Team Rules

Franklin McIntosh, the Spirit's leading scorer, has been suspended for at least one game for violation of team rules.Spirit general manager Drew Forrester said McIntosh will not practice with the team the rest of the week and will miss the game against the Cleveland Crunch Saturday at the Baltimore Arena."

Loyola basketball coach Jimmy Patsos said Sunday that sophomore point guard R.J. Williams (St. Frances) has been suspended until mid-January for an unspecified violation of team rules. The length of the suspension was dictated by athletic department policy. "He is still on the team, he is still practicing, we are not going to turn our back on R.J.," Patsos said. Patsos would not say what Williams did to be suspended, but made it clear that it is not an academic issue. "He's worked hard in the classroom, he's doing well in school," Patsos said.

COLLEGE PARK -- Larry Washington, a sophomore running back from Randallstown, and Kevin Washington, a redshirt freshman receiver out of Dunbar High, have been suspended indefinitely from Maryland's football team for violations of team rules.Three other players also were missing from the Terps' first full-squad workouts yesterday.Coach Mark Duffner declined to disclose the length of the suspensions and the nature of the team rules violations by the Washingtons (who are not related), saying only they had been sent home and were no longer in the Dorchester dormwhere the squad is staying during preseason camp.

The absence of goalkeeper Travis Love from Towson's season-opening 12-10 win at Jacksonville Feb. 11 startled many fans and observers, who had assumed that the two-year starter would man the net again for the Tigers. Turns out that there was good reason for the fifth-year senior's absence: he was serving a one-game suspension for violating what coach Shawn Nadelen called a team policy. “He broke a team rule,” Nadelen said. “That's the reason why he didn't make the trip and why he didn't play.

Maryland's No. 1 women's lacrosse team remained undefeated last night with a 12-11 win over No. 4 Dartmouth despite the suspension or impending suspension of several players for violating a team rule. According to a university source, "about six" Terps faced disciplinary action for "a violation of team rules." Each of those players must serve a one-game suspension although it is "the coach's decision" which game a player must sit out, said the source. Only one regular starter was not in the starting lineup last night at Dartmouth.

An apologetic Chris McAlister went before his coach, many of his teammates and the media yesterday to assert that he is ready to move beyond his team-imposed benching before the Ravens' 24-10 victory in San Diego on Sunday. "I've already apologized and am still apologizing to a lot of my teammates for what happened last weekend," McAlister said. "[Coach Brian] Billick hit it this weekend, he hit it [yesterday] with the media and my teammates have talked about it. It's something that we're moving forward, going past."

College football MIAMI: Suspended WR Ethenic Sands from Rose Bowl for violation of team rules.

Also yesterday, an article incorrectly stated the status of Coppin State basketball player Tariq Saunders for the 1993-'94 season. Mr. Saunders was academically eligible to play, but was dismissed for a violation of team rules. Also, Mr. Saunders was a junior during the 1992-'93 season.* The Sun regrets the error.

CollegesBowie State -- Announced that G/F Yolanda Matthews (Milford Mill) has given an oral commitment to play basketball at the school.Rhode Island -- Suspended G Jason Alexander from the basketball team indefinitely for violation of team rules.BasketballNew Jersey Nets -- Signed F Bernard King, formerly with the Washington Bullets, for the rest of the season. Placed C Dwayne Schintzius on the injured list.

Moves Baseball BLUE JAYS: Fired manager Carlos Tosca. Named John Gibbons interim manager. INDIANS: Optioned P Kaz Tadano to Triple-A Buffalo. Designated OF Alex Escobar for assignment. ROCKIES: Placed P Aaron Cook on 15-day DL with blood clots in both lungs. Recalled P Javier Lopez from Triple-A Colorado Springs. Colleges GEORGIA: Suspended LB Odell Thurman three games for violation of team rules. Football BEARS: Agreed to terms with CB Eric Kelly. Hockey LIGHTNING: Agreed with D Cory Sarich on multi-year contract.

