The Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference has always been a Baltimore-based organization, especially when it comes to boys’ lacrosse.
Its most prominent member schools are located in the greater Baltimore-area. Gilman and Boys’ Latin are just inside the Baltimore City limits, while Calvert Hall and Loyola-Blakefield are just outside in Towson.
St. Paul’s, McDonogh and Mount St. Joseph are also in Baltimore County and easily accessible from the I-695 beltway.
With that in mind, it made sense for the MIAA boys’ lacrosse championships to be held in the Baltimore area. Most recently, the semifinals and finals were hosted by Towson University at Unitas Field and before that by Johns Hopkins University at historic Homewood Field.
That background helps explain why it is historic that Anne Arundel County is hosting the MIAA A and B Conference boys’ lacrosse championships for the first time. Legendary Sports Group pulled off a major coup by taking over as event operator and convincing the MIAA leadership to move the 2021 championships to Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis.
Dave Cottle, president of Legendary Sports Group, said the Naval Academy Athletic Association was very supportive of the group’s bid for the MIAA lacrosse championships. Navy lacrosse coach Joe Amplo also played an instrumental role.
“Our goal is to make the MIAA championships bigger and better than it’s ever been,” Cottle said. “Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium is an outstanding venue for lacrosse, and everyone involved with the event is working hard to ensure this is a first-class operation in all respects.”
Cottle, a Division I men’s lacrosse coach from 1983 to 2010 at Loyola Maryland and Maryland, took a major step toward making that happen by landing Lids Inc. as title sponsor. Annapolis resident Tom Ripley is majority owner, chairman and CEO of Lids, an American retailer specializing in athletics headwear.
“Lids is thrilled to be supporting sports. It’s our brand, it’s what the company is all about,” Ripley said. “During the pandemic, Lids has really focused most of our horsepower on supporting the youth and high school sports environment, so sponsoring the MIAA championships aligns perfectly with that goal.”
Ripley has been coaching with the Annapolis Hawks club program for many years and has led the Class of 2022 squad to a slew of tournament titles. He is the father of Spalding attackman Race Ripley, a Class of 2022 recruit who has committed to Navy.
Race Ripley will follow in the footsteps of his grandfather, a 1962 Naval Academy graduate who became a highly decorated Marine Corps officer. Colonel John Ripley earned legendary status for destroying the Dong Ha Bridge during the Vietnam War.
If second-seeded and host Spalding beats Severn on Saturday night, it would advance to the semifinals at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, so named because it honors every battle ever fought by the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps.
“Of course, you have no idea what will happen when you agree in January to support this event,” said Tom Ripley, who is offensive coordinator at Spalding under coach Brian Phipps.
“If Spalding gets to play in that stadium, it would certainly be an absolutely amazing opportunity for the program as a whole. No question, it would also be a really, really special moment for me and Race considering the family history with the Naval Academy and Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.”
Phipps, who grew up in Annapolis and still lives there, has played at the historic stadium that serves as a memorial to fallen service personnel. The former Severn School and University of Maryland standout was the starting goalie for the Chesapeake Bayhawks of Major League Lacrosse, which played home games at the stadium located off Rowe Boulevard.
“I think Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium is one of the premier venues in all of college sports. If we are fortunate to win on Saturday, playing in the MIAA semifinals in that stadium would be an awesome experience for our players,” Phipps said.
Third-seeded St. Mary’s hosts Calvert Hall in another quarterfinal on Saturday and could also find itself with somewhat of a home-field advantage. St. Mary’s played the semifinals and finals at Homewood Field when it captured MIAA A Conference championships in 1996 and 2015. The Saints secured a Maryland Scholastic Association (MSA) championship at UMBC in 1993.
If Spalding and St. Mary’s both win Saturday, they would meet in the semifinals.
“It would be great if one or both of the Anne Arundel County schools could defend our home turf in the semifinals down here,” Phipps said.
Annapolis businessman and entrepreneur Brendan Kelly owns Legendary Sports Group, a sports events and promotions company. Under Cottle’s direction, LSG has steadily built a portfolio of lacrosse leagues, tournaments, camps and showcases.
Cottle and Ripley coach the Annapolis Hawks 2022 team together, making the partnership for the MIAA championships a no-brainer for both sides.
