DC – Washington Catholic Athletic Conference | Archive | May, 2009

By Ryan Mink
rmink@digitalsports.com

The WCAC baseball championship game was suspended entering the top of the sixth inning Monday night because of continuous rain at the Bowie Baysox Stadium in Bowie.

Bishop Ireton leads 3-2 and although the game had technically gone beyond the required innings for it to be called an official game, WCAC rules state that in playoff games the contest is played the full seven innings no matter what.

The game will be continued Wednesday at a place and time to be determined.

Making things even more difficult is that each team begins its Virginia Independent Schools League state tournament on Tuesday. Paul VI takes on Trinity Episcopal and Bishop Ireton is at home against St. Christopher’s.

Thus each team has to balance who pitches Tuesday as to not burn them for Wednesday and essentially determine how they value each tournament.

“Both teams are two innings away from winning a WCAC title as opposed to three games away from a state title,” Ireton Coach Michael Gallagher said. “So that takes precedence.”

“It’s a very odd situation,” Paul VI Coach Billy Emerson added. “It’s extremely weird.”

Sixth-seeded Paul VI took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first when Ireton third baseman Tommy Kiesner fielded a two-out grounder but threw wide of first.

Dan Savage and Chad Morgan came around to score on the play as first baseman and semifinals pitching star Dan Nichols lie injured on the field. Nichols had to come out of the game in a double-whammy for the Cardinals right at the start.

“I knew I had to bounce back, but I knew I could,” Kiesner said. “We just do what we do.”

Fifth-seeded Ireton, who is 8-2 in 10 one-run games this season, continually got runners on base but couldn’t push them across. A double-play on an infield line out ended the first inning, the bases were left loaded in the second inning and runners were stranded on first and third in the third.

Finally in the second inning, Luke Rabiej started a one-out rally with a single. Brian Lewis, who replaced Nichols, beat out an infield single then Kresner drove in Rabiej with a single to center. C.K. Kraft, who earlier in the inning saved at least one run with a diving two-out catch in center field, doubled to tie the game at 2.

Bishop Ireton took the lead in the bottom of the fifth when junior shortstop Frankie Zare reached on an error and promptly stole second and third base. He came in on a fielder’s choice by Rabiej to give the Cardinals the lead.

“It’s disappointing but I think we’ll come back with the same momentum on Wednesday,” Zare said. We were on a roll. We were hitting the ball hard all game and they were finally getting through.”

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

By Ryan Mink
rmink@digitalsports.com

Before Tuesday night’s WCAC boys lacrosse championship, DeMatha Coach Scott Morrison wrote “Composure” on the white board and even defined it from the dictionary for his team.

Yet it was a lack of composure that got the Stags really rolling Tuesday night.

With DeMatha trailing St. Mary’s Ryken by a goal in the third quarter, a small skirmish broke out and a punch was thrown by a Stags player. He was ejected from the game and DeMatha went down two players.

Ryken scored in just 20 seconds to take a two-goal lead but DeMatha had the fire to answer. The Stags scored six of the next eight goals to beat St. Mary’s Ryken, 9-7, at the University of Maryland’s Ludwig Field and capture their second straight WCAC championship.

DeMatha has now won 11 of the last 12 conference titles with the one hiccup coming against St. Mary’s Ryken in the 2007 finals. Thus finally avenging that loss two years later was the sweetest feeling of it all.

“That was the worst feeling I’ve ever had in my life, especially because that was one of the first times I started and played,” said DeMatha senior goalie Ryan Brant, who was named the game’s MVP. “Even though we won last year we wanted to come out and show them that second meeting we’re ready for them.”

DeMatha (15-7) scored three goals in less than three minutes following Williams’ ejection.

Sophomore Ryan Belka notched the first to bring the Stags within a goal, junior Pat Harbeson scored the next on a long-distance bouncer to tie the game for the first time since its beginning and just 10 seconds later senior midfielder Tommy Chroniger gave DeMatha its first lead at 6-5.

St. Mary’s Ryken (13-4-1) tied the score at 6 then again at 7 before senior midfielder Kyle Clise put DeMatha up for good just 10 seconds later off a won faceoff by junior Philip Poe. Harbeson added his team-high third goal with one minute, 39 seconds left to seal the win for the Stags.

“I kind of got a couple guys together and said, ‘We can’t go out like that,’” Harbeson said. “We could have bagged it, they could have scored five goals. But we came together as a team. … This one feels great because we came back as a team and really played as a team.”

