Seed

The Loyola men's basketball team made history this past winter when it qualified for the NCAA tournament for the first time in 18 years. With its 10-9 decision over Denver Saturday, the men's lacrosse team advanced to its first Final Four since 1998. But junior long-stick midfielder Scott Ratliff said the players and coaches aren't content now. “We have a little higher expectation than just making the tournament,” he said. “I think we knew from the very beginning this fall how much we had in this locker room and that we had a good shot to get this program back to the Final Four.” The top-seeded Greyhounds (16-1)

After upsetting No. 4 seeded George Mason in the CAA baseball tournament this morning, No. 6 seeded Towson plays again tonight. Freshman Brendan Butler was 3-for-3 and scored four runs and sophomore Zach Fisher was 3-for-6 and knocked in two runs in the Tigers' 16-8 victory over the Patriots. Towson, which lost to Delaware in 12 innings Wednesday night, will face the lowest-seeded one-loss team in the next round this evening. Towson (27-30) eliminated George Mason (33-24) from the tournament.

We recently purchased a home that has a large stand of bamboo along the rear property line. Is this an invasive plant, and how can we get rid of it? With few exceptions, bamboos are considered invasive plants in Maryland. They spread more or less rapidly by enlarged underground roots called rhizomes and can be very difficult to manage. If you are not opposed to using chemicals for control, I would recommend killing the stand with a spray that contains the chemical glyphosate. Do not try to spray the full plant canopy.

With 25 goals in two NCAA tournament games, No. 4 seed Notre Dame seems to have found its shooting prowess. It's a timely discovery for the No. 4 seed Fighting Irish (13-2), who will meet No. 1 seed Loyola (16-1) in Saturday's national semifinal at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. Notre Dame had wrapped up the regular season scoring on just 25.3 percent of its shots (108-of-427). Since then, however, the offense has converted 43.1 percent of its attempts (25-of-58). In Sunday's 12-10 victory over No. 5 seed Virginia, the Fighting Irish scored on three of its first possessions of the contest and then scored on three consecutive shots in the second quarter.

I've recently been diagnosed with genital herpes and treated it with the prescription drug Zovirax.I would rather use something more natural.Have any of your readers found alternative treatments that cure it? I read in an herbal book that olive leaf extract works. Is this true?Herpes infections are caused by a virus that resists cure even by the prescription drugs that control it effectively (Famvir, Valtrex, Zovirax).These antiviral medications speed healing and, if taken preventively, dramatically reduce the number of outbreaks.

Q. I am preparing to plant my grass seed as you suggest in early September. How should I prepare my soil before planting grass seed? A. I always recommend doing a soil test before preparing the soil. The soil test will indicate what you should incorporate into your planting area. After that determination is made, you can begin preparing a seedbed for your grass to grow in. You can prepare the ground much as you would for vegetables or flowers. To prepare the seedbed, I would first spread any lime or fertilizer recommended by your soil test on the ground, along with some additional organic matter (leaf compost or other)

As remarkable as 41 consecutive berths in the NCAA tournament are, Johns Hopkins has been unseeded just once (2010) during that span. The Blue Jays, who were awarded the No. 2 seed in the upcoming tourney, are very familiar with that position. They are 18-7 as a No. 2 seed and won national championships in 1974, 1978 and 1980. Coach Dave Pietramala chuckled when informed of that history. “All I can say is, I hope,” he said late Sunday night after the bracket was released.

The Johns Hopkins baseball team has earned the top overall seed in the Mid-Atlantic Regional for the NCAA Division III tournament. The Blue Jays (39-4) will open play Wednesday at 1:15 p.m. against Moravian at Waterfront Park in Trenton, N.J. Salisbury, which ended Hopkins' 32-game winning streak May 8, will be the No. 2 seed in a regional held at Methodist University in Fayetteville, N.C. The Sea Gulls will face fifth-seeded LaGrange College on Wednesday at 2:30 p.m.

Kevin Love scored 13 points and Kevin Durant 12 to lead a balanced attack as the United States remained perfect at the FIBA World Championship in Istanbul, beating Iran 88-51. Derrick Rose chipped in 11 points and Danny Granger 10 for the Americans, who improved to 4-0 to secure the top spot in Group B. The U.S. will conclude preliminary round play Thursday against winless Tunisia. "We were a little bit fresher," coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "In our last game, when we played Brazil, that was our sixth game in 10 days in three countries.

