Soccer

Ryan Appell stood on an isolated stretch of highway on the outskirts of an old South African mining town dressed like Betsy Ross' worst nightmare. He wore a bandana and a scarf made from a U.S. flag, had a flag tied around his neck and carried another in his hands. "This," he says with a smile, "is me." Apparently, it's a lot of other Americans, too, because the U.S. soccer team's fan base, which once consisted primarily of friends and family members, has swelled into one of the largest contingents at this World Cup. According to FIFA, the world governing body for soccer, only South Africa bought more tickets to this World Cup than the U.S. And while some of the 136,500 tickets sold in the U.S -- more than the number sold in Germany, Italy, France, Mexico and Brazil combined -- were undoubtedly purchased by fans who came here to root for one of the 31 other teams in the tournament, Appell was hardly the only American fan who made the difficult trip halfway around the world.

Submitting sports notices The deadline for submitting sports copy is 9 a.m. Monday. We prefer email (howardcountysports@patuxent.com). Questions? Call 410-332-6578. Soccer DC United and the Thunder Soccer Club are combining to offer a free soccer clinic , April 26 from 4-7 p.m. at SoccerDome 1, 7330 Montevideo Road, Jessup. The clinic will offer skills competitions, prizes, giveaways and photo/autograph opportunities with DC United. 443-545-4034. Lacrosse Buffalo Wild Wing lacrosse is holding tryouts for its U-13 boys summer team from 6-7:30 p.m., April 18 and 25 at Chapelgate Christian Academy, 2600 Marriottsville Road, Marriottsville.

This episode begins with Emily meeting for “girl talk” with her best “gal pals.” She mentions that all her friends are the mothers of her daughter's playmates. Can't Emily form meaning relationships by herself? While she hangs out at the park these friends that are twice her age, the guys indulge in a pool party reminiscent of a Schmitts Gay commercial . Only two of the 19 bachelors have chest hair! Ryan Gets the First Date Card Sarah: Ryan “Fluff Head” spent a lot of time getting ready for the date - except he forgot to comb his hair.

The deadline for submitting sports copy is 9 a.m. on Mondays. We prefer email (howardcountysports@patuxent.com). We do not accept results by phone. When two Howard County teams play, players from both teams (first and last names) must be mentioned in the write-up. Questions? Call 410-332-6578. Soccer Thunder Soccer Club CMSSL Thunder Soccer Club's Furia Roja (U-10 girls) won their season's first tournament at the MSC Cherry Blossom Classic at the Maryland Soccerplex in Rockville, March 24 and 25. Sophia Villalba scored the winning goal of the championship game.

Greater Laurel United Soccer Club is offering a reduced fee of $47.50 for girls born between August 1997 and July 2001. The fee covers 10 weeks of soccer. Registration deadline for reduced fee is June 30. Register online at http://www.eteamz.com/greaterlaurelunitedsoccerclub.

The No. 1-ranked Oakland Mills boys soccer team isn't just making noise on the field this season.Seven Scorpions, recruited by math team coach John Brown, added an unusual twist to the Oct. 13 countywide math meet held in the Hammond High cafeteria.While other math teams warmed up on their calculators in preparation for the meet, Oakland Mills made its grand entrance listening to rap music on the boom box of soccer manager and math team captain Regi Altima.Just before the meet began, they formed a team huddle and chanted "Oakland Mills, Oakland Mills."

Calvert Hall forward Pete Caringi III has signed a national letter of intent to play men's soccer at UMBC, where his father is the coach. The younger Caringi was a first-team All-Metro player after scoring 15 goals this fall, the second straight season he led the team in scoring. In other news, forward Nirav Kadam , who played at Northwest in Germantown and at UNC-Greensboro, signed a grant-in-aid and will matriculate at UMBC this spring; he'll have two years of eligibility.

The senior forward, hindered by injuries for most of the season, played her first full game in Friday's Class 4A East regional semifinal against Severna Park, scoring twice to lead the No. 4 Wildcats to a 2-1 overtime win. Okoko, a first-team All-Metro player last year, has six goals in limited time as she has had to overcome a severe ankle sprain and a pulled hamstring. Against the Falcons, who were ranked No. 2 at the time, she gave the Wildcats a 1-0 lead in the second half and scored the game-winner with four minutes left in the first overtime.

Ashley Spivey McDonogh, midfielder, senior The repeat All-Metro Player of the Year led the No. 1 Eagles (18-3) to a second straight Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland A Conference championship, finishing her stellar four-year career with 85 goals and 57 assists. This season, Spivey contributed 19 goals and 14 assists while providing difference-making, two-way play in the middle of the field. A dynamic player since her freshman year, Spivey developed into a more complete player with each season and added strong leadership qualities along the way.  "Ashley is a great soccer player with a great soccer mind," McDonogh coach Harry Canellakis said.

