Perry Hall kicks off season with dominating win over Catonsville
Frese named national basketball coach of year
Catonsville trailed Perry Hall by six with under a minute left in the first half and the host Comets were inside the Gators 20-yard line when Perry Hall’s Daniel Johnson picked off a third-down pass and raced 88 yards for a touchdown as the half ended.
A two-point conversion pass from Jailen Knight to Mehkai Price made it a 14-point lead and the Gators were never threatened on the way to a 39-0 victory on Friday evening.
“We were really confident, it gave us a great boost of energy, we had some ups and downs in the first half and to have that going into halftime, it was a really good boost for us going into the half,” Knight said. “It just shows what kind of fight we have in this team. They came down into our territory and we made a great play.”
Catonsville coach Jaren Maybin knew the play was a game-changer.
“Once they made that big play right before the half, the momentum was on their side and it was just a little bit too much for us,” he said.
Perry Hall’s other touchdown came on an Isaiah Armstrong 8-yard run with 34 seconds left in the first quarter after the Comets had fumbled on their own 20.
— Craig Clary
Milford Mill 25, Woodlawn 18: It was late in the fourth quarter with Milford Mill leading by a point, but Woodlawn’s Ronnie Harris had turned the tied with a blocked punt that he also recovered for a touchdown.
With 7:31 remaining, Milford Mill return man and quarterback Rishon Holmes took the ball deep into Woodlawn’s territory. While his team struggled on the first three downs, Holmes completed five consecutive passes — the last being the game-sealing 5-yard touchdown to Isaiah Iroanya for the Millers’ 25-18 win.
The senior quarterback had four touchdown passes on the day. His first two came in the first half to Jamar Gainer and Sheldon O’Brien. A third went to Niem Snowden. Once he saw a chance to strike for a fourth, he didn’t allow the opportunity to slip out of his hands. Holmes trained with his teammates for moments like these throughout the offseason when COVID-19 wrecked their fall plans.
“That’s just all about trust,” Holmes said. “You have to trust each and every one of your teammates, no matter which position they play or what side they’re on. You just have to trust them. Me and the guys were just out there working and working. I was practicing as a quarterback, running back, special teams and all of that. All of that work just translated to the field.”
— Kyle J. Andrews
Winters Mill 22, F.S. Key 8: On a night when offense is hard to come by, special teams plays can make or break a game.
After struggling turning the ball over last week in a loss to South Carroll, Winters Mill made two big special teams plays and scored a defensive touchdown to earn their first win of the season in beating Francis Scott Key.
“Last week I thought we played a team we pretty evenly matched with and tonight I thought we played a team we were pretty evenly matched with,” said Winters Mill coach Matt Miller, whose team lost to South Carroll. “If the ball bounces in your direction, it tends to favor you. Last week we gave the turnovers and this week we got the turnovers.”
Westminster 35, South Carroll 0: The Owls couldn’t wait to get back at it, and it has shown through their first two games. They defeated Liberty in Week 1 and shut out South Carroll on Friday at Ruby Field.
“For me and especially these seniors, they’re such a special group,” Owls coach Chris Bassler said. “Just to get the chance to coach them one more time is awesome, whether it’s two games, six games or whatever it is, we’re just going to enjoy every second.”
Westminster posted two rushing touchdowns apiece from seniors Christian Heck and Erick Stranko. Junior quarterback Jack Gruenzinger connected with sophomore Mason Fisher for a 38-yard scoring pass as well. Senior kicker Cam Doolan went 5-for-5 on extra points for the Owls.
Heck punched in a 1-yard touchdown early in the game to give the Owls some momentum. They held the Cavaliers to a three-and-out and regained possession, but Gruenzinger was sacked by SC senior linebacker Zach Bass.
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Boys basketball
Loyola Blakefield 74, Glenelg Country 60: John Dixon scored 20 points to lead the visiting Dons (6-5, 5-5 Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference) past the Dragons (1-9, 1-9).
Glenelg took a 16-15 lead in the first quarter, but Loyola went on a 22-10 run to take an 11-point halftime lead. In the second half, the Dons pushed the lead to 23 points early in the fourth quarter. Charley Hepting scored 17 points and Owen Fischer had 15 points for Loyola. Austin Williams led Glenelg Country with 19 points, including five 3-pointers.
St. Frances 99, Annapolis Area Christian 55: Freshman Derik Queen had 56 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and four blocks to lead the visiting Panthers (11-0, 10-0 MIAA A Conference) past the Eagles (1-9, 1-9). St. Frances hosts Mount Carmel Monday at 6 p.m.
John Carroll 71, Calvert Hall 46: Jalen Bryant scored 27 points to lead the visiting Patriots (6-5, 5-5 MIAA A Conference) past the Cardinals (5-6, 5-5). Jeannot Basima scored 15 points and Tyson Commander had 11 points for John Carroll.
Field hockey
South Carroll 2, Manchester Valley 0: Jensyn Koontz approached the pregame meeting with the officials and extended her right arm.
“Nice to meet you, coach,” she said, her eyes covered by sunglasses, before Denean Koontz opted for hugs over handshakes.
Certainly not the traditional greeting between county rivals before a field hockey game, but exceptions can be made when one coach changed the other coach’s diapers.
For the first time in their lives, mother faced off against daughter in a sporting event. The younger Koontz prevailed Friday at Western Regional Park when South Carroll shut out Manchester Valley.
