Niki Tsongas considers Senate race

By Chris Markuns

Staff Writer

The potential race for John Kerry's Senate seat could soon welcome its most widely recognizable name to date, as Niki Tsongas, widow of former senator and presidential candidate Paul Tsongas, will likely decide whether to run by Labor Day.

"I'm seriously considering it," said the 58-year-old, whose husband died in 1997 after a long battle with cancer. "And, if I'm going to be a serious candidate, I have to make up my mind relatively soon."

A lawyer, Tsongas has been involved in Democratic politics throughout her adult life. Her potential entry is a new twist in a race that has seen two openly interested congressmen | the 5th District's Martin T. Meehan and the 7th District's Edward Markey | try to leap ahead early by aggressively raising millions of dollars.

It could be most significant for fellow Lowell native Meehan, who would be running against the widow of a hometown giant, a man whose congressional seat Meehan filled and whose name adorns the city's sports arena. Meehan and Niki Tsongas almost became running mates in 2001, when the pair were separately contemplating runs for governor and lieutenant governor, respectively. The following year Meehan was the recipient of the first-ever Paul E. Tsongas Leadership Award.

Tsongas, who recently moved to Charlestown but still works in Lowell as external affairs director at Middlesex Community College, called Meehan to let him know of her interest and described him as "very gracious."

"Niki has thought about running for public office in the past | I wasn't surprised," Meehan said Friday, calling her "a great person" who would "make a great candidate for any office."

Saying "It's a big state," Meehan pointed out that this race could include several people he counts as friends, and he doesn't expect sharing Lowell roots will be a problem. But this particular surname, said state Democratic Party Chairman Phil Johnston, still carries considerable weight here.

"I think the Tsongas name remains a strong force in politics in this state," Johnston said.

He called Tsongas a "credible candidate" right out of the gate and recalled the reaction when this year's Tsongas Award was handed out at the Democratic National Convention.

"I was struck by the emotion in the room," he said, "and how people still feel very strongly about Paul's legacy."

Tsongas insisted her candidacy shouldn't be seen as a commentary on Meehan or any other potential opponent.

"He's done a fine job as a congressman," she said, "but it's not about that."

What it is about, Tsongas said, is almost perfect timing and the opportunity to pursue a uniquely influential, rarely available position in a state that she believes has lacked a powerful woman's voice for too long.

"At some point, it becomes something you can't ignore anymore," she said this week, sitting in a coffee shop near the Middlesex campus. "We're one of the most progressive states in the union, and we've never had a woman's voice on all issues."

She acknowledges others' financial edge | Meehan's $3.45 million cash on hand puts him well ahead of Markey's $2 million | and says, "I know to be competitive I have to raise a good amount." But she dismisses the $10 million price tag some have placed on a victorious Senate run, pointing to the shortened election window created by the Legislature, which recently passed a new law requiring a special election within 160 days of Kerry winning the presidency.

And while she said she hasn't taken any formal steps like starting to form a campaign staff, she has at her disposal the contacts and political infrastructure that helped carry her husband from City Council to Congress to Senate to victory in the 1992 New Hampshire presidential primary.

"That's one of the things that makes it doable," she said. "This isn't coming out of thin air."

Johnston, however, said that even beyond Meehan and Markey may lie incumbent congressmen like Steve Lynch of South Boston, Barney Frank of Newton and William Delahunt of Quincy. All have expressed interest, making for a potentially crowded field of men capable of quickly raising money.

"There's a strong network of Paul Tsongas supporters around the state who presumably would rally to her," Johnston said, "but I think the question for her would be whether she can raise the money that would be required."

Tsongas said she has thought more and more about running as more and more people have encouraged her to do so. She is considerably more serious about it than the lieutenant governor flirtation three years ago. At that time, the family | she has three grown daughters | hadn't fully recovered from Paul Tsongas' death and the position simply didn't offer enough of an opportunity to get things done.

But having watched her husband serve in the Senate from 1978 to 1984, when he didn't seek re-election so he could treat his cancer, she developed an appreciation for the job's unique influence.

"With that office," she said, "you can get a sense of what needs to be done and move it ahead."

For those who question her experience beyond being married to a politician, she cites her introduction to politics working on Eugene McCarthy's presidential campaign in New Hampshire three-plus decades ago, and service as Bill Bradley's Massachusetts campaign co-chairwoman during his run for the presidential nomination in 2000. And she was heavily involved in all her husband's campaigns, having delivered many a stump speech to a crowded room.

"I campaigned always on my own | I was never handled in any way," she said. "Have I ever been in a debate? No, but I kind of relish the thought."

Opponents will find her arguing familiar positions. Like her husband, she sits comfortably on the left when it comes to major social issues, a pro-choice, anti-death penalty "progressive." She supports gay marriage and points out that this year's Tsongas Leadership Award went to gay-marriage advocate Marian Walsh, a Democratic state senator from Boston. But also like her husband, she considers herself pro-business and doesn't think that means abandoning the cause of labor.

