The difference between these two track teams is paper thin

WEIGH IN HILLARY - I am up to the eyeballs with coveted green jacket stories and I watched the final coverage last Sunday in high definition as South African Trevor Immelman won just 30 years after his boyhood idol and fellow countryman Gary Player won in 1978. Player was in Augusta early in the weekend but then took off for the Middle East. But at least he left Trevor a voice mail.
Five years ago the Augusta Club was picketed by angry women for being sexist as in “no women” and NOW nobody cares, but I would love to hear Barack Obama who was compared by someone from the Clinton campaign as the Tiger Woods of politics and Hillary weigh in with a bit of Augusta wind.

SUFFERING FROM STAPH - Last year I went to the website of the place I went to high school and the lead article was explaining how a staph infection outbreak was under control, although impetigo was still a persistent problem. Honey what is that on your back?

I just read that wide reciever for the Cleveland Browns, Joe Jurevicius, contracted staphylococcus aureus bacteria after knee surgery and is the sixth Brown in four years to contract the bacteria. My question: “Who keeps those stats?” You know what’s nasty is that the pesky bacteria tends to be pus producing. Reality bites!

C’MON COWBELL - I thought it was a bit rude for the Padua Pandas third base coach to call her batter “Cowbell,” although it is a cool nickname reflecting on Christopher Walken in the Saturday Night Live skit “I gotta have more cowbell!”

Cowbell got on base but was tagged out by Connie Floyd trying to steal second. Then I thought Connie rings up Cowbell but then reality bit me when I realized Cowbell was really Kell-Kell for Kelly and so Cowbell may still be available for a vanity tag.

BIG TUESDAY - The Caesar Rodney boys and girls track and field teams will be at Cape Tuesday, April 15, and are slight favorites to defeat the Vikings on both sides, but looking at the matchups the difference between these teams is paper thin. Track meets are 18 events for both boys and girls with 11 running events which include four relays. Also on Tuesday the Cape softball team (7-1) travels to Sussex Central to battle the undefeated Golden Knights before hosting Delmar on Thursday, April 17. The boys lacrosse team is at Tatnall on Friday, April 18, while the girls lax team hosts Worcester on the same day. Go to the websited viewmyschedule.com and type in the name of your favorite school for a complete and up-to-date schedule.

CLEARING THE DECKS – Mariner’s baseball team defeated Smyrna 7-4 on April 9, behind strong pitching from Jake Dmiterchik (3 innings) and Gage Betts (4 innings). D.J. Ayers and Jake Dmiterchik provided much of the run support scoring two runs each.  Roy Martinez, Ryan Muchmore, TK Pabon and Bobby Zakrewski all hit the ball hard.  Mariner is 2-0 on the season going into week 3.

Five hundred and thirty marathon runners are currently registered for the Sunday, May 18 Christiana Care Health System Delaware Marathon Running Festival presented by New Balance Delaware.  Also, 115 relay teams are signed up for the 4 Person Relay Race, and 145 runners are registered for the Bell Supply Ten Miler.  Race organizers expect to sell out within the next few weeks, so now is the time to get registrations in.  The limit is 600 marathoners, 700 relay runners on 175 relay teams, plus 200 more in the ten-mile race. Go to to the website races2run.com to negotiate your way to a race application.

The Indian River boys tennis team, coached by Patsy Cicala, is currently undefeated which must have something to do with the Sea Colony tennis community and all those tennis courts. A planned conditional-use permit to construct outdoor and indoor tennis courts off Old Mill Road in the Nassau area was met with heavy opposition by local residents who don’t understand that all upscale communities have tennis courts as part of the landscape. Tennis is a good neighbor - there are permitted-use neighbors that would not be so nice.

The Saint Thomas More girls soccer team is currently 3-0 after defeating Caravel 3-0. Goals were scored by Kaitlin LeBlanc (Lauren Schimp assist), Morgan Hudson (Kaitlin LeBlanc assist) and Katie Dogherty (Tricia Colucci assist). Tricia Colucci is related to me being a great-niece by marriage once or twice removed. She is a second cousin to my grandchildren. A bus leaves Saint Edmond’s parking lot every morning with local high school kids who attend Thomas More which is on the far side of Magnolia.

The senior women’s softball league will begin play at 6 p.m., Monday, April 21, at the Sports At The Beach complex in Georgetown.  There are three teams and the league is  hoping to form a fourth.  New players are still being accepted.  Current players’ ages are between 50 and 77.  Age is determined by how old a player will be on Dec. 31, 2008.  To join a team, contact a team captain: Alley Cats 50s,  Maureen White, 349-4379 or 226-8080; Delaware Diamonds 50s, Debbie Estes, 644-7220; Delaware Diamonds 60s, Dorcy Wilkins, 933-0910. Or contact the coordinator Marion Lisehora at 934-9512.

The Cape junior varsity baseball team defeated Laurel 14-7. J ae Hwang was 3-for-4 with a home run. He is currently batting .636 after three games. 

Tri-Delaware made a great team showing at the first race in the Greater Atlantic Club Challenge with five members combining for a total of eight points at the Brandywine Duathlon on April 6t.   Dave Luscan (1:20:20) and Patrick Beebe (1:23:23) finished second and fourth, respectively, in their age division.  Jess Manning (1:30:31), Terry Mannion (1:30:34), and Robert Demajistre (2:16:10) also contributed points for Tri-Delaware. The next race in the series is the New Jersey Devilman Half and Sprint Triathlons on May 4.

The University of Maryland started its spring soccer season last April 9 and defeated Georgetown, a NCAA qualifier last year, 2-1. Local striker Lydia Hastings, who began as a freshman in January, scored the first goal for the Terps. Described on the Maryland website as: “Hastings’ first touch managed to cut off the Georgetown defender, and she calmly struck the ball into the back of the net just two minutes into the game.”