St. Mary’s Ryken (13-4-1) stormed out to a 3-0 lead on goals by sophomore Connor Cook (3 goals), junior Will Fejes and senior Patrick Brennan (3 goals).

DeMatha came back with two straight goals, the first from Chroniger and the second from Clise off an assist by Hilly Summers, but the Knights continued to have the edge through the majority of the game and took a 4-2 lead on Cook’s second goal and 5-3 lead on Brennan’s second right after the skirmish.

“This was probably the biggest bunch of overachievers I’ve had in years,” ,” Ryken Coach John Sothoron said. “When you’ve got the spirit like that and the fight, that makes me really really proud.”

Problem for St. Mary’s Ryken was DeMatha had just a little more fight – literally and figuratively.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

Brian L. Wiley
For DigitalSports.com

The 15U DC Heat AAU team comprised of girls from Montgomery and Prince George’s County took home Gold Medals in the 2009 Potomac Valley AAU Regionals in Basketball this weekend.

Montgomery County players Brene Moseley and Kenia Cole from Paint Branch and Cheyenne Brown from Springbrook highlighted the DC Heat. Also on the team is St. John’s Mariah Jones,  who lives in Silver Spring.

Prince George’s County players include Jeanne-Marie Wilson from Crossland, Jordan Swails-Wilson from Wise, Kia Dawkins from Wise and Lindsay Williams from St John’s but who lives in Bowie.

DC Heat beat the Western Fairfax Mustangs 65-61 in a thrilling championship game. Both teams were undefeated going into the championship game. Jones and Moseley lead DC Heat with 15 and 12 points, respectively.

With the championship win, DC Heat 15U qualifies for Nationals and hold the title as the No. 1 15U Team in the DC/MD/VA area.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

Created by Phil Murphy
Senior Multimedia/Content Editor
Washington D.C. Metropolitan Area

Top 10 Plays — May 4-10, 2009

Click
the video on the left for the full countdown of the Top 10 plays from
across the seven DigitalSports territories in the greater Washington,
D.C. Metro area.

You can also view the full list of top plays
below. Click on the titles to view the individual, unedited highlights
at respective homepages.

Check back every Monday morning for the new Top 10 countdown from around the metropolitan area.

To nominate and upload plays or accomplishments from your school:

**CLICK HERE**

Honorable Mentions (in no order):
Ward’ing Off Competition — DeMatha senior Eric Ward hits a beautiful passing shot
against Gonzaga’s Paul Mascola en route to a 10-4 win. Ward was undefeated over the past three
years, winning the WCAC singles title each season and helping DeMatha win the WCAC tennis championship this year.
Jose, Can You See? — Wakefield soccer features 15 seniors and just four underclassmen. But, on Senior Night, it was junior Jose Gonzalez that shined brightest, scoring twice, including this 80th-minute game-sealing strike after a long run through the defense. Tenth-ranked Wakefield beat Herndon, 2-0.
Mood Ring — With 1:40 remaining in the fourth quarter and the score tied, Robinson junior Rachel Moody scored what proved the game-winning goal to lift the Rmas over the previously-unbeaten Chargers, 9-8, for the Concorde District championship.
Latka Catch at Wall Preserves Win — Loudoun Valley led Battlefield, 4-3, in the bottom of the seventh inning with the Bobcats’ tying run on second. Virginia Tech recruit Courtney Liddle hit this 2-2 pitch from Caroline Williams (James Madison) deep to right-center, but sophomore Katlyn Latka drifted back to the fence to provide the final out and the pivotal win.
Fore Wood — Oxon Hill slugger Sean Woods went deep twice (here and here) in the Clippers’ 10-8, come-from-behind win over Parkdale in the 4A South first round. More from this game in the Top 10.

No. 10 –– Meyers Top-Shelf Winner
Northern Region, Virginia
— Oakton trailed No. 4 W.T. Woodson, 1-0, in the 69th minute on Wednesday at the Mott Center. But, after Cougar freshman Danielle Fitzgerald equalized, freshman Alex Meyers netted the game-winning goal in the 79th minute with this top-class, top-shelf strike. Oakton — which features six freshman starters — is 9-2-0.