Her focus in the Senate, she said, would stem from personal experiences. The daughter of a career Air Force man, she's fond of quoting her dad's line, "You don't know what a good defense is until you don't have it."

The widow of a long-suffering cancer victim and a board member for Fallon Community Health Plan, she believes she has multiple perspectives on navigating the health-care maze. Her work at Middlesex has provided higher-education experience, she said, and decades of living in Lowell have made urban revitalization particularly dear to her heart.

In a time when "there's a lot at stake," from terrorism to the environment, she may be ready to end an absence from the debate.

"I missed being a part of the discussion on such important issues," she said.

But the drastic lifestyle impact of a Senate campaign keeps her from fully committing just yet, Tsongas said, describing her family as "excited about the possibility," but "nervous about the loss of privacy."

"Because it is such a change in home life, you can't decide overnight," she said. "All of a sudden you cross that line, and you can't go back."

Rider has the reins of her childhood dream

By Spencer Baselice

Correspondent

ROCKPORT -- When Krissie Burnham was younger, her mother told her to go outside and play, so she climbed over a stone wall and ran across a field to the Charlie Lane horse stables where she started riding horses.

The stable owners used to offer pony rides for 50 cents, and they paid her to help give the rides and collet the money.

"Then all the money they paid me, I went and spent on their pony rides," Burnham said.

Now, she travels two hours each way to ride her horse once a week, managing a full-time job and a family. She attends events all over New England with her husband, Richard Dan Burnham, riding her own horse in a show class and giving lessons to people who have ridden all their lives.

"I never had a horse or trainer growing up," Burnham said. "I'm living a childhood dream."

Her horse, Sippin' Chocolate, is ranked tops in the nation in Senior Trail class and Western Pleasure, a style of riding that incorporates both grace and fluidity, and ranks in the top five in several other categories.

Burnham has taken naturally to show riding in her adult life, even after her parents refused to buy her a pony.

"They said no because then they would have to buy one for all of my sisters," she said, noting that she has three of them.

Burnham was surprised at her ranking because she is a newcomer with little professional instruction in the world of show horses. This is the first year she has taken professional show riding lessons.

Burnham is quick to give most of the credit to Sippin' Chocolate, a circuit veteran who is stabled in Connecticut.

"He is amazing," she said. "He can do a 360-degree turn in a box he can hardly fit in."

To compete in the Western Pleasure class, the horse must trot in controlled steps, using a certain amount of force, and the rider must have a keen sense of how the horse behaves.

In the first three months she rode Sippin' Chocolate, Burnham amassed enough points and recognition to be invited to last year's world championships, where she placed ninth in her category. It was her goal to place in the top 10

"I already achieved my main goal," said Burnham, who is employed as a social worker. "It would be great to be No. 1 in the world," she said, "But I just go to the world's because my husband loves it."

There are different levels of competition, national, regional and world, but since she has achieved her goal, she is content to keep riding simply to pursue her passion.

She has owned several horses in her adult life, some Morgans and a few riding horses, but never an Appaloosa show horse.

"The world of show horses is so new to me," she said.

She bought her first Appaloosa, Strip on Down, before she bought Sippin' Chocolate, whose age and experience has helped take her to the level she is at now.

"It is just great to have a passion and an outlet," she said. "A lot of people said it couldn't be done."

Many people said it was impossible to follow her passion for horse riding with twins and a full-time job, but in her short career she has already won several competitions and has a good chance at placing in the top 10 in the world at this year's world championships in Fort Worth, Texas.

"I've had a lot of support," she said. "People will say, 'Yeah, anytime you need to, we'll take the kids for the weekend' if I need to go to a competition."

Last year she was ranked a novice, and this year she has already accumulated the 50 points it takes to be designated nonprofessional.

Her peers ask her when she is going to be rated in the professional class so they can at least have a chance at winning, but Burnham has little interest in joining that class.

Her main interest is satisfying that little girl who had a love for riding horses.

Businesses say tax holiday a help

By Greg Cook

Staff writer

Saturday's statewide sales tax holiday was a boon to a number of Gloucester retailers -- even some whose products aren't usually subject to the 5 percent tax.

"We didn't expect much business because the commodity we sell isn't taxable," said Mark Adrian Farber, owner of Mark Adrian Shoes on Main Street. "But we were very busy because a lot of people didn't know that."

He figured business was up 20 percent Saturday. Customers asked him and his staff to make sure they wouldn't be taxed, and store staff assured them they wouldn't, informing them that shoes and clothing aren't normally taxed in Massachusetts.

The tax holiday was designed to give a shot in the arm to the state's economy. Goods priced more than $2,500 -- like paintings, jewelry and cars -- were not eligible for the limited tax break.

