Sea

The cards did not look stacked in Salisbury's favor as the reigning national champion took on the unenviable task of trying to upend undefeated Dickinson. But that is exactly what the No. 12 Sea Gulls did as they evicted the No. 2 Red Devils, 11-9, from a NCAA tournament quarterfinal Wednesday. Salisbury improved to 17-5 and will meet No. 4 Stevenson (20-2) this Sunday night for the right to advance to the title game in Philadelphia on May 26. It is a development that coach Jim Berkman is thankful for. “It was a great win on the road against a team that had an unblemished season,” he said Thursday morning.

Dickinson, the top seed in the South region, will make only its second appearance in a NCAA tournament quarterfinal when Salisbury visits Carlisle, Pa., on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the Sea Gulls, a 10-time national champion, will play in their 16th consecutive quarterfinal. Advantage, Salisbury? Coach Jim Berkman declined to declare that, but he did agree that the tension and pressure is turned up as a team advances deeper into the postseason. “Being at this point, there is more at stake, there is more tension, there is more urgency into the game,” Berkman said Monday.

Grand Cru, a mainstay of Govan's Belvedere Square, is a quiet little secret of a good cocktail joint. You associate the place with wine, I'm sure. But they have a pretty nice little drink program and a team of bartenders who can make you just about anything your heart desires. But if you'd rather let the menu do the ordering for you, let me suggest you try The Old Man and the Sea - the drink not the acclaimed novel, though both are Hemingway crafted. Cuba 1935. As bartender Constante "Constantino" Grande's mixed drinks at his bar, El Floridita, "a scruff, bearish man entered and asked to use the bathroom.

The wake-up call came at 3:15 a.m. Tuesday, but Midshipman Alberto Salabarria was ready well before then. Anticipating a grueling, thrilling, muddy day of Sea Trials at the Naval Academy, Salabarria and some of his classmates couldn't wait. "Everyone was listening to music, trying to motivate themselves," Salabarria said. Staying upbeat is a key to surviving Sea Trials, a 14-hour test of strength, endurance and will that marks the end of the freshman, or "plebe," year at the Naval Academy.

No. 12 Salisbury's 7-4 upset of No. 8 Washington and Lee in the second round of the NCAA tournament last Saturday was immensely gratifying to the reigning national champion for two reasons. The Sea Gulls earned their 15th consecutive appearance in the quarterfinals since the tournament added a round prior to the quarterfinals for the 1998 tournament, and they made amends after dropping a 7-6 double-overtime decision to the Generals on Feb. 20. “It was nice to win the game because it obviously gets us to the quarterfinals,” coach Jim Berkman said Monday morning.

Heavy Seas Alehouse is opening a second location in Rosslyn, Va. The new Heavy Seas will occupy nearly 6,000 square feet at the base of an office tower at 1501 Wilson Boulevard in Rosslyn, two doors down from Roti Mediterranean Grill. The restaurant is scheduled to open later this year. Heavy Seas Alehouse is part of $2.5 million in capital improvements planned to renovate the lobbies and retail spaces at 1501 and 1515 Wilson Boulevard, according to a statement released by Monday Properties, the Arlington, Virginia-based real estate investment firm that manages the properties.

While Johns Hopkins' streak of 41 straight appearances in the NCAA tournament came to an end Sunday night, Salisbury maintained its Division III-leading streak of 25 consecutive showings in the postseason. The team will play host to Susquehanna (12-6) this Wednesday at Sea Gull Stadium in Salisbury. Unlike Blue Jays coach Dave Pietramala who downplayed the end of his program's streak, Sea Gulls coach Jim Berkman said his team's streak is meaningful to the players and coaches. “It was definitely something that we've been very proud of here to have that long of a streak and to play at such a high for a long period of time,” said Berkman, who has guided Salisbury to 10 national championships including the last two. “I don't know how else to explain other than to say that we always take pride in playing what we call the real season now. To have that opportunity again for the 25th year is special.” But the Sea Gulls (14-5)

Now that Salisbury secured one of the few coveted at-large berths in the NCAA tournament, Jim Berkman feels secure enough to stand on a limb and proclaim that the team can win the national championship for the third consecutive year and the 11th time in the program's history. Sounds crazy? Maybe, but aside from SUNY-Cortland, the top seed in the North region, and Dickinson, the top seed in the South, no other team in the field has less than two losses. “The crazy thing about this is, I really believe that we can still win the whole tournament,” the Sea Gulls coach said Monday morning.

Salisbury has not missed an NCAA tournament since 1988, capturing the championship 10 times - including in each of the last two seasons. With a 14-4 record and the No. 4 ranking in the South region, the program is in solid position to extend its consecutive streak to 25 appearances. But that is not how coach Jim Berkman feels. He said the team is determined to defeat St. Mary's (11-6) in the Capital Athletic Conference tournament final at Sea Gull Stadium on Sunday and seize the automatic qualifier to the NCAA tournament.