Each week, the Carroll County Times highlights a Team of the Week and names five standout players.
Team of the Week
Manchester Valley girls lacrosse
In the past week, the Mavericks not only solidified their hold atop Carroll County but staked their claim to being the best public school team in Maryland. On Tuesday, what was supposed to be a clash for first place in the county turned into a one-sided romp as the Mavericks handed Century its first loss, 15-2.
Then on Thursday at the Severna Park play day, the Mavericks handily beat Leonardtown, 18-4, then took down the host and two-time defending Class 3A state champion Falcons, 15-5. Manchester Valley now sits 8-0 on the season and 4-0 in the county.
Honorable mentions
Liberty baseball: The Lions are riding a five-game winning streak and are 9-1 overall. In their only county game last week, they avenged their only loss this season by beating Winters Mill, 3-0.
Century baseball: The Knights have been playing strong going back to last Saturday’s win over Baltimore County power Hereford. They added a county win over Francis Scott Key, then no-hit Manchester Valley.
Century boys lacrosse: In its only game of the week, Century decisively beat Manchester Valley, 15-7, to improve to 5-3 overall and 4-0 in the county. The Knights share first place with Westminster.
5-star athletes
Emma Penczek, Manchester Valley, girls lacrosse: The nation’s No. 2-ranked recruit, according to Inside Lacrosse, proved deserving of that lofty ranking. A five-goal, four-assist game against Severna Park put Penczek at 396 career points, tying Lizzie Colson for the most in Manchester Valley history. Also this week, Penczek had five goals against Leonardtown and seven goals with three assists in a win over Century.
Chase Speiden, Century, baseball: Speiden threw one of the best games of his career, tossing a no-hitter Thursday in a 5-0 win against Manchester Valley. He struck out 14 Mavericks and walked only three. Speiden also had a couple of big offensive games, going 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs Monday against Francis Scott Key, and went 2-for-4 with an RBI on Saturday against Northeast-AA.
Deon Whitlow, Winters Mill, boys track and field: The Falcons’ sprinter raced to two wins at the Talley Zimmerman Invitational at Walkersville. Whitlow won the 100-meter dash (11.13) and the 200 (22.61), and also ran 11.08 in the 100 for another win Wednesday at the Westminster Jamboree.
Jasmine Kline, Francis Scott Key, softball: Kline excelled in the circle and at the plate this week. She picked up her 100th career RBI in a 6-0 win on Tuesday against Brunswick. She had two hits, a home run and four RBIs in that game. Kline also struck out 19 in a three-hit shutout. She also struck out 13 in a two-hitter Monday against Century, a 13-1 win, and punched out 16 in a two-hit shutout Thursday against Franklin.
Alaric Blattau, Liberty, boys track and field: The Class 1A indoor pole vault state champion won his third invitational of the outdoor season, vaulting 12 feet, 6 inches to beat out teammate Ryan Vollmer at the Oakland Mills Sam Singleton Scorpion Classic. Blattau also cleared 13-6 1/2 on Wednesday at the Westminster jamboree, although he finished behind Vollmer, who matched the height on fewer attempts.
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