“When Dave Cottle calls, it’s not a question of whether I’m on board, but more of how much can I do?” Ripley said. “Legendary Sports Group is doing incredible work for the sport of lacrosse and the Anne Arundel community.”
Tickets are available at MIAAchampionships.com with two separate packages available for fans. Those unable to attend can watch three of the four games that will be broadcast live on WBAL/MeTV and Lacrosse Sports Network.
Spalding football assistant dies
This has been a tough couple weeks for the Spalding football family, which lost longtime assistant Mike Hartman on May 3. The 53-year-old Arnold resident died at Johns Hopkins Hospital from COVID complications following a hard-fought battle.
Spalding coach Kyle Schmitt hired Hartman in 2013 to fill the offensive coordinator position with the junior varsity. He came highly recommended by junior varsity head coach John Buonassisi as the two were lifelong friends after growing up together in Silver Spring.
“John Buonassisi thought Mike would be a perfect fit for our program, so we set up a meeting,” Schmitt said. “We sat down and wound up talking for an hour and a half. Mike is just the type of guy that fills the room. You felt like you knew him for years when you first met him.”
Hartman had no ego and was quite willing to help develop the junior varsity players, but was also a constant presence around the varsity team as well. Schmitt called the big, gregarious assistant a “tremendous influence.”
“Mike was such a relationship guy and had a huge heart. He helped some of our kids out of some tough situations or hard moments,” Schmitt said. “To run a successful high school football program, you need loyal and humble people like coach Hartman.”
Hartman was a standout football player at Kennedy High and was recruited to play at Salisbury, where he was a four-year letterman as a tight end. He was a member of the 1986 Sea Gulls squad that reached the Division III national championship game under coach Mike McGlinchey.
Hartman revered McGlinchey and religiously attended the annual golf tournament that Salisbury football alumni organized in honor of the former coached at the Eastern Shore school from 1972 through 1986. McGlinchey died in 1997 at age 52 following a battle with ALS.
Wayne Bradford, a Glen Burnie High graduate, was a teammate and classmate of Hartman’s at Salisbury. Bradford, a starting offensive lineman for the Sea Gulls, first met Hartman when they moved into the Pocomoke Hall dormitory as freshmen.
“Mike was always a fun-loving guy who just loved people,” said Bradford, who served as defensive coordinator at Salisbury under coach Joe Rotellini before taking the same position at Edinboro University.
Bradford, who spent a total of 21 years at Edinboro with a three-year stint as head coach, enjoyed catching up with Hartman at the McGlinchey Memorial Golf Tournament.
“Mike had an amazing heart and was such a giver. He just wanted to help people in any way he could,” Bradford said.
After graduating from Salisbury, Hartman earned his HVAC certification and worked 16 years for Magnolia Plumbing and Heating. In 2002, he started the HVAC arm of Thomas E. Clark Plumbing. That family-owned company was founded in 1891 by Hartman’s great, great grandfather and is currently run by his uncle, Steve Hartman.
When Schmitt’s basement flooded, the first person to show up to help without asking for a penny in return was Hartman.
“I considered Mike a mentor. He was a guy I could reach out to and ask what he thought about certain problems or situations,” Schmitt said. “Mike will be greatly missed by many.”
Hartman is survived by his mother Lourdes Hartman, brother Tony Hartman, sister Gina Hartman-Crais and two daughters — Alena and Amanda.
Annapolis Junior Rowing returns
After canceling the 2020 spring and fall seasons because of coronavirus, the Annapolis Junior Rowing got back on the water this year.
Providing an impressive capstone to the 2021 spring season was the Varsity Four+ taking first place at the USRowing Southeast Regional Championships in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
Pascal Evans (South River), Alex Quilliam (Broadneck), Dylan Green (Severna Park) and Andre Sander (homeschooled) comprised the rowing contingent, while Chloe Lee (Severn School) served as coxswain as the Annapolis Junior Rowing foursome posted the fastest qualifying result.
In the 12-boat final, the Annapolis team beat a strong Sarasota County Rowing Club entry by 1.8 seconds. In years past, winning a regional championship would earn an automatic berth into the USRowing Youth Nationals. However, due to the impact of COVID, this year’s national championship regatta will extend invitations based off regional rankings.
Annapolis Junior Rowing has applied for an entry and is confident the Varsity Four+ will be worthy of a berth.
