Eagles

SAINT JAMES - Wendi Smith saw a trend evolving. One she was not fond of at all. The St. James volleyball coach watched her team take an early lead in all three games, only to see them dissipate under the relentless attack of Hedgesville's net game in a 25-18, 25-14, 25-15 loss Tuesday night. Paced by Katie Rude's eight kills and numerous St. James errors the No. 3 Eagles (10-1) rallied from the early deficits to dominate the Saints. "We started slow," said Hedgesville coach Lori Zick.

Unselfish Leopards throttle Eagles By CURT HORNBECKER / Staff Correspondent SMITHSBURG - Considering that, for the few who even get close it is the pinnacle of their high school basketball career, Katy Powell appeared as though she couldn't care less. Maybe it was the circumstances, or maybe she heard the words of her father and coach echoing in her ear as she closed in on the 1000th point of her career. In either case, she didn't seem the least bit disappointed that her 17 points fell seven points shy of the milestone after the 4th-ranked Smithsburg girls basketball team dismantled Monocacy Valley Athletic League foe Francis Scott Key, 77-39, Tuesday night.

andrewm@herald-mail.com MERCERSBURG, Pa. - What Tiffany Linn and Samantha Guell started, the rest of their Hedgesville teammates finished Wednesday night at Mercersburg Academy. Linn scored 11 of her team-high 17 points in the first quarter while Guell dumped in all 12 of hers in the first half as the No. 6 Eagles (8-3) took a commanding 39-19 lead at the break on their way to a 67-37 girls hoops win over the Blue Storm (3-6). "It was our best shooting night of the year, and we got everyone involved," said Hedgesville coach Ben Merica, whose squad shot 48 percent (30 of 62)

By BOB PARASILITI Staff Writer SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.Va. - The West Virginia Class AAA, Region II, Section 1 semifinal came down to a battle of right and wrong. Hedgesville did just about everything right and Jefferson did just enough wrong. Hedgesville's program took another huge step forward Wednesday night with a balanced scoring attack and an opportunistic press in a 77-71 victory at Shepherd College's Butcher Athletic Center. It was the Eagles' first sectional victory since the 1980s.

The Hedgesville girls basketball team shook off a slow start late in the first quarter, using an 11-0 run to spark the No. 2 Eagles' 53-31 victory over St. Maria Goretti and clinch the Apple Valley League title Thursday at the Gael Center. Goretti (13-6, 1-5) led 9-8 with 1 minutes, 17 seconds remaining in the first quarter when Hedgesville (13-4, 6-0) made its move. Ciera Nicholson scored a bucket and Ashton Butler made a layup to put the Eagles in front 12-9 at the end of the period.

SHENANDOAH JUNCTION, W.Va. - Two teams heading in opposite directions looked like just that in the second half of their game Thursday night. Brittany Boarman and Ashton Butler each scored 13 points and No. 2 Hedgesville claimed its eighth straight victory with a 50-33 win over No. 6 Jefferson, which has lost five of its last six games after a strong start. The Eagles trailed by a point at halftime but dominated the third quarter, then easily pulled away for the double-digit victory that clinched a sectional bye when the three-team playoff begins later this month.

SHENANDOAH JUNCTION, W.Va. - Ben Merica's acorn was a long time coming. His Hedgesville girls basketball team finally stopped a long history of playoff losses by claiming the West Virginia Class AAA Region II Section 2 title with a 38-30 victory over Martinsburg - winner of 14 of the last 15 crowns - at Jefferson High School Friday. "They say even a blind squirrel gets an acorn now and then," said Merica. "This must be a really blind squirrel, because it took a long time to get this acorn.

North Hagerstown baseball coach Shawn Reynolds knew his team's offense would eventually turn around this season. It seems the waiting game is over. The Hubs turned on several pitches from Francis Scott Key on Friday, pounding out 14 hits to produce three big innings in an 11-6 victory over the Eagles in the Monocacy Valley Athletic League. "We swung the bats well," Reynolds said. "It is probably the best that we swung the bats as a team for a while. The hitters have started to come around during the last couple of days.

BERKELEY SPRINGS, W.Va. - One may be the loneliest number, but a lot of ones together make a very big number. Hedgesville point guard Heather Maslauskas had plenty of ones Tuesday night from the free-throw line, and her 15-foot marksmanship was the difference down the stretch in a 47-40 victory over Berkeley Springs. Held scoreless through the first two-and-a-half quarters, Maslauskas got untracked with 2:39 left in the third. With her Eagles clinging to a 27-23 lead, she drove the lane, made a layup while being fouled, and then canned her first of many free throws for a 30-23 lead and enough breathing room for the rest of the night.