No. 9 –– Crew’se Control
Prince William County, Virginia
— Woodbridge beat the field by :14 seconds in the Mens 1st 4 Event, finishing at 5:21.04, at the Virginia Scholastic Rowing Championships on Saturday. The Vikings feature Tyler Dawson, three-seat Matt Doody, two-seat Val Stutz, bow J.C. Fisher and coxswain Katie Garrity.

No. 8 — Ningard Sparks Saxons
Northern Region, Virginia
— Langley senior attackman Ryan Ningard scored five times — three times in the opening quarter — as the Saxons avenged their only loss of the year in the Liberty District title game. Langley beat No. 10 Madison, 11-8, on Friday night at Marshall.

No. 7 –– Cook Pipe-to-Pipe

W.C.A.C., Maryland
— With one minute remaining, St. Mary’s Ryken led Good Counsel, 10-9, in the WCAC semifinals. But a missed shot led to a rebound by Falcon middie Luke Poulus with an open-cage — and a game-tying goal — mere feet away. Knight goalkeeper Mason Cook, though, dove across the goal to redirect the shot wide and preserve both Ryken’s 10-9 win and its berth in the league finals.

No. 6 –– Aryn’s Staff
Prince George’s County, Maryland
— After Oxon Hill turned a 5-0 deficit to an 8-8 tie with Parkdale in its 4A South first-round game, Clipper first baseman Aryn Morton crushed what proved the game-winning solo home run over the left-field fence. Oxon Hill won, 10-8, to advance to its second-round game with Laurel.

No. 5 –– Boy of Summers
W.C.A.C., Maryland
— In the WCAC semifinals against Gonzaga, DeMatha junior Hilly Summers sealed the 6-4 win — and berth in the league championship game — with this first-quarter hit and fourth-quarter goal. DeMatha will face St. Mary’s Ryken in the WCAC Finals on Tuesday at the University of Maryland at 7 p.m. The Knights defeated the Stags in the 2007 title game.

No. 4 –– Grand-Rule Double
S.M.A.C., Maryland — Ram junior Tyler Croson thought he had a grand slam after this pitch launched off his bat and over the wall in the bottom of the third inning in the 2A South first-round game between Oakland Mills and McDonough. But the umpires gathered and mistakenly ruled it a ground-rule double. No matter, though, Croson was driven in on a single later in the frame and the Rams won, 10-0, in a five-inning, combined no-hitter.

No. 3 –– Burdette Free Kick
Prince William County, Virginia
— Woodbridge played C.D. Hylton twice in a 19-hour span last week, winning both games, 4-0. Viking junior Kristin Lybert scored four times in the two games, giving her 17 goals this season and 72 for her career. But the most exhilarating goal came off the foot of Woodbridge senior defender Casey Burdette on this 35-yard free kick.

No. 2 –– Open Waters
Northern Region, Virginia
— Tied with rival Westfield, 4-4, in the Concorde District title game on Friday, defending state-champion Chantilly crashed the cage with :03 seconds left in double overtime. Charger junior middie Joey Marson had his shot stopped by a Bulldog defender, but junior attackman Brendan Waters had his stopped only by the back of the goal. Waters turned 17-years-old just 2 hours after scoring the district-winning goal.

No. 1 — Bounding Benton
S.M.A.C., Maryland — North Point senior Tristan Benton shattered the previous SMAC meet record in the high jump — which was 6-feet, 6-inches — by leaping 6’9″ on Saturday at Great Mills. He also finished second in the long jump and high jump. Benton, a University of Maryland commit, set his outdoor personal record on April 18 at the Waldorf Track Classic when he leapt 6’10”, the best mark in the state this year.

Email: pmurphy@digitalsports.com

CLICK HERE FOR THE TOP 10 PLAYS FROM JAN 25-31

CLICK HERE FOR THE TOP 10 PLAYS FROM FEB 2-8

CLICK HERE FOR THE TOP 10 PLAYS FROM FEB 9-15

CLICK HERE FOR THE TOP 10 PLAYS FROM FEB 16-22

CLICK HERE FOR THE TOP 10 PLAYS FROM APR 27-MAY 3

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

By Andy States
Digital Sports Content Manager

For over five innings on Saturday night, Bishop Ireton junior Dan Nicoll was unhittable.

But even after losing his no-hit bid with one out in the sixth against top-seeded DeMatha in Sunday night’s WCAC semifinals, and then his shutout two at-bats later as the Stags cut their deficit to just one run, it did little to make the Cardinals nervous.

