Urbana

Allan Levey, a member of the Maryland Racing Commission, said the board will meet Tuesday evening in Baltimore to vote whether to grant the Cracked Claw restaurant in Urbana an off-track betting license.Levey chaired a meeting in Frederick on Wednesday night and heard "mostly opposition" from a number of county residents about the location of the proposed parlor.Levey also said that three of the county commissioners and two state legislators from the jurisdiction also have voiced opposition to the Cracked Claw site.

Sharon Brazell from Severna Park was hoping someone would have the recipe for the hush puppies that were served at the Peter Pan Inn in Urbana. The restaurant, which closed in 1986, was famous for its plentiful family-style meals and beautiful setting. Brazell said her family, like many in the 1950s, '60s and '70s, would make the drive to the country restaurant near Frederick for special occasions to enjoy the food and setting, which included peacocks parading in the gardens.

After pressuring the goal nearly all the second half yesterday with nothing to show for its efforts, fourth-ranked North Carroll appeared on the verge of getting blanked for the second straight game.Misty MacMillan had other ideas.In a game full of near misses, MacMillan finally struck pay dirt with 1: 12 left to lift the host Panthers to a memorable 1-0 win over Urbana in a Central Maryland Conference game.Pub Date: 10/01/99

No. 3 Winters Mill was feeling something special Saturday at the Class2A-1A state dual championships. The Falcons ran off six pins against No. 8 Owings Mills and had the match won with seven bouts to go. The 66-4 victory at North Point High School in Waldorf gave Winters Mill its first state dual title and only the second ever by a Carroll County school (North Carroll in 1994). "I knew how badly our kids wanted this," Winters Mill coach John Lowe said. "We were driven after last year's loss in the finals.

The No. 3 McDonogh boys lacrosse team defeated visiting Urbana, 10-5, yesterday. The Eagles (16-4) were tied at the half with the Hawks but scored six second-half goals. No. 1 Boys' Latin 13, Severn 3 -- Travis Reed scored three goals to lead the Lakers (15-1) over the host Admirals (7-7). Boys' Latin clinched one of the two top seeds in the state playoffs. Baseball Boys' Latin 9, West York (Pa.) 2 -- Devon Jerrard picked up his sixth win of the season as the Lakers beat the host Bulldogs.

The No. 10 Dulaney boys lacrosse team has enough offensive firepower to hang with anyone. Senior midfielders Eric Keppler, Cody Lehrer and Jay Mann pace an offense capable of shooting opponents out of games. So how exactly do you stop the Lions? "Don't give them the ball," Urbana coach Joe Conner said. "You have to have long possessions on offense. If we don't get a goal, we still get three minutes off the clock, and the longer they don't touch it, the better our chances." Yesterday afternoon, Urbana of Frederick County controlled possession and was able to hold off a late rally by the Lions, winning, 8-7, in Timonium.

COLLEGE PARK -- Urbana of Frederick County, a program in its fourth year of existence, scored 21 unanswered points to dethrone defending champion Fort Hill, 24-7, in the Class 2A state championship game yesterday at the University of Maryland's Byrd Stadium.Down 7-3 at halftime, Urbana (13-0) took a 10-7 lead on Greg Hill's momentum-shifting 81-yard punt return with 4: 06 left in the third quarter. Zack Mills' 4-yard touchdown run in the fourth-quarter, followed by Wayne Parrish's 3-yard run for a score finished off the Sentinels (10-3)

At times this season, the inability to score over long stretches has hurt the Century girls basketball team. Last night against Frederick County's Urbana, it was a sizable drought in each half that doomed the host Knights in a 51-43 loss. The team, in its first varsity season, has shown maturity and clinched a tie for the Carroll County title. But shooting woes continue to be a problem. The Knights (11-7, 7-6 Central Maryland Conference) shot 24 percent from the field over the first three quarters.

Westminster pitcher Nichol Moeller was so dominant yesterday, she finished with as many hits and more RBIs than she allowed the entire Urbana softball team. A first-team All-Metro selection last season, Moeller retired the first 14 batters she faced, struck out seven and took a no-hitter into the seventh before finishing with a complete-game one-hit shutout. She also went 1-for-3 from the plate with an RBI single to lead the fourth-ranked Owls to a 2-0 victory over visiting Urbana in a Central Maryland Conference game.

This is how bad it was last night for River Hill in its season opener against visiting Urbana: the Hawks had more free-throw attempts and more turnovers than they did total points."

Hereford suffered its third straight loss to Frederick County's Urbana, this time in the Class 4A/3A North Region final, 32-27, Wednesday night in Parkton. The Hawks, from Frederick County, topped Perry Hall, 36-27, to advance to the final against the Bulls, who throttled Eastern Tech, 42-26, in the other semifinal. With the victory, Urbana advances to a state semifinal at North Point High in Waldorf on Saturday. Hereford (23-7) grabbed a 12-6 advantage in the regional final after freshman Billy Hess decisioned senior Dan Morley in the 152-bracket before the Hawks drew even with wins by Jacob Thomas and Mike Virnelson.