Gary Doyon, the owner of Doyon's appliance store on Rogers Street, thought sales were four or five times that of a normal Saturday, though he thought sales in the preceding days were off somewhat as customers postponed purchases until Saturday. Some customers even canceled purchases made earlier in the week and repurchased the items on Saturday, Doyon said.

Still, Doyon said it was the largest single-day volume of sales the business has had in its more than 50 years -- even better than when they have sales of 10 percent off purchases. The state, he said, promoted the sales tax holiday well.

"It's definitely going to give a shot to the economy," Doyon said.

John White, owner of Fisherman's Outfitter on Main Street, said, "It did all right. It brought some customers in who hadn't been here before." He said the tax holiday increased sales that day by 30 percent. Customers placed orders in advance to purchase on Saturday. He thought a tax holiday should be offered three or four times a year.

"There should be no sales tax. We should have a 23 percent across the board (income) tax like George Bush wants," White said.

Animal Krackers on Main Street reprogrammed its registers to not charge taxes and then had a regular day of business. No customers mentioned the tax break.

Adrian Farber, a supporter of getting rid of sales tax altogether, added, "I'm philosophically opposed to the tax-free holiday because I believe it either postpones or accelerates purchases and has no benefit to the commonwealth. If they're going to have a tax-free day they should have a tax-free year every year, that would help the economy."

Statewide sales figures for the day were not expected to be available until later in the week, but the state retailers' group forecast that Massachusetts stores would ring up at least $200 million in sales Saturday, on par with the height of the winter holiday shopping season and six times the average sales on a typical Saturday in August.

Revenue officials projected the state will miss out on $6 million to $10 million from the loss of sales taxes -- a loss that some fiscal watchdogs contend does not offset the modest and fleeting rise in consumer spending they argue such tax holidays generate.

Material from the AP was used in this story.

Residents want traffic changes

By Lisa Arsenault

Staff writer

MANCHESTER -- Lincoln Street residents say something needs to be done about traffic in their neighborhood after three tractor-trailer trucks got stuck on the busy road Friday.

The short stretch of roadway is home to Manchester Memorial School, Manchester Essex Regional High School and roughly 35 households. The road is also the designated route for travelers going from Route 128 to Route 127 and Magnolia.

Police were called to Lincoln Street three times Friday because tractor-trailer trucks too large to fit under the pedestrian bridge that connects Memorial School to the high school needed help turning around.

"Traffic has grown substantially in four years I've been there," Lincoln Street resident Karen Bennett said. "Not allowing big trucks is one of things we're talking about. Commercial truck traffic is a major concern."

Residents of the street banded together earlier in the summer to try to get the town or the state to do something about neighborhood traffic after a Waste Management truck took out a piece of a maple tree near the corner of Arbella Street.

A group of roughly 10 people have been meeting regularly since then, Bennett said, and a petition is in the works.

Grace Vasta-Carr and a group of about six neighbors have proposed making the street one-way from Summer Street to Arbella Street. They are also asking the state to consider a new exit off Route 128 that will give motorists a direct route to Magnolia without going through Manchester.

Under Vasta-Carr's one-way proposal, motorists would enter Lincoln Street from Arbella Street and continue to Summer Street. The way it is now, the eastern end of Lincoln Street is a one-way and motorists who enter from Summer Street have to take Arbella Street to get back onto School Street. Vasta-Carr's proposal would reverse the one-way direction of Arbella Street.

Vasta-Carr, who has lived on Lincoln Street for 10 years, said large trucks that use the street as a throughway cause the biggest problems in the neighborhood.

Bennett's husband, Kevin Prentice, said police have closed the street twice this summer to have very large trucks drive down Arbella Street in the wrong direction. Bennett said one problem is that trucks have to speed up to make it over the hill near Arbella Street but then end up taking the corner at a dangerous speed.

The speed limit on Lincoln Street is 25 miles an hour. School Superintendent Robert Shaps said he hasn't heard complaints from parents about traffic on the street.

School Committee Chairwoman Susan Beckmann said district officials have looked at traffic studies of the area and voted to increase the number of buses bringing students to the schools to cut down on traffic congestion.

Public Works Director Robert Moroney said making Lincoln Street a one-way is not the answer. If traffic from Route 128 to Route 127 did not travel along Lincoln Street, it could end up going through the center of town instead, where traffic flow is already a problem, he said.

Bennett said the committee the neighborhood has formed is sensitive to how traffic in other neighborhoods would be affected if Lincoln Street traffic were diverted elsewhere. She said the recent stop sign put in on Beach Street and the four-way stop at the intersection of Pine and Pleasant streets are steps in the right direction. An overall traffic study in town may be the best approach, she said.

"We're trying to come up with ideas," she said. "It's the only street in the whole town that has two schools on it. It's just gotten worse and worse over the years."

Local snowbirds follow Charley's path

By Lisa Arsenault

Staff writer

Sue and Gaspar Lafata consider themselves lucky.