“He competes,” Ireton coach Michael Gallagher said of Nicholl. “If he’s got the lead with three outs or six outs left his body language tells you that they’re going to have to earn it.”

On Sunday, DeMatha was not able to. Nicoll allowed just three hits, walked one and struck out 11 to lead the fifth-seeded Cardinals to a 4-1 win over the Stags at Prince George’s Stadium in Bowie. The win clinched a spot in Monday night’s conference championship game against Paul VI, which took care of No. 2 seed Saint John’s 7-2 in the first semifinal of the day.

Nicoll dominated the nightcap, facing just two over the minimum through five innings. The junior went out to the mound with the lead after Matt Welch’s two-out, two-run double in the top of the first.

“It meant the world,” Nicoll said of Welch’s two-bagger. “I went out there relaxed.”

Welch’s double also proved to be the only hit Ireton could Muster until late in the game as DeMatha sophomore Nikolay Uherek matched Nicoll through much of the game. Following Welch’s hit in the first innings, Uherek, who struck out seven, set down 16 of the next 17 batters he faced. Ireton did not get another base hit until Welch led off the seventh with a single.

Chris Kashangaki broke up Nicoll’s no-hit bid with a bunt single with one out in the bottom of the sixth. Kashangaki later stole second and scored on Chris Cook’s double to right. But with Cook on second, Nicoll struck out Kyle Riffe to get out of the jam. Ireton was then able to push two insurance runs across the plate in the top of the seventh, and Nicoll worked through a scoreless bottom half to secure the 4-1 win.

“Dan if fantastic,” Gallagher said. “We’ve had great pitching. We have 15 wins and between Dan and John [Robertson], they have 14 of them. We’re pretty tough to beat when those two guys are out on the mound.”

Earlier in the day, Paul VI was able to take advantage of early opportunites to build a commanding lead and roll to the win over Saint John’s.

After leaving the bases loaded in the first, Carlos Mateos’ one-out triple drove in Charles Beacom with the game’s first run in the top of the second. Mateos then scored on Matt Kianka’s sacrifice fly for the early 2-0 lead. The Panthers added one in the third, and then four more in the sixth to lead 7-0.

The Cadets got one back in the bottom of the sixth, and then loaded the bases with no outs in the seventh. But while Drew Farber’s sacrifice fly scored Nate Meiners with the Cadets’ second run, it wound up a rally-******* double play as Paul VI was able to nip Bobby Boyd trying to take third.

Torey Mancari worked 6 2/3 gritty innings to earn the win. The senior struggled at times in allowing five hits, six walks and a hit batter, but came through with big pitches in key situations. Of his six strikeouts, three ended innings with runners on the bases.

“We’re on a roll,” Mancari said of the team’s play of late. “It’s always better to finish better at the end of the season. We’re on a roll and I like our chances right now.”

The Panthers’ defense also came up big when it needed to, turning three double plays on the game including two that ended innings.

“We’re doing what we’ve been trying to do all year,” said Paul VI coach Billy Emerson, whose sophomore-heavy squad started the season slow but has come together of late. “Second half of the season has been great for us and we all think that we’re in a good position coming into the playoffs and it’s working out for us so far.

“It’s never easy against Saint John’s. You have to bring your ‘A’ game. That’s a team that’s always in it year-after-year-after-year. We got some breaks and took advantage of some opportunities and that’s baseball.”

Monday’s championship game at Prince George’s Stadium will be the third meeting between Ireton and Paul VI this year. The teams split the first two contests, which were both decided by one run.

“We wouldn’t have it any other way,” Gallagher said of facing Paul VI for the conference crown. “We’ve played nothing but good games against them the last two seasons. Tomorrow’s going to be another good one. Nice to have two Virginia schools in the WCAC [final] too.”

Paul VI 7, Saint John’s 2
P    0 2 1  0 0 4  0 – 7 10 2
S    0 0 0  0 0 1  1 – 2 5 1
WP: Mancari, LP Bowie
3B – Mateos (PVI)

Bishop Ireton 4, DeMatha 1
B    2 0 0  0 0 0  2 – 4 3 1
D    0 0 0  0 0 1  0 – 1 3 1
WP: Nicoll, LP: Uherek
2B – Welch (BI), Cook (D)

astates@digitalsports.com

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

The Gonzaga College High School rugby team picked up its third championship of the season by defeating Georgetown Prep 45-14 for the Metro Are Varsity Rugby Championship Friday night at Coolidge.

