Zappacosta

Unranked Mount St. Joseph has done it again. For the second straight season, the Gaels have made it through the losers bracket and into the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference finals. The defending champions made it back by upsetting No. 2 St. Paul's and their ace, Steve Johnson, 5-0, at Ripken Stadium in Aberdeen last night. Mount St. Joe (20-12) will play top-ranked Calvert Hall (30-1) at 6:30 tonight at Ripken Stadium, and the Gaels have to defeat Calvert Hall twice to repeat as titlists.

Player of the Year: Rachel Herrick, Northeast Coach of the Year: Mickey Deegan, McDonogh First team Name........................School...... ................................Class...........Position Rachel Herrick.......Northeast................. ................Senior..........Pitcher Nichol Moeller....... Westminster............................J unior..........Pitcher Jessica Saunders... Archbishop Spalding........ Junior........ Pitcher Laura Siler............... C. Milton Wright.

Player of the Year Mia Zappacosta, McDonogh: The sophomore brought an end to Archbishop Spalding's stranglehold of the Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland A Conference (formerly Baltimore Catholic League) championship this spring. The right-hander went 14-5 with a 176 strikeouts in 172 innings with two huge postseason performances. In the IAAM A semifinals against Catholic, Zappacosta held the Cubs to one hit with 10 strikeouts before McDonogh won in the bottom of the seventh inning, 1-0. She only had seven strikeouts in the title game against No. 1 Spalding but was able to frustrate the Cavaliers with a nasty changeup, allowing two hits in a 2-0 victory.

Tamir Goodman, co-Most Valuable Player in Tuesday night's 27th Capital Classic, is believed to be only the third Baltimorean named MVP of the showcase basketball event. Goodman's eight assists and three steals were game highs, and he was 2-for-2 in his only trip to the free-throw line in leading a game-clinching 12-0 run for the Capital All-Stars in their come-from-behind, 112-101 win over the U.S. All-Stars at Washington's MCI Center. Goodman, who shared team MVP honors with Bernard Robinson (15 points)

On game days, Peter G. Angelos surveys the streets around Camden Yards and can't quite stomach what he's seeing. Ticket scalpers -- two to three dozen hustling entrepreneurs -- are working the streets, clutching tickets and trying to close the next high-priced sale."

Casey Brengle Westminster, catcher The senior emerged as a force at the plate, where she batted .354 with two home runs and 14 RBIs, and anchored the Owls' defensive strategy. Cynthia Clark Mount de Sales, first base A solid leadoff hitter for the Sailors, the senior batted .355 with 11 RBIs and also recorded a .993 fielding percentage. Meg Cowen Archbishop Spalding, third base/pitcher The senior batted .494 last season and proved her versatility by mixing in her third-base duties with an 8-3 record and a 0.44 ERA on the mound.

Third-ranked Syracuse got four goals from Steve Vallone and three from Michael Powell yesterday to defeat No. 13 Cornell, 12-10, in Ithaca, N.Y. It was the fifth straight win for the Orangemen (8-1) and first in three tries at Cornell. The Big Red (5-3) had a slight edge in shots and faceoffs but never led. Sean Lindsay scored twice in the first quarter to help Syracuse build a 4-1 lead. Cornell responded with goals by Ian Rosenberger and Sean Greenhalgh to make it 4-3 early in the second quarter before Syracuse pushed the lead to 5-3 on Vallone's second goal of the day. The Big Red pulled to within a goal four more times, but each time Syracuse countered.

Mount de Sales freshman pitcher Jessica Taylor is peaking at just the right time. Yesterday, she won her fifth straight game, throwing a one-hitter to beat No. 12 Catholic, 9-0, in an Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland A Conference Tournament quarterfinal. With a 1.20 ERA, Taylor (6-4) has helped the Sailors (9-10) recover after losing seven one-run games. Errin Riggins was 2-for-4 yesterday with a triple and two RBIs while Kerri Poisal went 3-for-4. The Cubs (11-6) struggled without starter Kelley Tiesi, who is suffering from a nagging injury in her pitching arm. In tomorrow's semifinal, the Sailors play host to McDonogh.

Moves Baseball DODGERS: Placed 3B Jose Valentin on 15-day DL with torn ligaments in right knee. Purchased contract of IF-OF Mike Edwards from Triple-A Las Vegas. MARINERS: Purchased contract of IF Dave Hansen from Triple-A Tacoma. Optioned OF Shin-Soo Choo to Tacoma. Transferred 2B Pokey Reese from 15-day DL to 60-day DL. PADRES: Placed P Woody Williams on 15-day DL, retroactive to May 2, with strained left oblique. Recalled P Randy Williams from Triple-A Portland. TWINS: Recalled IF Terry Tiffee from Triple-A Rochester.

Coach of the Year Mickey Deegan McDonogh Talk about saving the best for last. For the past 13 years, Deegan labored to build a softball program at the Owings Mills private school that could compete with the Archbishop Spalding and Mount de Sales teams of the Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland A Conference. Known for fielding competitive squads that could challenge the upper-echelon teams, Deegan and the No. 2 Eagles shattered the ceiling this season by registering a 16-6 season and defeating powerhouse Archbishop Spalding in the IAAM championship final at Towson University on May 12. Blessed with a rising star in pitcher Mia Zappacosta and a cohesive unit behind her, McDonogh improved its .220 batting average from last season by 70 points this spring and became one of only two teams this year to shut out the Cavaliers.