The C. Milton Wright Mustangs, fresh off of a 1-0 victory in the Class 3A North regional girls soccer final, were knocked out of the state tournament Saturday with a 1-0 loss to the Urbana Hawks in the state semifinal round. The game was scoreless until the 74th minute when the Class 3A West champion Hawks found the CMW goal for the winning tally. The Mustangs' best shot at a goal came 33 minutes into the contest, when Megan Frailer got off a rocket from 18 yards out, but her attempt was right at the Hawks' goalkeeper.

For a second straight year, the Class 3A state semifinals turned out to be a disappointing roadblock for the C. Milton Wright girls soccer team. This time, it was Urbana from Frederick County which found a way past the No. 5 Mustangs, getting a goal from senior forward Nia Giron with 5:44 to play to come away with a 1-0 win Saturday at CCBC-Essex. C. Milton Wright, which lost to Calvert County's Huntingtown, 1-0, in last year's semifinals on a goal coming with 12 minutes left, ends this season with a 14-5 mark.

Maryland's oldest and largest off-track betting facility will shut down next month, its owners said Tuesday, because it can no longer sustain losses. The closure of the Cracked Claw restaurant and sports palace in Frederick County on Oct. 9 is the latest blow to the state's ailing racing industry as it struggles to reinvent itself amid declining betting and popularity. The closure leaves three OTB facilities in Maryland. "It's another hit," said Mike Hopkins, executive director of the Maryland Racing Commission, which regulates the sport.

Chespapeake-Anne Arundel's Megan Hyson was one pitch away from a perfect game in Tuesday's Class 4A state semifinals when Montgomery Blair's Emily Haislip drew a walk. Hyson briefly walked off the mound, collected herself and struck out the next batter, earning a no-hitter in the top-ranked Cougars' 8-0 victory. Hyson also went 4-for-4 with a home run, setting up a showdown against undefeated Urbana in Saturday's state championship at Maryland. "It was close, that's all you can ask for. A no-hitter was good enough," said Hyson, who will play at Georgetown next season.

Before Saturday's Class 4A-3A state championship swimming meet at the University of Maryland, Severna Park coach Mike McTammany looked at the seedings and tried to break down the potential point totals to see where his boys and girls teams might finish. McTammany knew his girls would have trouble toppling Urbana of Frederick County, but the boys had the depth to earn a second consecutive title. McTammany's prediction proved true as the Falcons placed well enough in the 11 events on the boys' side to take home the championship with 281 points, ahead of Broadneck (235)

URBANA -- Is this small rural village in Frederick County about to become Sin City, U.S.A.?Yesterday members of the Maryland Racing Commission were confronted by some extremely vocal opponents, including a weeping mother, two ministers and a couple of distraught fathers, who said opening an off-track betting parlor in Urbana would bring traffic problems, increased crime and moral turpitude to their community.The specter of local high school students becoming compulsive gamblers, having their bets run by teen-age bookies, gun battles in the parking lot if robberies occur and waitresses at the facility providing "sexual titillation" was raised by angry members of the local PTA and a group that has been formed called "Families Against Off-Track Betting."

Westminster has shown that it can win with style. Last night, the No. 16 Owls proved they can do it with brute force. In a battle of unbeaten Central Maryland Conference boys basketball foes, Westminster breezed past visiting Urbana, 67-50. Owls senior forward Nick Hohenwarter led all scorers with 23 points, and senior guard David Wynne and senior forward Jason Jarrett did a masterful job containing Hawks senior guard Zach Mills. But those performances were nearly lost in the tension brewing on the court.

FRIDAY FOOTBALL STATE CHAMPIONSHIP (at M&T Bank Stadium) CLASS 4A Urbana 6, Wise 0 BOYS BASKETBALL Loyola 61, Coppin Academy 46 EAGLE CLASSIC (at AACS) McDonogh 61, Chapelgate 48 AACS 66, St. John's-CP 48 GIRLS BASKETBALL Coppin Academy 34, Bryn Mawr 31 Mt. de Sales 47, Severn 30 St. Tim's 58, Oldfields 21

Michael Spahr threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to Jude Merkel on the opening drive of the second half to lift Urbana to a 6-0 victory over Wise in the Class 4A state championship game Friday night at M&T Bank Stadium. The Hawks of Frederick County, led by first-year coach Ryan Hines, finished their season at 13-0 as they took home the program's fourth state title. It was the ninth shutout by Urbana's defense this season. "We just kept our heads up. Coach told us to believe," Merkel said.