A Passing Fancy For Poolesville

By Sheldon Shealer

Jimmy Ward wears No. 1, and that's where he might end up on the list of top all-time Maryland single-game passing performances.

The Poolesville junior completed 28 of 49 passes for 402 yards -- a record 289 yards to WR Jacob Poss -- in the Indians' 21-18 victory over Bethesda-Chevy Chase on Saturday. After initial reports of 402 yards, school officials now claim Ward has passed for 407 yards, which would break the state record of 404 set by North County's Mike Evans in 1996. The game film will be reviewed by an independent statistician later this week.

Poss hauled in 18 passes and his yardage total breaks the record set in 1966 by Steve Hoopengardner. The senior receiver has 54 catches on the season.

Ward's efforts current rate No. 2 all-time in completions, attempts and yards.

Yet, it was a strange set of circumstances that led Ward toward his record day.

At 6-foot-2, 205 pounds, Ward is the second heaviest player on the Poolesville roster. He was starting at nose guard and rotating in at tight end, according to coach Chris Metzger. Metzger even considered moving Ward to interior line.

Then, starting quarterback Pat Halley was injured, and Ward -- the back-up quarterback -- inherited the position. To make matters worse, Poolesville suffered a rash on injuries leaving the team thin in running backs. Therefore, Metzger went with more of a run-and-shoot, spread formation offense.

Ward, who has played only three games at quarterback, has twice broke the school's single-game passing record and has thrown for 1,057 yards. Halley was back in the lineup this week, and caught four passes.

As Ward racked up the yards, Metzger took little notice.

"I was excited about the victory," Metzger said. The win snapped a five-game losing streak.

Metzger said his statistician called Sunday morning to inform him of Ward's performance.

"I didn't have a clue," Metzger said.

TOP PERFORMANCES

Jimmy Ward, Poolesville, Quarterback and Jacob Poss, Poolesville, Wide Receiver. Ward completed 28 of 49 passes for 402 yards in the Indians' 21-18 win over Bethesda-CC. Ward's effort rates No. 2 all-time in passes attempts, completions and yards -- all to different individuals. Poss, however, set a state record with 289 receiving yards. He eclipsed the mark of 268 set in 1966 by former Great Mills coach Steve Hoopengardner.

Hassan Muhammad, Cardinal Gibbons, Running Back. Muhammad rushed for 220 yards on 22 carries for his fourth 200-plus yard performance this season. Muhammad, a sophomore, is the state's leading rusher at 1,461 yards.

Kevin Flynn, Damascus, Running Back. Flynn had a state-record tying 47 carries for 242 yards and the game's lone touchdown as Damascus defeated Seneca Valley, 6-0 in double overtime, for the first time since 1975.

IN CASE YOU WHERE WONDERING

Hickey is 3-3, but according to the MPSSAA standings Hickey is 3-4. The reason? A scheduling mistake, although not on Hickey's part, has left Hickey with an eight-game schedule. The minimum divisor is nine games in determining point average for playoff spots. Therefore, the points collected by Hickey in eight games still must be divided by nine games, so the MPSSAA adds a loss to the record of any team playing less than nine games. If Hickey wins its remaining two games, it has a chance of moving past Pikesville and Forest Park to win the Class 1A North title and a berth in the state playoffs.

STREAK BUSTERS

The following winning or losing streaks ended last week:

Northern-Balt.'s 31-0 victory over Douglass-Balt. snapped a nine-game losing streak.

Bladensburg's eight-game losing streak ended in a 22-14 win over winless DuVal.

Kent Island ended a seven-game losing streak with a 34-6 victory over Col. Richardson.

Joppatowne's seven-game win streak was halted with a 21-15 loss to Aberdeen.

Sherwood's seven-game regular-season win streak ended with a 19-13 overtime loss to Gaithersburg.

