Doug DuVall, here's mud in your eye.

Career win No. 300 was a memorable one for the Wilde Lake football coach as his Wildecats defeated visiting Marriotts Ridge, 7-6, on a rain-soaked, muddy field in front of a homecoming crowd Saturday afternoon.

"We always call the kids 'Mudcats' rather than the Wildecats, because our biggest wins have been in the mud over the years," said DuVall, whose coaching career at Wilde Lake began in 1972 when he took control of the junior varsity program. "The mud's always been good to us."

Now in his 34th season with the Wildecats, DuVall's team kept unbeaten Marriotts Ridge scoreless in the second half to get him the milestone win.

"It was something way more than us. (It was) tradition and generations that were before us," senior quarterback Danny March said. "That we could help him get this win, that was real big."

Wilde Lake (4-0) scored early in the first quarter on a 30-yard touchdown run by Jarrel Epps to take a 6-0 lead. The score was set up by a JoJo Ma interception and a 40-yard pass and run from March to Mike Fields. Graham Spicer's extra point made it 7-0 and proved to be the difference in the game.

The Mustangs (3-1) scored early in the second quarter after a Wilde Lake turnover. A fumble recovery by Armani Dixon and a 12-yard run on a fourth-and-4 from the Wilde Lake 17 led to a 5-yard touchdown pass from Tim Blair to Aaron Dunn. The two-point conversion failed, however, leaving Marriotts Ridge behind, 7-6.

The second half was a stalemate, played on a field that was more mud than turf in a steady rain that became heavy at times. 

The win helps the Wildecats keep pace with River Hill atop the county standings. The Hawks defeated Mt. Hebron, 63-0, Friday night. The loss drops Marriotts Ridge into third place. Wilde Lake will play its next game Friday, Oct. 3 at Atholton at 7 p.m. The Mustangs play the second of back-to-back road games Friday as they take on Glenelg at 7 p.m.

SATURDAY SCOREBOARD
HOWARD 47, OAKLAND MILLS 26
Howard's Mark Covington scored five touchdowns, all in the first half, to lead the Lions to the 21-point win over the Scopions. Covington scored on runs of 33, 46, 18, 9 and 5 yards as the Lions jumped out to a 40-13 halftime lead. A.J. Bonacolavita had a 40-yard TD run for Howard in the second quarter and Dionte Jones also scored touchdown on a 1-yard run in third for Howard.

Howard (3-1) jumped into a second-place tie with Marriotts Ridge in the county race with its third straight win. The Lions and Mustangs trail unbeaten River Hill and Wilde Lake. Oakland Mills, which was going for consecutive wins after last week's 9-7 win over Hammond, fell to 1-3. Next week, Howard hosts Hammond and Oakland Mills travels to Resevoir. Both games are Friday, Oct. 3 with 7 p.m. kickoffs.

LONG REACH 32, RESERVOIR 0
The Lightning earned its first shutout of the season in blanking Reservoir. The win moved Long Reach (2-2) to the .500 mark while Reservoir, which started the season with shutout wins over Hammond and Centennial, dropped its second straight game. Long Reach goes for its second straight win Friday, Oct. 3 when it hosts county leader River Hill at 7 p.m. Reservoir looks to snap its two-game slide when it hosts Oakland Mills Oct. 3 at 7 p.m.

For more on these games, read Thursday's edition of the Howard County Times and Columbia Flier.

RELATED STORY: 2008 Howard County Football Standings


WILDE LAKE 7, MARRIOTTS RIDGE 6
Marriotts Ridge (3-1)   0  6  0  0  -  6
Wilde Lake (4-0)          7  0  0  0  -  7
Scoring Summary
First quarter
WL: Epps 29 run (Spicer kick), 7:52
Second quarter
MR: Dunn 5 pass from Blair (pass failed), 8:56

HOWARD 47, OAKLAND MILLS 26
Howard (3-1)           18  22  7  0  -  47
Oakland Mills (1-3)    7    6  7  6  -  26
Scoring Summary
First quarter
H: Covington 33 run (kick failed)
H: Covington 46 run (kick failed)
H: Covington 9 run (kick failed)
OM: N/A 95 kick return (kick good)
Second quarter
H: Bonavitacola 40 run (Covington run)
H: Covington 18 run (Kuttler kick)
OM: N/A 62 run (run failed)
H: Covington 5 run (Kuttler kick)
Third quarter
H: Jones 1 run (Kuttler kick)
OM: N/A 30 run (kick good)
Fourth quarter
OM: N/A 23 run (pass failed)

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