The Gloucester couple didn't have to wait days to be told whether their home in Florida had been wiped out by Hurricane Charley. They got word while the storm was raging.

"We were fortunate," Sue Lafata said. "We didn't have to wait and wonder like many of our friends."

A year-round tenant at their condo in Punta Gorda, Fla., called them from a closet under a stairway Friday night. Charley's 140 mph winds damaged the roof of the condo and tore down fences and screen porches but left their property mainly intact, they were told.

"We were luckier than most," Gaspar Lafata said. "Other than television, you can't really grasp the immense damage."

Punta Gorda, a retirement community of about 15,000 people, is the winter home of a large group of Cape Ann residents. The region is one of the hardest hit by the weekend's hurricane, which killed 17 people, caused at least $11 billion in damage and left nearly 1 million people throughout Florida without power.

The storm was predicted to touch down in Tampa and bypass Punta Gorda. Lafata said he only knew two hours before Charley hit that his home was in danger.

"We saw it going to Tampa like everybody else then all of a sudden it took this right turn and it hits our little city. I couldn't believe. It's really done a job," he said.

Communicating with anyone in the Florida neighborhoods ravaged by the storm over the weekend was difficult to impossible with electricity out, phone lines down and neighbors evacuated. Even cell phones couldn't come to the rescue -- with no electricity to charge the batteries, most cell phones were dead long before the weekend was over.

Gaspar Lafata is flying to Punta Gorda Friday to take a look at the damage firsthand.

Rockport resident Charlie Jones still doesn't know the extent of damage to his newly built home in Punta Gorda. He and his wife, MaryAnn, were planning on moving there permanently in the coming year, but that probably won't happen now, Jones said.

"We don't know if it's OK. All we know is that in some form or another it still exists," he said. "It's crazy."

Jones saw a corner of his house still standing in the background of a photo a neighbor e-mailed him yesterday. When he heard the storm was heading that way he had prepared himself for losing everything, he said.

"We're relieved there is a piece left," he said.

Gloucester native Robert Dennis flew to Florida Sunday to see if there is anything to salvage from his modular home in Windmill Village, Punta Gorda. His home is one of four left standing in a modular home park of roughly 400.

"It was absolutely unbelievable," said Dennis' wife, Norine. "We held out so little hope because of the fact so many had their homes lost."

The Dennis family has lived in Windmill Village year-round for the past 10 years. They were visiting family in Beverly when the storm hit.

Norine Dennis hopes family photo albums, antiques and other heirlooms have not been lost. She is also anxious to hear from her neighbors, who have been evacuated and hopefully not injured.

"You watch television and you see a tragedy like this and you feel terrible and say a little prayer for the survivors. When it hits home like this, it's a whole different scene," she said.

Her husband left in such a hurry Sunday he forgot to pack the house keys. He normally would have been able to let himself in with a spare key in the shed -- but the shed and the carport were blown away by the storm.

"It's kind of ironic," she said. "You have to smile at some of these things."

She's planning on writing a letter to the company that built her home. She said she wants to thank them because it was only built to withstand 90 mph winds but it took on the 140 mph winds this weekend.

Neighbors homes are reduced to piles of rubble two feet high, she said.

Jones worries about the storm's affect on the community.

"We're more worried about everybody else and the nature of the park in general," he said. "Although they can put the park buildings back, it's going to very difficult for the individuals to replace their homes."

Man killed while walking on Route 128

By Lisa Arsenault and Gail McCarthy

Staff writer

A man was killed on Route 128 north in West Gloucester after police believe he got in a fight with a cab driver and walked out into traffic just before 8 p.m. yesterday.

Police would not release the man's name.

Traffic on Route 128 north was shut down between Essex Avenue and Concord Street for more than two hours yesterday while state police investigated the accident. Traffic was routed off the highway at Essex Avenue.

The Crime Prevention and Control Unit (CPAC) that investigates deaths for the Essex County district attorney's office was called in, along with the medical examiner.

Police would not identify the driver of the Nissan Altima that hit the man. It sat on the side of Route 128 north last night with a broken windshield several feet from where the man who was hit lay with a blanket over him. At times, rain poured down. Gloucester Police Lt. Jerris Cook said he did not believe the driver would be charged in the accident.

Police believe the man had been drinking before he was hit, Cook said. A cab driver picked the man up at his house and took him to the Liquor Locker on Main Street, where the clerk refused to sell him alcohol because he was noticeably intoxicated, Cook said.

A Liquor Locker store clerk confirmed last night that a man was refused alcohol earlier that evening, after which the man caused a scene in the store before he left in a taxi cab. The liquor store staff then called Gloucester police.

The call of the fight came in just 15 minutes before police started getting calls from motorists on Route 128 who said a man was trying to flag people down and pull the drivers from their cars, according to the police report.