It was the Eagles’ final tune up before heading to the USA Rugby High School National Championship’s in Pittsburgh next weekend. A balanced attack saw seven Eagles score trys (Jeff Bruno, Dylan Jones, Gabe Cunningham, Johnny McMurray, Johnny Kelley, Brian Liebold and John Davis) and conversions from Johnny McMurray, Matias Cima and Pat Carter.

It was a smothering defense and tactical kicking that kept Prep pinned in their own half much of the game. That allowed Gonzaga to be in position to score trys from driving mauls at the lineout, pick and goes, weakside attack, counter attack and thru the hands. The Eagles will play St Thomas of Houston, Texas in their opener at nationals.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

By Ryan Mink
rmink@digitalsports.com

It took five seconds for DeMatha to get the leg up it needed on Gonzaga in Friday’s WCAC boys lacrosse semifinals.

That’s the time it took DeMatha junior Philip Poe to snare the opening draw from Gonzaga’s first-rate faceoff man Chris May, streak down the field and rocket a shot into the net for the game’s first goal.

DeMatha led from point on as the Stags built a three-goal lead in the first half behind its dominant defense and got just enough offense down the stretch to hold off a feisty Gonzaga team, 6-4.

The defending champion Stags advance to Tuesday’s WCAC final at 7 p.m. at the University of Maryland where they will meet St. Mary’s Ryken, who defeated DeMatha in the 2007 finals.

“I don’t think I’ve run that fast in a while,” Poe said of the five-second goal. “That’s pretty much the biggest thing you can do to get pumped up.”

DeMatha had stressed faceoffs all week but really put the emphasis on its wing play. Quite frankly, DeMatha Coach Scott Morrison and the Stags were expecting to get dominated by May.

Morrison said he was hoping DeMatha would win 50 percent. Poe ended up winning 7 of 13 mostly by timing the whistle. Of the faceoffs he lost, several were because he jumped early. Poe’s thinking was that timing whistle just right was his only shot.

“We certainly didn’t expect Phil to dominate as he did,” Morrison said. “And I say dominate mostly because [May’s] a tremendous player. It was kind of a surprise to us that we weren’t struggling as much from faceoff.”

After Poe’s goal gave DeMatha all the swagger it could have wanted, the Stags continued to control the game in other aspects as well. The Stags built a three-goal lead on goals by Kyle Clise with 2.2 seconds left in the first quarter and one near the start of the second quarter by midfielder Mike Williams.

The Stags’ defense allowed just a handful of shots in the first half and only one goal with 1 minute, 59 seconds remaining in the half off the stick of Josh Furnary.

DeMatha’s defense has been its backbone this season in Morrison’s first year. Morrison was the team’s defensive coach last year before getting the head coaching position. Now Mike Bonanni handles the defense that is led by senior TJ Harris.

That defense was put to the test in the third quarter when Gonzaga started putting more pressure on in its riding. DeMatha had several failed clear attempts during the quarter, constantly putting the defense back to work.

Gonzaga scored the final two goals of the quarter to pull to within one goal at 4-3 heading into the fourth.

“We were playing a whole lot of defense,” Harris said. “That’s always tough when you get a stop and the clear fails and they come right back in. But we’ve been running so hard, we were ready for that.”

Just when the defense was being bended, the Stags’ balanced offense (six different players scored) stepped it up. Ryan Belka scored to make the score 5-3 but Gonzaga freshman Sean Whitcomb answered back just 45 seconds later.

DeMatha had the final stake though as junior Hilly Summers ripped a shot into the very top right corner of the goal one minute, six seconds after Whitcomb’s goal for the final tally of the day. Summers finally beat Eagles senior goalie Connor Baucum, who made 19 saves and many from close range.

Now the Stags get a rematch with St. Mary’s Ryken, who DeMatha beat 7-5 on March 27.

“Us seniors, us juniors, we owe them one for 2007,” Harris said. “It didn’t matter who as long as we were there, but I’m glad we have Ryken because 2007 still hurts.”

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

By Ryan Mink
rmink@digitalsports.com

DeMatha freshman Brett Tielman-Fenelus was caught up in the middle of one of the most hostile and intense WCAC tennis matches in many people’s recent memory. He was nearly silent as chaos surrounded him.