Maggie Morrison, Archbishop Spalding, soccer The first-team All-Metro forward began this season in the same fashion as she ended last year's: scoring timely goals. With the No. 1-ranked Cavaliers opening their campaign at the Zionsville Invitational in Indiana last weekend, Morrison scored three goals in a 4-1 opening win against Ohio's Northview on Friday night and followed that performance with a one-goal, one-assist effort in a 2-1 win over Fenwick, also from Ohio, on Saturday afternoon.

In competition for another kind of football fan, the Baltimore Ravens hope to get a jump on the Washington Redskins when tickets go on sale Tuesday for this summer's friendly between two prominent English Premier League teams. Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool will play an exhibition game at M&T Bank Stadium on July 28, the same day Chelsea is scheduled to play A.C. Milan at FedEx Field. The game in Baltimore will start at 1 p.m because the Orioles play at home that night. The game in Landover will be played in the evening.

William Arthur "Bill" Seal III, a retired McDonogh School dean, faculty member, coach and dormitory parent, died of an apparent heart attack Monday at Carroll Hospital Center. The Reisterstown resident was 65. In nearly four decades at McDonogh, Mr. Seal taught lower school science and upper school psychology and history, guided the senior class, and coached soccer, lacrosse and wrestling. He was inducted into the McDonogh Athletic Hall of Fame in 1999 and received the Alumni Association's Distinguished Service Award in 2007.

"FIFA Street" Developer: EA Canada Platform: Xbox 360, Playstation 3 Score: 9/10 It is not surprising that "FIFA Street" is a great game, given its parentage. "FIFA 12" is the highest achievement so far in EA's quest to rule the world's game, and "Street" has inherited the core DNA and formula for enjoyment that makes even non-soccer fans recognize "FIFA 12" as a great gaming experience. In the mid-'00s, the "FIFA Street" series existed not as an offshoot of the main 11-on-11 game but as a standalone, "NBA Jam"-style game that you had to like soccer to enjoy.

I heard the oldies station playing the Bob Dylan tune "The Times They Are a-Changin'," and the famous line could well apply to the seismic cultural change surrounding sports concussions. Not so long ago, the injury was hardly a headliner. A "ding" was almost considered a rite of passage and badge of honor for athletes playing contact sports. Today, concussions are front-page news, the focus of millions of dollars' worth of research and legislative action across the country.

Severna Park boys soccer coach Roy Dunshee has resigned from his position to take a coaching job at Amherst College, the school announced in a press release. Coaches interested in the vacancy are asked to contact athletic director Wayne Mook at 410-544-7462 or wmook@aacps.org. Only teachers or NFHS credentialed coaches will be considered.  

Sagu says he gets the question about his retirement all the time, and he finally has an answer. After this postseason, the Blast's star goalkeeper plans to play one more year before stepping away for good. Just 11 days shy of his 39th birthday, Sagu sounds sure of his decision. Then again, if his first retirement from professional soccer went as planned, he would probably be a police officer in his native Brazil, not the shot-stopping, YouTube-watching leader of a team playing in the MISL's Eastern Division finals starting Saturday.

Let me be clear that I love soccer, and have for a long time. It was the 1966 World Cup final, England's overtime victory over Germany, that turned a serious flirtation into a committed relationship. I didn't miss World Cup finals after that, even when it meant buying a ticket to a smoky auditorium for a blurry closed-circuit broadcast. With the World Cup final approaching this weekend, I should be at the heights of ecstasy. But right now I'm feeling a bit broken-hearted. Instead of succumbing to the allure of David Villa and Wesley Sneijder as I watch this year's tournament, I find myself thinking more and more about J. P. Hayes.

Annapolis Area Christian School is seeking a varsity boys' soccer a a junior varsity girls' volleyball coach for the 2012 fall season.  The soccer position is part time with the possibility of becoming a full-time teacher-coach position depending on the academic openings at the school this spring.  Playing and coaching experience are required. The volleyball position is part time with coaching experience preferred. Interested applicants should send a resume to Director of Athletics Jim Domoracki at  jdomoracki@aacsonline.org .

Colleges Terps baseball off to 2nd-best start since '24 Second baseman Kyle Convissar (Severna Park) went 2-for-4 with two RBIs Tomo Delp as No.20 Maryland beat Navy, 4-2, on Wednesday to capture its 10th straight baseball victory and improve to 11-1 overall, its second-best start since 1924. In the past 88 years the school has had a better start just once — 12-1 in 1967. The Terps can match that record Friday when they open Atlantic Coast Conference play at Wake Forest.

McDaniel College has chosen Sandra Lagana, a Sykesville native and South Carroll High School valedictorian, as the school's next women's soccer head coach. Lagana, a 2000 graduate from South Carroll, was announced at the Green Terror's new coach on March 7 by Director of Athletics Paul Moyer. "Sandy is not only an outstanding coach but also someone we wanted running our women's soccer program," said Moyer in a statement on the hiring. "She has outstanding character, is bright, hard working and has been successful as both a player and coach, and we know she will be able to take our program to next level," he said.