The cab driver told police he was giving the man a ride to a hotel in Peabody when the man reached over the seat, grabbed the steering wheel and tried to jerk the car off the road, according to the Gloucester police report. The cab driver told police he slammed on the brakes while the man in the back seat tried to choke him. He was able to steer the cab safely to the side of the road, grab the keys and run away from the cab. The man chased the cab driver from the car and when he couldn't catch up, he attempted to flag down drivers on Route 128 south to give him a ride. The cab driver called his dispatcher from a cell phone, and they were able to contact police at 7:53 p.m.

In the meantime, police said, the man had crossed the median to the northbound side where he walked into the road and was struck by a driver just over the crest of the hill after exit 14 on Route 128 north.

Rockport resident Mike Frontierro was driving in the left-hand lane on his way home from work when saw the man walking down the white dotted line in the middle of the highway just seconds before he was hit by another car.

"I just went up over that crest after the Route 133 exit, and then I saw a car slightly in front of me hit its brakes and swerve toward my lane. When he hit his brakes, I didn't know what to think, and then I hit my brakes and I saw the guy on the white line in between my truck and that car. We both missed him. I missed him by inches," Frontierro said.

He said it appeared the man was walking along the dotted line, not trying to cross the road because the traffic was light enough at the time to have permitted the man to successfully do so.

"He was like ducking one way and the other. He was just staring. It was the freakiest thing to see, especially doing 50 miles per hour, and it was a little misty," Frontierro said. "When I looked in my mirror, he didn't appear to be getting out of the road, and it appeared clear to cross the road. Just 10 or 15 seconds or 6 inches, I could have been the one who hit him. There was no avoiding what happened. It was on the crest, and there was no time to react. I can't believe there wasn't a chain reaction, so traffic must have been light."

It had not yet begun to rain.

Frontierro pulled over as soon as he could near the area where an asphalt truck spill recently occurred to call the police.

"I got out of my truck and looked back and all the cars had stopped at that point," said Frontierro, who serves on the Rockport Forest Fire Department.

He then met up with the frightened young couple who struck the man, and he also saw the body.

"I knew he was dead right away," said Frontierro from his home last night. "You could see there wasn't a breath of life in him."

Americans seek Olympic answers in Athens

By Larry McShane

Associat

ATHENS, Greece | Did the Dream Team members get a wake-up call after playing like they were comatose?

Can the women's gymnastics team, the gold medal within its grasp, recapture the magic conjured by the "Magnificent Seven" Olympians from eight years ago?

And just how many medals will teen sensation Michael Phelps bring home to Baltimore from the Athens pool?

The answers, my friend, aren't blowing in the Meltemi winds | the notorious shifting gusts that buffeted Athens the last two days. They rest with U.S. athletes facing pivotal challenges today, just four days into the Athens competition.

The U.S. basketball team was routed in its Athens opener, 92-73, by Puerto Rico. The defeat didn't undermine the players' medal chances as much as it did their aura of invincibility.

"This does not cost them the gold medal," NBC basketball analyst Doug Collins said. "But it gets everyone thinking, 'We've got a chance.'"

Heading into today's game against the host Greeks, the standings only reinforce that sad reality for the sad-looking Americans. Joining the U.S. team with an Olympic mark of 0-1 were the powerhouses from Angola and New Zealand.

Even "The Answer" was looking for an explanation.

"Any loss for us is a bad loss," team co-captain Allen Iverson said. "We're the favorite to win the whole thing."

Or they were until Sunday's thumping. It was only the third Olympic basketball defeat for the United States, and the first after 24 straight wins using NBA players. Even worse, the Americans were more apathetic than outplayed in the loss.

"We came out flat, dug a hole for ourselves, didn't make our shots," guard Dwyane Wade offered. Complicating matters, the Americans must play the Greeks before a rabid crowd of hometown fans in the Helliniko basketball complex.

Iverson and friends will play live on the USA Network beginning at 3 p.m. EDT | one of two live events airing during the afternoon sessions of NBC's Olympic coverage. NBC also will present live coverage of the beach volleyball contest with Americans Dax Holdren and Stein Metzger, along with highlights from swimming, rowing and canoeing.

And look for American Rebecca Giddens, the 2002 world champion, to start her bid for gold in whitewater kayaking.

In prime time, NBC will turn its attention to | yet again | Phelps and the gymnasts. The teen swimmer competes in the 200-meter butterfly, where he's the world-record holder and favorite for a gold, and competes on the American 4-by-200-meter freestyle relay team.

Phelps' bid to match Mark Spitz's record of seven gold medals in a single games ended last night, when he finished third in the 200-meter freestyle. He's collected one gold and two bronze.

The gymnasts won the world championship one year ago, and they arrived in Athens intent on winning a gold for the first time since the dramatic Atlanta triumph by Kerri Strug and her teammates in 1996. That team was coached by the retired Bela Karolyi; this team is run by his wife, Martha.