With all eight playoff teams in the NHL's Eastern Conference set after Thursday's games, all that remains to be determined are the seedings and first-round matchups. Though, to hear forward Alex Ovechkin explain it, where they finish isn't weighing too heavily on the Washington Capitals. "It doesn't matter which position you are [in]," Ovechkin said after Thursday's 4-2 victory over the Florida Panthers. "It doesn't matter what's the standings right now. It's most important thing to win. Next game [is]

With about six minutes left in the fourth quarter of Saturday's NCAA tournament quarterfinal in Annapolis and Loyola nursing a 10-8 lead, coach Charley Toomey did what many others would have - and have - done in his position. He took the air out of the ball, played keep-away, and forced Denver to double-team, thereby leaving the net open for an easy goal. That strategy, however, almost backfired on the top-seeded Greyhounds. Denver forced a turnover and turned that miscue into a goal by freshman midfielder Wes Berg with 2:43 remaining.

The quarterfinal round of the Division I men's lacrosse NCAA tournament is over, and the semifinals for Saturday are set. Here is the schedule: Saturday, May 26 (at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass.) No. 4 seed Notre Dame (13-2) vs. No. 1 seed Loyola (16-1), 2:30 p.m. Maryland (11-5) vs. No. 3 seed Duke (15-4), 5 p.m. Monday, May 28 (at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass.) Maryland or No. 3 seed Duke vs. No. 4 seed Notre Dame or No. 1 seed Loyola, 1 p.m. A little history: Loyola is 12-5 all-time against Notre Dame, but the Fighting Irish have won the past four meetings.

The Loyola men's basketball team made history this past winter when it qualified for the NCAA tournament for the first time in 18 years. With its 10-9 decision over Denver Saturday, the men's lacrosse team advanced to its first Final Four since 1998. But junior long-stick midfielder Scott Ratliff said the players and coaches aren't content now. “We have a little higher expectation than just making the tournament,” he said. “I think we knew from the very beginning this fall how much we had in this locker room and that we had a good shot to get this program back to the Final Four.” The top-seeded Greyhounds (16-1)

The Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A and B Championship games are set.  The A Conference game will be 5 p.m. at Ripken Stadium Sunday. It will match Calvert Hall, the No. 2 seed that made its way through the loser's bracket to reach the final,  against  unbeated No. 4 seed Archbishop Curley.  To win the title in the double elimination tournament, Calvert Hall would have to win Sunday and again Monday in a second championship game, scheduled for Ripken Stadium at 7 p.m.  The B Conference game will be played Monday at 4 p.m., between Annapolis Area Christian School and Pallotti . A second game, if necessary, will be Tuesday, May 22 at Calvert Hall.

The Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A and B Conference championship games are set. The A Conference game is set for 5 p.m. at Ripken Stadium on Sunday. It will match Calvert Hall, the No. 2 seed that made its way through the loser's bracket to reach the final, against unbeaten No. 4 seed Archbishop Curley. To win the title in the double-elimination tournament, Calvert Hall would have to win Sunday and again Monday in a second championship game, scheduled for Ripken Stadium at 7 p.m. The B Conference game will be played Monday at 4 p.m., between Annapolis Area Christian School and Pallotti.

Being in Baltimore apparently has its privileges for Loyola. Not only did the Greyhounds have to make just a 34-mile trip from their campus to Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis for Saturday's NCAA tournament quarterfinal against Denver, but they also got a visit from Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis. In a video posted by the school, the 13-time Pro Bowler and two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year spoke to the players before Wednesday's practice and encouraged them to play with passion and cooperation.

The SEED Foundation wants to bring to Baltimore a copy of its successful boarding school for children in challenging Washington neighborhoods. With support from the state as well as private organizations, the school could open in another two years, giving more Baltimore students a chance to succeed. SEED's founders - one of whom is a former teacher at St. Paul's School in Baltimore County turned management consultant - work in urban areas to provide educational opportunities for under-served students.

Brenda Frese's 4-year-old son, Tyler, squirmed in his mother's lap Monday as they waited for word on where Maryland's women's basketball team would be seeded and whom the Terps would play in the first round of the NCAA tournament. If Tyler was impatient, so was Frese. The coach and her players have been eager all season to get back to the tournament and eclipse the memory of last season's second-round loss to Georgetown on Maryland's home court. After waiting for most of the televised selection show, the Terps (28-4)

One factor that would seem to be in Denver's favor heading into Saturday's quarterfinal matchup against No. 1 seed Loyola is a familiarity with reaching this stage of the NCAA tournament as underdogs. The Pioneers entered the 2011 quarterfinals as the No. 6 seed and as an underdog, but stunned No. 3 seed Johns Hopkins,14-9, to advance to the Final Four. But much as he did with the question of defeating a team three times in a single season, Tierney shrugged off any suggestion that his team's experience is an edge against a Greyhounds team making its first appearance in the quarterfinal round since 2001.

This weekend's quarterfinal round of the NCAA men's lacrosse tournament features several compelling contests. No. 1 seed Loyola must try to beat Eastern College Athletic Conference rival Denver for the third time this season, No. 3 seed Duke and Colgate will feature Tewaaraton Award finalists in senior long-stick midfielder C.J. Costabile and junior attackman Peter Baum respectively, and No. 5 seed Virginia's high-powered offense will take on No....