Soccer Team

The Fallston Flames U10 boys soccer team completed a successful season with back-to-back tournament championships recently. The Flames won the EASL Open in Baltimore County and then took home the Fallston Cup. In addition, in early October they won the River Soccer Club Columbus Day Tournament in Ocean City. Pictured, front row from left, are Mason Manzo, Keetan Oteyza, Kevin Roberts, Alex Rothenheber and Michael Estremsky; middle row from left, Drew Menges, Ben Tewey, Noah Amburgey, Brett Newcomb, Pete Buckler, Kyle Brown and Kevin Baranoski; and back row from left, head coach Mike Rothenheber, assistant coach Pete Manzo and assistant coach Dave Buckler.

Henry F. Long Jr., a boys soccer coach and state champion who owned a window-cleaning business, died of cancer Tuesday at Gilchrist Hospice Care. The Perry Hall resident was 54. Born in Baltimore and raised in Sparrows Point's North Point Village, he began playing sports at Battle Grove Elementary School. He was a 1976 graduate of Sparrows Point High School, where he wrestled and was a three-time state champion in soccer. He attended Essex Community College and earned a bachelor's degree in sports management at West Virginia University, where he was captain of the men's soccer team.

Three former Aberdeen Eagles played a significant role in the success of the 1975 men's socer team at Pfeiffer University that recently was voted into the Misenheimer, N.C., school's hall of fame. Robert Hinch and Roger Gompers both played on the attack and Alfred Kaye played defense. All three were four-year starters for Pfeiffer from 1975 through 1978. In the history of the Pfeiffer men's soccer program, the 1975 team ranks at the top of some rankings. They rank first for goals scored in a season-90; goals scored in a game-15; and tied for most wins in a season-13.

It was very nice of Bob Leffler to paint his big picture of what many of us call the mistake in progress at Towson University regarding eliminating the 91-year soccer program ("The big picture for TU," April 16). As an alumnus who has a consecutive giving record since graduation in 1957, as a player on the soccer team for four years, as a member and former officer of the Towson University Hall of Fame, and as an activist on behalf of the institution through the years, I still very much care about my school.

Anne Arundel County's youth soccer Blackhawks have played this season with Trooper Shaft S. Hunter's memory firmly in mind. Hunter, who was killed in an on-duty crash this spring, was a major benefactor of the team. His son, Deion, is a midfielder for the Blackhawks, and Hunter regularly worked extra shifts to help pay for players who could not afford team fees and travel costs. "Those are sort of like his sons," his wife, Rose Hunter, said. The Blackhawks, ages 13-14, won their regional championship this year and earned a second-straight bid to the US Club Soccer national finals.

Navy's soccer team won the regular-season Patriot League title and the right to play host to the league tournament with its 3-0 win over Bucknell last week.After a scoreless first half, senior Jerry Dearie got Navy on the board first, scoring five minutes into the secondstanza. Junior Cliff Carpenter tallied a goal 13 minutes later and then assisted freshman Seth Walters on the final score with 14 minutesleft in the game.Earlier in the week, the Mids were shut out by George Mason, 1-0.Navy had a chance to tie the game in the second half but a goal was nullified due to a hand-ball call.

It should have come as no surprise yesterday when Dante Washington of Columbia was among the 20 players named to the 1992 U.S. Olympic soccer team.After all, Washington was a member of the U.S. gold-medal winning team at the 1991 Pan American Games, and played a vital role in helping the Americans compile a 5-1 record in regional qualifying for the Olympics.But after months of rehabilitation from a groin injury, after weekof doubt about his ability to play, Washington said he was "relieved" to learn he earned a place at the Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain.

Two Columbia players helped the U.S. under-20 men's national soccer team score an opening-round victory in qualifying play leading to the under-20 World Cup.The U.S. team defeated Bermuda in British Columbia, 5-0. Fullback Clint Peay (Oakland Mills), a freshman at the University of Virginia, played the entire game.Hamisi Amani-Dove, a Wilde Lake High School senior, played about 15 minutes at forward and scored a goal.The U.S. team was scheduled to play Trinidad yesterday and will play Costa Rica tomorrow.

DRIVING BY the campus of River Hill High School on Route 108 in Clarksville last Thursday, you might have noticed a television camera crew van parked outside.A sports reporter and his camera crew were at River Hill to do a story on the boys soccer team, coached by Bill Stara.In 1996, when the school opened, the River Hill boys soccer team -- with four juniors, two sophomores, and five freshmen -- reached the Class 1A state championship finals only to lose 2-1 to Williamsport High School in Western Maryland.