The six-woman team survived some missteps to make the medal round, but they're aware the margin for error has disappeared. Annia Hatch, who ended a five-year retirement to compete, took an extra step on her landing in the vault preliminaries.

It can't happen again.

"I know I can do better, and that's what counts," said the 26-year-old gymnast.

For Phelps, it's yet another day as an Athens headliner. The 19-year-old captured his first gold in his first race and took a bronze on an American relay team. Yesterday, in one of the most anticipated events of the games, he went head-to-head with Australian Ian Thorpe | and lost. Still he upped his personal medal count to three, collecting a bronze as the Thorpedo took gold.

Prime-time coverage, along with the action from the pool and the mats, will include women's beach volleyball with the top-ranked U.S. team of Kerri Walsh and Misty May taking on the Netherlands. The 6-foot-3 Walsh, who celebrated her 26th birthday on Sunday, dominated at the net as the pair won its debut match.

There's quite a bit of live coverage on cable in the off hours today: Andres Cantor, renowned for his call of "GOOOOALLLLLL!" handles the Mexico-Greece soccer on Telemundo. And MSNBC has the U.S. men's water polo at 9:30 a.m., and the U.S. women's soccer team at 11 a.m.

d Press

AL Standings

East Division<*C>

W L Pct GB

New York 75 42 .641 --

Boston 65 52 .556 10

Baltimore 57 60 .487 18

Tampa Bay 54 64 .458 21<1/2>

Toronto 49 70 .412 27

Central Division<*C>

W L Pct GB

Minnesota 64 53 .547 --

Cleveland 63 57 .525 2<1/2>

Chicago 59 56 .513 4

Detroit 54 63 .462 10

Kansas City 42 74 .362 21<1/2>

West Division<*C>

W L Pct GB

Oakland 66 52 .559 --

Texas 65 52 .556 <1/2>

Anaheim 65 53 .551 1

Seattle 44 73 .376 21<1/2>

------<*C>

Sunday's Games<*C>

Baltimore 11, Toronto 7

Minnesota 4, Cleveland 2, 10 innings

Texas 6, Tampa Bay 2

Chicago White Sox 5, Boston 4

Seattle 7, N.Y. Yankees 3

Anaheim 3, Detroit 2

Kansas City 6, Oakland 1

Monday's Games<*C>

Boston 8, Toronto 4

Oakland 3, Baltimore 1

Texas 5, Cleveland 2

Tuesday's Games<*C>

Toronto (Lilly 8-8) at Boston (P.Martinez 13-4), 7:05 p.m.

Oakland (Hudson 7-4) at Baltimore (Lopez 10-7), 7:05 p.m.

Anaheim (Escobar 7-8) at Tampa Bay (Brazelton 4-4), 7:15 p.m.

Cleveland (C.Lee 10-4) at Texas (Erickson 0-3), 8:05 p.m.

Detroit (Maroth 9-7) at Chicago White Sox (Garcia 10-9), 8:05 p.m.

N.Y. Yankees (Vazquez 13-6) at Minnesota (Radke 7-6), 8:10 p.m.

Seattle (Madritsch 2-0) at Kansas City (May 9-12), 8:10 p.m.

Wednesday's Games<*C>

Toronto at Boston, 7:05 p.m.

Oakland at Baltimore, 7:05 p.m.

N.Y. Yankees at Minnesota, 7:05 p.m.

Anaheim at Tampa Bay, 7:15 p.m.

Cleveland at Texas, 8:05 p.m.

Detroit at Chicago White Sox, 8:05 p.m.

Seattle at Kansas City, 8:10 p.m.

Red Sox 8, Blue Jays 4

Toronto AB R H BI BB SO Avg.

Rios rf 4 0 0 0 0 2 .286

OHudson 2b 4 1 3 0 0 0 .264

VWells cf 4 0 1 1 0 1 .281

CDelgado 1b 1 1 0 0 2 0 .235

Catalanotto dh 4 0 0 0 0 2 .304

Hinske 3b 4 1 1 0 0 0 .251

Woodward ss 4 1 0 0 0 1 .230

Gross lf 4 0 1 1 0 1 .208

Cash c 2 0 0 0 0 2 .193

a-Zaun ph-c 1 0 0 0 0 0 .275

Totals 32 4 6 2 2 9

Boston AB R H BI BB SO Avg.

Damon cf 5 1 2 2 0 0 .302

DRoberts rf-lf 4 1 1 1 1 1 .231

MRamirez lf 5 2 2 0 0 2 .318

Kapler rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 .282

DOrtiz dh 3 2 1 0 2 0 .311

Millar 1b 2 0 1 2 2 1 .307

1-Gutierrez pr-2b 1 0 0 0 0 0 .263

Varitek c 2 0 0 1 2 0 .292

OCabrera ss 3 0 1 2 0 1 .210

Mueller 3b 2 1 1 0 2 0 .280

Mientkiewicz 2b-1b 4 1 1 0 0 1 .249

Totals 31 8 10 8 9 6

Toronto 000 100 300 -- 4 6 1

Boston 010 220 03x -- 8 10 2

a-grounded out for Cash in the 7th.