Jensyn Koontz, the Cavaliers’ first-year coach, played her high school field hockey at North Carroll, where Denean Koontz coached for more than 20 years and won more than 200 games. The elder Koontz also won a pair of state championships, in 2013 and 2014, when her daughter was a sophomore and junior on the team. Jensyn Koontz earned Carroll County Player of the Year honors in 2014, and was a three-time firstteam all-county selection for the Panthers.
— Pat Stoetzer
Boys lacrosse
Severn 19, Saints Peter & Paul 8: The Admirals’ lopsided victory against the visiting Sabres marked exactly one year to the day since the Admirals saw their season shut down by the pandemic. Fittingly, Severn beat Saints Peter & Paul, 19-9, on March 11, 2020 to improve to 4-0 to start the season that never finished.
Jacob Todd helped Severn do just that, staking his squad to leads of 3-0 after one quarter and 8-2 by halftime with three goals and an assist, while five other Admirals found the back of the net in a game during which they dominated ball possession. That translated into 27 shots to their opponent’s 10.
Todd, who added another assist in the second half, said it feels “crazy” to be playing again and that his squad shook off the yearlong rust with a stronger second half performance that resulted in 11 goals.
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INDIANAPOLIS — Eighth-ranked Maryland showed just how deep it is.
Alaysia Styles, who was averaging four points per game, scored 15 off the bench to lead a balanced attack and Maryland routed Northwestern, 85-52, in the semifinals of the Big Ten women’s basketball tournament Friday.
“We had a ton of fun,” Maryland coach Brenda Frese said. “You got to have depth to play three games in three days. We showed that with six players in double figures. This team is so unselfish. They make the right play for each other. Every player could put up a lot of points every night, but we are focused on winning.”
The top-seeded Terps (23-2) will face the winner between sixth-seeded Iowa in Saturday’s championship game. The sixth-seede Hawkeyes (18-8) beat Michigan State, 87-62, in the other semifinal.
The Maryland bench held a 36-14 edge over Northwestern.
Styles, a transfer from California, hit all seven of her shots.
“Angel Reese was telling me, ‘I’ll get out of your way so you can drive,’ “Styles said. “If they believe in me, then I believe in myself.”
Also cracking double figures for Maryland were Chloe Miller with 13 points, Ashley Owusu 12, and Faith Masonius 11. Mimi Collins and Angel Reese (St. Frances) each had 10 points for the Terps and Reese had a team-high 11 rebounds.
Maryland shot 59% from the field and held fifth-seeded Northwestern (15-8) to 30%.
Veronica Burton had 14 points and six assists for the Wildcats and Jordan Hamilton added 10 points. Burton, a junior, topped the 1,000-point mark during the game,
Maryland used a 22-2 run, including 18 unanswered points, in the last 6:33 of the second quarter to take a 49-24 halftime advantage. The Terps made 9 of 11 shots in the second quarter while the Wildcats were 3 of 13 from the field.
“We thought Northwestern would come in very inspired after beating Michigan and I think we matched that intensity,” Frese said. “I felt we punched first and never looked back.”
The game-changing spurt came with leading scorer Owusu on the bench for the entire period. Owusu returned to
score seven points in the third quarter as Maryland expanded its lead to 70-38 after three quarters.
The Terps also beat Northwestern 62-50 on the road on Feb. 28.
“We felt we owed it to them because we weren’t respected enough the first time,” Reese said. “Our defense led to offense.”
Northwestern coach Joe McKeown said his team just ran into a buzz saw.
“We played hard against Illinois and Michigan, but the Michigan game was a physical game and I just felt we ran out of gas today,” he said.
Maryland is making its seventh consecutive appearance in the Big Ten Tournament championship game, the most consecutive by either men or women. Maryland, which has been in the final every year since joining the conference. is seeking its fifth title in those seven years.
“It starts with our focus,” Frese said. “It is an incredible accomplishment.”
Reese, a freshman forward for Baltimore, notched her first career double double.
“I was just having fun with my teammates,” she said. “I had fresh legs off the bench. I do what the team needs me to do, and today it was rebounding.”
Coach of year
Maryland women’s basketball coach Brenda Frese was named National Coach of the Year by ESPN on Friday. Frese, in
her 19th season at Maryland, was also voted Big Ten Coach of the Year on Monday.
Frese was named National Coach of the Year by Associated Press in 2002, the year she was hired at Maryland.
After losing five starters from last year’s Big Ten Championship squad, Frese and her staff reloaded with five newcomers and the return of five sophomores. Frese’s Terps earned a record of 22-2 overall, 17-1 in league play and won the program’s sixth Big Ten title in seven years.
Frese’s Terps have four wins over ranked squads and have been ranked in Associated Press top 10 for the last nine weeks. They have won 11 straight games since Jan. 28.
Last month, Frese won her 500th game at Maryland, making her the winningest coach in program history. She currently owns a record of 508-130 (. 796) at Maryland and 565-160 (. 779) in her 22 years as a head coach, which includes stops at Minnesota and Ball State.
This year marked Frese’s fourth Big Ten Coach of the Year honor, having previously won in 2002, 2015 and 2019. She was also named ACC Coach of the Year in 2013 and MAC Coach of the Year in 2000.
Big Ten final
IOWA VS. MARYLAND Saturday, 2 p.m.
TV: ESPNU