Tielman-Fenelus battled from three games behind to force a tiebreaker in his fourth singles match, a match that would have essentially knocked Gonzaga out of Thursday’s WCAC championships early. But after all that, Tielman-Fenelus lost.

Once again he went silent afterwards. He said he didn’t talk to anyone for about 10 minutes, just reflecting by himself in the College Park Tennis Center locker room.

But as bad as that hurt, Tielman-Fenelus knew he had a chance at redemption ahead of him.

Tielman-Fenelus got his revenge, combining with fellow freshman partner Evan Ward to beat Gonzaga at second doubles, giving DeMatha the pivotal win it needed to inch-out Gonzaga by two points for the WCAC championship.

“It’s a great day, man,” Tielman-Fenelus said. “Maybe I lost, but it was close. It was a tiebreaker. And I really showed up here [in doubles]. I’d rather have a team win than a personal win.”

While the freshmen won the crucial match, DeMatha’s senior leaders took care of business as well. John Collins took the first singles crown after two straight years winning WCAC championships at second singles by beating Brian Hope of Paul VI, 10-3.

“It’s awesome, going out there and playing our best and playing our heart out,” Collins said. “And not only winning individually but contributing to the team so we can bring home the team title.

Stags senior Eric Ward capped off an undefeated three year span with the second singles crown by beating Gonzaga’s Paul Mascola, 10-4.

Collins and Ward combined to win first doubles against Paul VI’s Hope and Chris Rieves, 10-3, bringing the title trophy back to DeMatha after the Eagles took it last year. They of course capped the win with a leaping chest bump.

“We wanted to put an exclamation point on the match,” Ward said. “It’s perfect to end our season as seniors.”

But nobody could deny that the fourth singles match was Thursday’s turning point.

It all began when Tielman-Fenelus called a shot out as he was trying to rally from three games behind at 9-6. Even DeMatha’s Collins said the ball shouldn’t have been called out, but the call stood, leading to a tie at 9.

Gonzaga junior Mike Artiles argued the call vehemently and the two players met at the net for a heated exchange. Artiles several times yelled at Tielman-Fenelus and the rest of the DeMatha bench, “You want to win like that?”

After the match was delayed for several minutes and even moved to a different court, the two players traded games and went into a tiebreaker.

Tielman-Fenelus won the first point and two of the first three as he continued his strategy from his comeback — methodically lobbing the ball back to Artiles to let the extremely heated Eagle make the mistake. That especially rattled Artiles.

“I’m a constant head case,” Artiles. “It’s nothing new to me. My coaches have taught me to use that energy for good.”

Artiles gained momentum throughout the tiebreaker, biding his time and exploding with powerful forehands to win points. There was of course more drama when Artiles called a ball out but continued to play it afterwards. A judge ruled in his favor and Artiles won the tiebreaker, 7-2.

“After I lost it took me a while,” Tielman-Fenelus said. “I was like, ‘I’m not letting them beat me.’ A loss is a loss but I tried to make it up in doubles.”

Tielman-Fenelus and his even-keel partner Ward calmed down with a ride to Bowie Sport Fit when the matches were moved because of rain. They then combined to take care of business at second doubles in what first-year Coach Jason Ramos said was their best performance of the year.

They beat Aaron Artiles (Mike’s twin brother) and Mascola, 10-4, by winning eight of the final nine games.

DeMatha’s second doubles team won each of the previous meetings during the regular season as well but by scores of 10-7 and 11-9. DeMatha nearly blew a 9-2 lead in the first meeting and rallied from down 9-6 to win the second time.

“The past two times we played them it was close, but we just decided this time to let it all out,” Tielman-Fenelus said. “It was great knowing that we beat Gonzaga. I **** to say it, but it was pretty fun.”

FINALS RESULTS

Singles
1st: John Collins (DM) def. Brian Hope (PVI), 10-3
2nd: Eric Ward (DM) def. Paul Mascola (GZ), 10-4
3rd: Evan Ward (DM) def. Aaron Artiles (GZ), 10-1
4th: Mike Artiles (GZ) def. Brett Tielman-Fenelus (DM), 10-10 (7-2)
5th: Tom Lavin (GZ) def. Peter Burton (DM), 10-7
6th: Shane Hannon (GZ) def. Arturo Garcia (BO), 10-2

Doubles
1st: Collins/Eric Ward (DM) def. Hope/Chris Rieves (PVI), 10-3
2nd: Evan Ward/Tielman-Fenelus (DM) def. A. Artiles/Mascola (GZ), 10-4
3rd: Lavin/Hannon (GZ) def. Le/Jennings (PVI), 10-3

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

Principal Tim Hamer announced today that Mr. Neil Berkman has been hired as Bishop Ireton’s new boys basketball coach. Berkman will also join the faculty as a mathematics teacher. Coach Berkman was introduced to the school and his prospective players today.