1-ran for Millar in the 7th.

E--OHudson (11), OCabrera 2 (4). LOB--Toronto 4, Boston 10. 2B--OHudson (21), DRoberts (2), MRamirez (34), DOrtiz (37), Millar (25), Mientkiewicz (21). 3B--Damon (4). RBIs--VWells (39), Gross (4), Damon 2 (62), DRoberts (3), Millar 2 (51), Varitek (58), OCabrera 2 (5). SB--OHudson (5), Woodward (1), Mueller (1). CS--Gross (2). SF--Varitek, OCabrera. GIDP--VWells, Hinske, DRoberts, OCabrera, Mientkiewicz.

Runners left in scoring position--Toronto 2 (Catalanotto, Woodward); Boston 2 (Varitek, OCabrera).

Runners moved up--Hinske, MRamirez.

DP--Toronto 3 (OHudson, Woodward and CDelgado), (Woodward, OHudson and CDelgado), (Woodward, OHudson and CDelgado); Boston 2 (Mientkiewicz and Millar), (OCabrera and Millar).

Toronto IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA

JMiller L, <1/2> 4 1-3 6 5 4 5 1 92 4.70

Douglass 1 2-3 0 0 0 2 2 23 7.40

Speier 1 0 0 0 1 3 27 4.50

Chulk 0 3 3 3 0 0 16 4.50

Ligtenberg 1 1 0 0 1 0 12 5.96

Boston IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA

DLowe W, 11-10 7 5 4 3 1 7 103 5.26

Foulke S, 20 2 1 0 0 1 2 24 1.74

Chulk pitched to 3 batters in the 8th.

Inherited runners-scored--Douglass 2-0, Ligtenberg 1-1.

IBB--off Foulke (CDelgado) 1, off Douglass (Varitek) 1, off Ligtenberg (DOrtiz) 1, off JMiller (DOrtiz) 1. HBP--by DLowe (CDelgado). WP--Speier.

Umpires--Home, Chuck Meriwether; First, Mike Reilly; Second, C.B. Bucknor; Third, Eric Cooper.

T--3:00. A--35,271 (35,095).

A's 3, Orioles 1

OAKLAND BALTIMORE

ab r h bi ab r h bi

Kotsay cf 3 1 0 0BRbrts 2b 4 0 0 0

Byrnes lf 5 1 2 1Newhn lf 4 0 0 0

Httberg 1b 5 0 2 0Mora 3b 4 0 2 0

Dye rf 5 1 1 1Tejada ss 3 0 0 0

DMiller c 3 0 1 0RPlmo 1b 4 0 0 0

Durazo dh 4 0 2 1JvLopz c 4 1 2 1

Scutaro 2b 4 0 0 0Surhoff rf 3 0 2 0

Crosby ss 2 0 0 0Hrst Jr cf 3 0 0 0

McLmr 3b 4 0 1 0Gbbons dh 3 0 1 0

Totals 35 3 9 3Totals 32 1 7 1

Oakland 000 030 000 -- 3

Baltimore 000 010 000 -- 1

E--MRedman (1). DP--Oakland 3, Baltimore 1. LOB--Oakland 10, Baltimore 5. 2B--Byrnes (27), Mora (29). HR--JvLopez (18).

IP H R ER BB SO

Oakland

MRedman W,9-9 8 6 1 1 1 2

Dotel S,11 1 1 0 0 0 1

Baltimore

Bedard L,5-7 6 8 3 3 3 7

Parrish 1 0 0 0 1 0

Williams 1 0 0 0 1 0

Groom 2-3 1 0 0 0 0

Grimsley 1-3 0 0 0 0 0

WP--Bedard.

Umpires--Home, Angel Hernandez; First, Mark Wegner; Second, Mike Everitt; Third, Larry Young.

T--2:51. A--40,964 (48,286).

Rangers 5, Indians 2

CLEVELAND TEXAS

ab r h bi ab r h bi

Lawton lf 2 1 1 0EYong dh 2 1 0 0

Vizquel ss 5 0 1 0MYong ss 5 1 1 1

Hafner dh 4 0 0 0ASrano 2b 2 0 0 0

VMrtnz c 3 1 1 2Txeira 1b 3 0 0 1

Brssrd 1b 3 0 1 0Mench lf 3 1 2 1

Blake 3b 4 0 0 0BJordn rf 3 1 2 1

Gerut rf 3 0 0 0Nix cf 1 0 0 0

Blliard 2b 4 0 2 0Blalock 3b 2 0 0 1

Szmore cf 4 0 0 0Mathws cf 4 1 2 0

Brajas c 4 0 1 0

Totals 32 2 6 2Totals 29 5 8 5

Cleveland 200 000 000 -- 2

Texas 001 101 20x -- 5

E--Blake (18), Belliard (10). DP--Cleveland 2, Texas 1. LOB--Cleveland 9, Texas 9. 2B--Belliard (42), Mench (17). 3B--Broussard (1). HR--VMartinez (20), BJordan (3). SB--Lawton (19), Matthews (4). SF--Mench, Blalock.

