandtown, died Sunday of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at his Parkville home. He was 81. Mr. Bernier was born in Richmond, Va., and attended Benedictine High School until moving to Baltimore in 1941 to board at Mount St. Joseph High School in Irvington. He left high school in 1944, and joined the Navy. He served with the Seabees on Guam, where he was a member of a dredge equipment division until being discharged in 1946.

RICHMOND, Va. -- They're stumping like county clerks in Virginia. One presidential candidate was pressing palms in a high school gymnasium while another was holding a town hall meeting with teachers and parents. It seems you can't drive 50 miles down I-95 or I-64 these days without eyeballing someone who might be the next president. "All of a sudden they love us," said Rachel McCabe, a computer technician from Fairfax who was ogling the array of motorcycles and police cars escorting Barack Obama to a rally in Alexandria yesterday.

Damn, I love Americans. Just when you've written them off as hopeless, as a nation in decline, they turn around and do something extraordinary, which tells you why the United States of America is still the greatest nation on earth. But too, what is happening in America and Kenya holds lessons for politicians everywhere, and South Africa would do well to take heed. Barack Obama's strong lead in Iowa shows we are entering a new world, one where the Internet exposes every lie, where chat rooms allow unprecedented discussion, where blogs see commentary untrammeled by the dictates of powerful news corporations.

On December 5, 2007, RICHMOND D. A Memorial Service will be held Seventh Day Adventist Church, 5814 Harford Road, Baltimore, MD, at 2:30 P.M. Interment to immediately follow.

College football Richmond at Appalachian State 8 p.m. [ESPN2] This is a semifinal game in the awkwardly named Division I Football Championship Subdivision. I guess one-double-A was waaay too long. Whatever ... we have the giant-killers, Appalachian State - victors over Michigan this season - against Richmond. The other semifinal, Delaware-Southern Illinois, is tomorrow. After knocking off the Wolverines, Appalachian State is 11-2 and going for a national championship threepeat. Richmond is also 11-2.

Cavell Johnson's dunk with 3.2 seconds left broke a tie and gave visiting UMBC a 70-68 victory over Richmond yesterday at the Robins Center. The win gives UMBC its first 3-0 start since the 2002-2003 season. Richmond fell to 2-3. Johnson had tied the game on a short baseline jumper with 29 seconds left. On the game-winning play, Retrievers guard Jay Greene stole the ball from Richmond guard Kevin Anderson as he tried to penetrate into the lane. Greene drove down the left side of the court and found a streaking Johnson in the center, and the UMBC forward slammed home the winner.