Yesterday's United States men's soccer match against the Czech Republic not only kicked off the Americans' play in the 2006 World Cup - they lost to the Czechs 3-0 - but also reignited their 50-year climb to international soccer respectability. After failing to qualify for the quadrennial tournament from 1954 to 1986, the United States has taken great strides toward serious contention, most prominently in 2002 with a quarterfinal berth. Such success seems out of reach this year. The Americans are stuck in the "Group of Death" with the Czech Republic, Ghana and Italy.

Major League Soccer's D.C. United is no longer exploring the possibility of moving to Baltimore, according to The Washington Post. The franchise had flirted with the city as it attempted to convince some government entity to give it a favorable deal on a new stadium. But the team's managing partner, Jason Levien, told The Post that "the stars are aligning in a good way for us" in D.C. and that the team would focus on financing a project there with city assistance on infrastructure costs.

Et cetera Bays Dynasty soccer ranked No. 1 in nation The under-12 Bays Dynasty boys soccer team has been ranked No. 1 nationally, according to gotsoccer.com. The squad earned the ranking by winning four of the largest fall tournaments in the Northeast, posting a clean 16-0 tournament record, while remaining undefeated in league play. "With gotsoccer.com currently ranking thousands of teams throughout the United States, this achievement is something in which this team can take great pride.

Three former Aberdeen Eagles played a significant role in the success of the 1975 men's socer team at Pfeiffer University that recently was voted into the Misenheimer, N.C., school's hall of fame. Robert Hinch and Roger Gompers both played on the attack and Alfred Kaye played defense. All three were four-year starters for Pfeiffer from 1975 through 1978. In the history of the Pfeiffer men's soccer program, the 1975 team ranks at the top of some rankings. They rank first for goals scored in a season-90; goals scored in a game-15; and tied for most wins in a season-13.

Loyola Blakefield's freshman soccer team completed a perfect 15-0-2 record this season in claiming the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference title. The Dons also prevailed over B Conference junior varsity squads from St. Paul's and Boy's Latin. After starting the season with five consecutive wins, a trip to Georgetown Prep in Bethesda was the first real challenge for Loyola. "Both teams were undefeated, and we were unsure how the game would play out. It turned out to be extremely physical.

When he was 13 years old, Sunny Jane decided to leave his home country of Lesotho and move to the United States to advance his soccer career. Last Sunday, Jane took another step along that path as he contributed two goals and an assist as the second-seeded Terps cruised to a 5-1 victory over Coastal Carolina in the NCAA tournament. The win secured a trip to the quarterfinals and a rematch against Louisville on Saturday at 5 p.m. in College Park. The matchup with the Cardinals is particularly interesting for Jane because his first trip to the College Cup hinges on beating a college from Kentucky, the state in which he settled after coming to the country.

The Fallston Flames U10 boys soccer team completed a successful season with back-to-back tournament championships recently. The Flames won the EASL Open in Baltimore County and then took home the Fallston Cup. In addition, in early October they won the River Soccer Club Columbus Day Tournament in Ocean City. Pictured, front row from left, are Mason Manzo, Keetan Oteyza, Kevin Roberts, Alex Rothenheber and Michael Estremsky; middle row from left, Drew Menges, Ben Tewey, Noah Amburgey, Brett Newcomb, Pete Buckler, Kyle Brown and Kevin Baranoski; and back row from left, head coach Mike Rothenheber, assistant coach Pete Manzo and assistant coach Dave Buckler.

IT WAS A hard-fought battle for the St. Jane Knights girls under-13 soccer team at the Got Milk? 3v3 Soccer Shootout last month in Florida. But when the final whistle was blown, the Pasadena girls had captured the national championship in their division. They soon had milk mustaches to go along with their title. The Got Milk? 3-on-3 tournament requires players to combine many offensive and defensive positions that would usually be covered by a much larger team in a regular soccer game.

It has been all or nothing for Anne Arundel Community College's men's soccer team this season."I'm looking for us to get better and better," Shuck said.

The C. Milton Wright boys soccer team will be awarded a second consecutive National Team Academic Award by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. To qualify, teams must have an average minimum grade point average of of 3.25. C. Milton Wright held a 3.4 average GPA.

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta says he was planning this even before the recent scandals in the top ranks of the Pentagon and CIA, but he's ordered the military to double down on ethics training for its senior officers. In a memo to Gen. Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Mr. Panetta didn't reference Gen. David Petraeus' affair with his biographer or Gen. John Allen's mountain of "inappropriate" emails to a Tampa socialite - but he didn't have to. And they are not the only brass behaving badly.