Cardinals’ Athletic Director Bill Simmons commented “We had a superb group of extremely qualified applicants, including a number of head coaches and coaches with college experience.  We not only got both with Neil, but a great teacher as well.”

Berkman was the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s Regional Teacher of the Year in 2005. He comes to Bishop Ireton after five years as the head coach at Archbishop Curley in Baltimore, where his teams qualified for the playoffs in three of the five years after years of struggling, including the most recent 19-7 season.  A Maryland alum, Berkman coached at the Bullis School before moving to the college ranks as an assistant at Coastal Carolina, Cornell and Siena before taking the helm at Curley.

Pete Strickland, currently at NC State, was the Coastal Carolina head coach during Berkman’s tenure there.  He remarked, “no one sacrificed more, no one was thirstier than Neil. He was enthusiastic and devoted to the players as people as well as athletes.  You got a hard worker and guy who cares about the kids under his charge. I think you are going to really like him!”

Berkman will assume his duties at Bishop Ireton full time beginning July 1, 2009.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)

By Kyle Wannen
For DigitalSports.com

With just over a minute remaining in a one-goal playoff game against Good Counsel Thursday, St. Mary’s Ryken goalie Mason Cook made a spectacular save on a shot from Falcons’ attackman Patrick Durkin but the rebound bounced right to the stick of Falcons’ midfielder Luke Poulus for what appeared to be a game-tying goal.

Cook quickly recovered and threw himself across the goal mouth, leading with his goalie stick, and somehow dove in front of Poulos’ shot to keep the Knights (11-3-1) ahead by one goal and preserve the 10-9 victory over the Falcons in the semifinals of the WCAC playoffs. After the game Cook said that he had practiced a similar maneuver before each game during warmups.

“One of the drills we do is pipe-to-pipe and that really showed at the end, like practice makes perfect,” Cook said. “I led with my stick and he just shot right into it and it was perfect.”

“I think Mason probably played his best game of the season today,” Knights coach John Sothoron said. “I mean those last two saves, there in the last minute, were exceptional. That’s what saved it for us.”

Cook finished with seven saves for the game but a couple were from the fourth quarter when Good Counsel (10-8) made a furious comeback to almost erase a three-goal deficit. St. Mary’s Ryken has had difficulty putting teams away this season.

“We’ve been doing this all year,” Sothoron said. “I can’t explain it. These are the cardiac kids. You definitely get your money’s worth if you come watch us play. You don’t know what we’re going to do. I don’t know what we’re going to do.”

The Knights were able to build a three-goal lead in the third quarter thanks to midfielder William Fejes. Fejes scored three goals, all in the third quarter, and assisted on the Knights fourth goal of the period by attackman Connor Cook, who also finished the game with three goals. Fejes has stepped up at the midfield position after some injuries earlier this season.

“I was thinking I wanted to get to the championship,” Fejes said. “I knew we couldn’t sit on that sixth goal. So I started up strong and put it in the back of the net.”

“Will had a phenomenal second half,” Sothoron said. “Other guys step up. When some guy gets hurt, we’ve been doing this all year.”

In a rematch of last season semifinal matchup in which Good Counsel defeated the Knights, St. Mary’s Ryken got some revenge thanks to a 3-1 scoring advantage in the second quarter to help them take a 6-4 lead into halftime. The Knights also got first-half goals from Matthew Boutin, Patrick Brennan, Brian Frank and Austin Spaulding.

“This is tremendous,” Cook said. “They came back in the fourth quarter. Even this season they beat us in overtime. This was really redemption for us.”

The Falcons were led by two goals by Poulos and two goals by attackman Brendan Durkin but could not tie the game late despite a flurry of shots and opportunities. Goalie Patrick McEnerney made nine saves to keep the game close for Good Counsel.

[!] Flag as Inappropriate

Processing your request, Please wait....

Report as:	Violent or Repulsive Content|Hateful or Abusive Content|Harmful Dangerous Acts|Child Abuse|Spam|Infringes My Rights
Write in Words: (Optional)