Softball 10-under -- The Westminster Rockets won the National Softball Association's girls state championship last weekend.
The Rockets swept four games in the tournament in Catonsville, outscoring their opponents 51-11. They earned a berth in the NSA's Youth World Series in Rock Hill, S.C., July 20-24.
They nailed down the title Sunday afternoon with a 10-3 victory over the Catonsville Comets. The Rockets used a five-run third inning to break open the game and coast to the win.
Jenni Utz knocked a two-run homer, and Alicia Kassakatis hit a three-run shot in the third inning. Utz was 3-for-4 with three RBIs, and Kerri Engels went 3-for-4, scoring twice.
Casey Brengle was 2-for-4 with two RBIs. She batted .615 (8-for-13) for the tournament with seven RBIs and was named its Most Valuable Player.
Second baseman Brittany Oliver was 2-for-4. She batted .538 (7-for-13) in the tournament and was named to the all-tournament team. She made only one error in 23 fielding chances.
The Rockets opened with a 14-1 triumph over the Howard County Mustangs, the defending NSA 10-under champs who eliminated the Rockets in last year's states.
Utz pitched a complete-game three-hitter for the Rockets. She also helped her own cause, going 3-for-3, with a double, triple and home run, scoring two runs and driving in three.
Brengle hit two two-run homers. Leadoff hitter Shannon Hunt had three hits and scored two runs. Engels was 2-for-3 with a triple.
Westminster also beat Parkville, 14-4, and Catonsville, 13-3.
The Freedom Sparks went 4-2 to finish third in the 10-under bracket. After losing its opener, Freedom won four consecutive games before falling, 9-3, to Catonsville.
One of its wins was a 12-2 triumph over the Howard County Mustangs. Kelsey Withrow's three-run homer was the big shot in a four-run Freedom third inning, and Kelly Fiorani's two-run triple sparked a four-run fourth that put the Sparks ahead, 9-1.
Freedom's Jenn Tarr was 3-for-4, and Jennifer Reed, Kristin Whetzel and Jamie Janowicz were all 2-for-3.
Mandy Hutchinson and Tarr each hit three-run homers to lead the Sparks to an 8-4 victory over Perry Hall.
Tarr hit her third homer of the tournament, a grand slam, as the Sparks came from behind to beat EDRECO, 15-13. The homer highlighted a seven-run home first for Freedom, nearly offsetting EDRECO's eight-run explosion in the top of the inning.
The Sparks pulled ahead for good with three runs in the home second. Hutchinson went 3-for-4, Kelly Withrow 4-for-4 with three runs scored, Suzanne Kalwa 3-for-4, and Kristin Whetzel, 3-for-3.
Under-12 -- The Freedom Flames finished 4-2 and placed third in the state competition. They won four consecutive games after an opening loss, but fell to Howard County, 11-9, in the losers' bracket finale.
After dropping an 8-2 decision to Camp Hill (Pa.) in their opener, the Flames beat Perry Hall, 28-5, Arbutus, 16-2, and Camp Hill, 3-1.
The Flames then beat Westminster, 6-5, in extra innings. The game wasn't decided until the home eighth when Amy Williams singled home Stephanie Wilder to break a 5-5 tie.
Wilder had made a saving defensive play in the top of that inning, spearing a line drive and doubling a Westminster runner off first.
Lynn Sonnenleiter, who batted .533 (8-for-15) in the tournament, was 3-for-3 in the game, including a two-run homer. Christina Warholic went 2-for-3, and Sara Norbeck, 2-for-2 with a home run. She batted .714 (10-14) in the tournament. Wilder was 2-for-4 and scored two runs.
BTC In the losers' bracket final, the Flames led 9-2, only to have Howard County score nine runs in the seventh inning.
Rebecca Armstrong was 3-for-3 with two RBIs, Bethany Modracek 2-for-4, and Robyn McCormick and Amy Williams were each 2-for-3 for the Flames.
The Flames also will travel to the NSA World Series in Rock Hill.
14-under -- The Freedom Firebirds finished second in the championships. They won three games by lopsided scores, but were unable to beat Catonsville.
Catonsville beat the Firebirds, 16-6, in the championship game; it had earlier prevailed, 4-2.
After beating Frostburg, 14-5, in the opener, Freedom rallied from a 9-3 deficit to beat Howard County, 19-9. The Firebirds scored seven runs in the third inning to go ahead, 10-9, and scored nine runs in the fourth to put the game away.
Trish Young hit a three-run home run, Brigit Becker a two-run homer and Mandy South had a bases-empty shot for the Firebirds in the fourth.
South was 3-for-3, Shen Poehlman, 2-for-2 with two runs scored, Stephanie Wilson, 2-for-4, and Candice Young, 2-for-3, for Freedom.