AROUND THE STATE (Week 7 Notes)

Damascus and Seneca Valley rolled up more than 500 yards of total offense before Kevin Flynn's 1-yard run in the second overtime gave Damascus a dramatic 6-0 victory over the Screaming Eagles. Damascus had lost the last nine meetings against its northern Montgomery County rival, and the last win was in 1975 -- before Seneca Valley had a senior class in the building. ... Not to be outdone in the drama department, Gaithersburg edged Sherwood 19-13 in overtime at the same time Damascus' game with Seneca Valley was running long. Tied at 13, Sherwood had a chance to win the game in regulation, but missed a 27-yard field goal. Gaithersburg was penalized on the play and Sherwood got a another crack at a field goal from 22 yards out, but missed again. In overtime, Gaithersburg scored on Semaj Richardson's 2-yard run. Sherwood had a chance to tie or win the game, but Shai Warsaw's fourth-down pass was deflected. ... In Brooklandville, a moving tribute was paid to Andy Eser, a senior tight end at Archbishop Spalding who died as a result of injuries in a car accident a week earlier. The Spalding team took the field in a 10-man formation, and quarterback Adan Newman threw a pass to the spot where Eser would have been on the designed middle screen play. The players, many in tears, later presented the game ball to the Eser family. "That was the pass they never got to throw to Andy," Linda Eser, Andy's mother, told The Washington Post. "They began running that play in practice a couple of days before Andy died. I remember one day he came home and told me that he had caught that pass and had scored a touchdown and in the end zone he did this little dance." Spalding lost the game to St. Paul's, 42-0, but the day was more about what happened away from the field. ... Woodlawn defeated Milford Mill, 22-7, on Monday in the completion of game that was halted Friday when a Friday broke out in the stands. Milford Mill coach Reggie Brooks said Sunday that the incident involved only two people and was no big deal. School officials, however, thought otherwise Friday and postponed the contest after moving players toward the middle of the field as security persons were brought in to quell the situation. ... Gilman's 49-34 victory over Mount St. Joseph was not as close as the score indicated, but it was still noteworthy. Gilman led 49-20 in the fourth quarter. However, the 34 points scored by the Gaels were more than Gilman had allowed in its last nine games combined (30 points). ... On the bubble? That's Douglass-PG's situation in the Class 3A race. Douglass, despite being 7-0, is second in its region and No. 10 overall. As long as Annapolis (6-1) wins out, it would likely remain ahead of Douglass-PG in the East region race. And if Douglass-PG doesn't get any help from Top 10 teams losing, it could miss the playoffs even with a 10-0 record. ... Francis Scott Key visits Brunswick this week, and a win by the Eagles would be a school record 10th straight victory. FSK, from Carroll County, is 7-0 this year and would make the playoffs if it finishes 10-0. Carroll County has not put a team, in the playoff since 1989. ... Eastern Tech has scored 40 or more points in five of its six wins, but was shut out in its only defeat. ... Aberdeen's 21-15 victory over Joppatowne has left the eight-team Harford County League in a three-way tie for first, with two other teams only one loss behind. ... Bowling Brook faces West Nottingham this week in what will be Bowling Brook's final game of the season. The Carroll County school will be the first team finished for the 2000 season. ... Edgewood has been involved in five straight shutout contests -- winning two and losing three. ... Kent County edged Easton 35-34, marking the third time Easton has played a game this year with the losing team scoring in the 30s.

LOOKING AHEAD

Paint Branch at Damascus, Friday, 6:30 p.m. The Class 3A West region title and the Montgomery 3A League title will be on the line as a pair of 7-0 teams square off. It's the second straight big game for Damascus, which defeated Seneca Valley, 6-0, in double overtime last week. Paint Branch enters the contest following a 7-6 win over Einstein.

Fort Hill at Martinsburg, W.Va., Friday, 7:30 p.m. Fort Hill visits Cumberland Valley Athletic League rival Martinsburg for a big-point game. Fort Hill is 7-0 and Martinsburg, heading to the W.Va. Class AAA playoffs, is 8-1. The Sentinels could use the points to help secure a Class 2A playoff spot. A loss by Fort Hill could leave the team in jeopardy of not making the playoffs.

Cardinal Gibbons at Archbishop Curley, Saturday, 1 p.m. Gibbons is riding a five-game win streak and Curley has won five of the past six weeks. This contest likely will decide the MIAA B Conference Gold Division title.