Maryland football coach Randy Edsall was asked again today whether this was a rebuilding year. He said it wasn't. Coaches universally detest the the word "rebuilding" because it suggests to them that losing in any season is acceptable. But the theme of Edsall's final Tuesday media session seemed to be that the coach firmly believes the groundwork is in place for the future -- even if this year's record (2-9 so far) was supremely frustrating. Building a program is a process, the coach said, and it takes time.

Maryland tailback D.J. Adams and offensive lineman Cody Blue are out of Monday night's season opener against Miami for violating team rules, leaving a pair of first-year running backs in important backup roles in coach Randy Edsall 's first game as Terps coach. But that's nothing compared to the depth-chart maneuvering that Miami must endure. With eight players suspended by the NCAA for accepting impermissible benefits from a former booster, coach Al Golden must make major adjustments.

Maryland committed secondary NCAA rules violations by allowing Joe Harrington to prepare scouting reports on men's basketball opponents a few seasons ago, but the school self-reported the matter and was not penalized, according to interviews with school officials. The case covered portions of the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons — a period in which Harrington held an administrative post with the team but was not one of Maryland's three assistant coaches. Therefore, he was not permitted — at least initially — to be involved in scouting opponents by compiling video clips or performing related activities.

No. 5 Johns Hopkins, which opened its men's lacrosse season Friday night with a 14-3 victory against Manhattan, did so without senior attackman Chris Boland , who sat out after violating an unspecified team rule. Asked whether there is a timetable for Boland's return, coach Dave Pietramala said: "No. That's something between Chris and our coaching staff, and it's an internal thing." Boland, a Jessup native, was a three-time Sun All-Metro selection and three-time All-American at Boys' Latin.

Maryland men's basketball coach Gary Williams announced Thursday that junior Dino Gregory will return to the team Dec. 12. Gregory, a 6-foot-7 forward from Baltimore (Mount St. Joseph) was suspended Nov. 3 for an unspecified violation of team rules. Williams declined to comment on the specifics of Gregory's reinstatement. "We're going to try to be as good a team as we can this year," Williams said before practice for tonight's game against New Hampshire. "That's what we're working toward.

COLLEGE PARK -- It was just an exhibition game, but Maryland still supplied drama Tuesday night worthy of the regular season. Most of the evening's compelling story lines came before the Terps made 10 of their first 11 shots in dispatching Indiana (Pa.), 75-54. Maryland announced before the game that power forward Dino Gregory (Mount St. Joseph), a likely starter, would miss the game for violating team rules. His future status is uncertain. Maryland wouldn't identify the rules it said were broken, citing federal privacy regulations.

Maryland running back Sam Maldonado has been suspended indefinitely for a violation of team rules, Terps coach Ralph Friedgen said yesterday. Maldonado, who did not practice yesterday, is the Terps' second-leading rusher with 214 yards this season. Saturday against West Virginia, he led the Terps with 88 yards on 13 carries in Maryland's 34-7 win. Maldonado, a junior, transferred from Ohio State in 2002 and sat out last season as a redshirt. Friedgen would not elaborrate as to what the violation was about.

Orioles won't change season-ticket prices baseball The price of Orioles season tickets at Camden Yards will remain the same for 2009. Orioles director of communications Greg Bader confirmed yesterday that season-ticket invoices have been mailed and there are no price increases. Individual tickets go on sale in January. The Orioles raised ticket prices for select seats before last season, marking the first hike in several seasons. Attendance at Camden Yards in 2008 fell below the 2 million mark for the first time in the stadium's 17-year history.

After two weeks and four blowout losses on the road, Coppin State came home to regroup yesterday. Instead of a reprieve, though, the Eagles suffered another indignity in a season that is quickly unraveling. Their 78-50 loss to Morgan State at Coppin Center in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference opener was the second worst home defeat in Fang Mitchell's 22 seasons as coach. The prospects for a turnaround anytime soon don't look good. The Eagles play their next nine games on the road over 40 days.