Seconds Left

The plan called for the Bayhawks player who drew a short stick to take the ball toward the middle of the field and look for a shot. That player turned out to be Mark Frye, and the midfielder executed the plan perfectly. Taking a flip pass from Gary Gait, Frye, marked by midfielder Matt O'Kelly, dodged to the middle of the field and let loose a powerful, low shot from about 15 yards that beat Long Island Lizards goalie Brian Dougherty. Frye's goal with 23 seconds left gave the Bayhawks a 13-12 victory over the previously undefeated Lizards last night before an announced crowd of 2,490 at rainy Homewood Field.

Woodlawn's quest for an unbeaten season and its first state girls basketball championship seemed certain to end in the waning seconds of last night's Class 4A semifinal game against Oxon Hill. The No. 2 Warriors trailed by three points with 13 seconds left, but Candice Britton and Brittney Taylor's back-to-back shots followed by a mistake by the Clippers' coaches, who called a timeout they did not have, sealed a 54-50 victory at UMBC's RAC Arena. Instead of watching from the bleachers as they did last season after being eliminated in the semifinals by the Clippers, the Warriors improved to 24-0 and advanced to meet defending champion Churchill (22-3)

Centennial, which ended its regular season with three straight losses, is a victory away from a state championship.The No. 14-ranked Eagles won their second straight game against a higher-ranked team, getting a goal in the 59th minute LTC from freshman Samantha Test to defeat No. 10 South River, 1-0, in a Class 2A state semifinal last night at Howard High.Centennial (12-6-0) will play Frederick County's Middletown next Saturday at North County High in Linthicum for the title. Middletown (18-2)

Top-ranked John Carroll was busy celebrating while many of the visiting St. Mary's players sat on the field in disbelief.If there was ever a perfect microcosm of how two teams' seasons have unfolded, it took place yesterday afternoon in Bel Air when junior Kourtney Porcella scored with 10 seconds left to provide the Patriots with a 2-1 win over the Saints.For the Patriots, who improved to 12-1 overall and 9-1 in the Catholic League, it was more opportunistic play turning into a positive result.

The McDonogh boys team may not be as perfect as the girls squad, which went undefeated this season. But in the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association B Conference, the Eagles were flawless.Last night, however, the No. 8 Eagles -- who rolled through the regular season to the conference title game -- had to fight off an upset bid by Boys' Latin before coming away with a 48-45 victory in the championship game at Gilman.Senior guard Owen Daly, who struggled from the field for most of the game, converted a three-point play with 4.8 seconds left in regulation to break a 45-45 tie. An attempt by Boys' Latin's Cory Days to tie missed before time expired.

When rain washed out Roland Park's field hockey tournament on Sept. 13, no one could have been more disappointed than the Severna Park players. "The girls that we play here, the other teams, have fantastic skills," said Severna Park senior Lauren Maranto, "and that is what you need to play against to get you prepared for regionals and states. We were so disappointed." But not out of luck. The No. 2 Falcons and the No. 10 Reds managed to find space in their schedules for a makeup game yesterday in Roland Park.

ALBANY, N.Y. - Navy's Mark Conley is an All-American for the second year in a row. After winning three matches on Thursday, Conley (141 pounds) opened up yesterday with a 5-0 win over Minnesota's Chad Erikson, in which he scored with a front headlock takedown, an escape and a scramble. Conley then faced Oklahoma State's Aaron Holker, also a returning All-American, to determine who would go to the finals. After a scoreless first period, Conley began the scoring with an escape 18 seconds into the second.

WORCESTER, Mass. -- Leave it to a guy with no goals this season to get the one that broke the Bandits' six-game winless streak.Leave it to a Massachusetts boy to break the hearts of 11,591 of his fellow statesmen.Leave it to Andy Silverman, who shocked a near-capacity Centrum crowd when he poked in the game-winner with 16.3 seconds left last night to give the Bandits a 3-2 win over the Worcester IceCats.That gave Baltimore its first victory of 1997, after going 0-4-2 in six previous tries.

Coppin State coach Fang Mitchell is no stranger to slim margins. So when two of his starters collided in a morning shoot-around yesterday and suffered concussions, he was on familiar ground. Coppin's margin of error was even slimmer by early evening, when the Eagles trailed Bethune-Cookman by a one point with 21 seconds to play in overtime. But a 20-foot jump shot by Vince Goldsberry with 7.5 seconds left - off a brilliant no-look pass from Tywain McKee - rescued a 63-62 victory at Coppin Center.