In Freedom's next game, it lost to Catonsville, 4-2, and dropped into the losers' bracket. Poehlman pitched well in defeat. She gave up seven hits and the four runs in seven innings.
Freedom then exited the losers' bracket by besting Howard County again, 14-8. It clinched the game with a seven-run sixth inning to extend its lead to 14-4. Becker and South each hit bases-empty home runs in the inning, and Stephanie Wilson smacked a two-run shot. Jolene Davis added a two-run single in the inning.
Freedom went ahead, 5-2, in the final game before Catonsville rallied to win. The Firebirds, though, have a slot in the NSA Youth World Series in South Carolina.
Tennis
This year's Carroll Cup Indoor Tennis League champion is tonite, which downed the Aces, 39-14, in the season's final match to take the crown, thus breaking the Love Machine's two-year hold on the title.
The champs' Mike Rowe won the men's No. 1 singles, 8-2, then teamed with Linda Galinaitis to take the mixed doubles, 8-4. Greg Zielske took the men's No. 2 singles, 8-1, for 10s.
The Aces' Paula King and Dee Donato took the women's doubles, 8-7.
The Love Machine, tied for first with 10s as the final matches began, could have clinched their third consecutive title with a win over the Coyotes because they had beaten 10s when the two met earlier in the season.
But the Coyotes played the spoiler, defeating the Love Machine, 30-27.
Joe Hayward got the Love Machine off to a good start with an 8-4 win in men's No. 2 singles.
Dottie Clayton and David Johns put the Coyotes ahead, 12-10, with an 8-2 mixed doubles win.
Then, with the match tied at 18, Johns got the crucial win for the Coyotes with an 8-1 verdict in No. 1 men's singles.
The resulting 26-19 lead was too much for the Love Machine,
which fell short despite an 8-4 men's doubles victory by the Machine's Kevin Resh and Jim Tolentino in the final event.
The Death squad, though, ended its season on a happier note. It won for the first time this season, downing the Lynesmen, 29-20.
Steve Powell and Frank Flora took the men's doubles, 8-4.
The Lynesmen's highlight was Allen Wroe's 8-2 victory in No. 1 men's singles, but they defaulted on two matches, losing 16 points.
For the year, however, the Lynesmen won more individual events than any other team in the league, going 28-17.
A default also cost the Poachers dearly, as the Crushers prevailed by those eight forfeited points, 30-22.
Barry Troxell took an 8-5 No. 2 men's singles event, and Dennis Ohme prevailed in the No. 1 event, 8-1.
Lisa Schrodel had a hand in two Poachers wins. She teamed with Massimo Fuggitti to take the mixed doubles, 8-3. She then paired with Diane Hartman for an 8-3 women's doubles triumph.
The Smashers roared to a big early lead and held on for a 31-25 verdict over the Topspinners.
Ken Lantz opened with an 8-4 win in No. 2 men's singles to put the Smashers ahead, and Ray and Suzi Lyons' 8-2 mixed doubles victory increased the Smashers' margin to 16-6.
Lyons teamed with Beth Yingling to take the women's doubles, 8-3, giving the Smashers a 24-9 lead.
Jim Eanes narrowed the gap to 24-17 with an 8-0 No. 1 men's singles win for the Topspinners.
But they took the final event by only 8-7, failing to catch the Smashers.
The Carroll County Tennis Association completed its first in a series of summer outdoor championships with its senior finals last week at the Westminster Playground.
Ken Seitz Jr. won the men's senior (35-over) singles title. Jeff Sutton placed second.
Sue Hilker was first, and Ann Muhvich second in the women's senior (35-over) singles.
John Lynam and Massimo Fuggitti won the men's senior (40-over) doubles championship. Placing second were George Rouiller and Rich DeLong.
Suzi Lyons and Nancy Rose took the women's senior (40-over) doubles crown. Debbie Courter and Vicki Ferguson were second.
Westminster baseball Majors -- The Twins nipped the Dodgers, 2-1. Rafe Bridges pitched all six innings for the win.
Mike Bender scored the tying run on a Dan Covey single. Then in the third, he singled home Joe Campitelli with the game-winner.
Twins shortstop Jeff Patrick helped shut down a Dodgers rally in the sixth after the first two Dodgers batters had reached base. Patrick fielded three grounders and got three consecutive
forceouts at third to end the game.
The Orioles beat the Twins, 12-3, behind the pitching of Geoff Sanzenbacher and Todd Edmonson.
Justin Rowzee hit a first-inning grand slam to give the Orioles a lead they would never surrender.
Orioles right fielder Ryan Chaney stifled a Twins rally in the fourth inning, with a diving catch of a line drive with two runners on base.