IP H R ER BB SO

Cleveland

Sabathia L,9-7 61-3 7 5 5 5 4

Riske 12-3 1 0 0 1 1

Texas

Callaway 41-3 5 2 2 2 4

Ramirez W,4-3 12-3 1 0 0 0 1

BShouse 11-3 0 0 0 1 1

Francisco 2-3 0 0 0 0 0

FCordero S,36 1 0 0 0 1 1

HBP--by BShouse (Lawton), by Ramirez (Gerut), by Sabathia (ASoriano)., Callaway.

Umpires--Home, Brian Runge; First, Bill Hohn; Second, Gary Darling; Third, Mark Carlson.

T--2:52. A--23,551 (49,115).

AL Leaders

G AB R H Pct.

ISuzuki Sea 116 511 70 185 .362

Mora Bal 95 372 84 129 .347

IRodriguez Det 102 404 54 136 .337

VGuerrero Ana 113 449 89 146 .325

THafner Cle 108 384 79 123 .320

MYoung Tex 114 496 79 158 .319

MRamirez Bos 110 415 75 132 .318

Durazo Oak 103 369 59 117 .317

CGuillen Det 115 438 83 138 .315

Tejada Bal 117 470 76 148 .315

HOME RUNS--DOrtiz, Boston, 30; MRamirez, Boston, 30; Konerko, Chicago, 29; ARodriguez, New York, 29; Teixeira, Texas, 28; Sheffield, New York, 27; Valentin, Chicago, 26.

RUNS BATTED IN--Tejada, Baltimore, 107; DOrtiz, Boston, 105; JGuillen, Anaheim, 92; THafner, Cleveland, 91; VMartinez, Cleveland, 89; VGuerrero, Anaheim, 89; MRamirez, Boston, 87.

RUNS--Sheffield, New York, 91; VGuerrero, Anaheim, 89; Lawton, Cleveland, 87; Damon, Boston, 87; Mora, Baltimore, 84; Matsui, New York, 83; CGuillen, Detroit, 83.

DOUBLES--Belliard, Cleveland, 41; BRoberts, Baltimore, 39; DOrtiz, Boston, 37; THafner, Cleveland, 35; MRamirez, Boston, 34; CGuillen, Detroit, 31; Tejada, Baltimore, 31.

TRIPLES--Crawford, Tampa Bay, 17; Figgins, Anaheim, 14; CGuillen, Detroit, 9; Infante, Detroit, 8; MYoung, Texas, 7; JoCruz, Tampa Bay, 7; Lofton, New York, 6.

STOLEN BASES--Crawford, Tampa Bay, 47; ISuzuki, Seattle, 28; BRoberts, Baltimore, 26; Figgins, Anaheim, 24; ARodriguez, New York, 20; ASanchez, Detroit, 19; Lawton, Cleveland, 18.

PITCHING (13 Decisions)--Mulder, Oakland, 15-4, .789; PMartinez, Boston, 13-4, .765; Rogers, Texas, 14-5, .737; ClLee, Cleveland, 10-4, .714; Schilling, Boston, 14-6, .700; Westbrook, Cleveland, 11-5, .687; JVazquez, New York, 13-6, .684.

STRIKEOUTS--Santana, Minnesota, 190; PMartinez, Boston, 164; Schilling, Boston, 143; FGarcia, Chicago, 141; KEscobar, Anaheim, 128; Buehrle, Chicago, 123; Harden, Oakland, 122.

SAVES--MRivera, New York, 40; FCordero, Texas, 35; Nathan, Minnesota, 34; DBaez, Tampa Bay, 24; Percival, Anaheim, 23; Foulke, Boston, 20; Urbina, Detroit, 20.

Ferriero stays healthy, but teams places fourth

By Dom Nicastro

Staff writer

Essex's Benn Ferriero was lucky. He ate the pasta and felt fine.

However, 14 of his teammates on the 2004 United States Under-18 Select Team had what Ferriero called "mystery meat" and weren't so lucky.

The next day, those players suffered from food poisoning from the dinner in their hotel in Breclav, Czech Republic, and had to compete against Canada in the semifinals of the Under-18 Junior World Cup. They felt the effects, losing to the eventual champions, 4-0.

The Americans, last year's undefeated champion, finished fourth. Sweden topped the U.S., 3-0, in the third-place game Sunday in Piestany, Slovakia. Team USA was 2-0 before dropping three straight.

Team Canada dominated the Czechs in the title game, 4-1, to capture its eighth championship in the last nine years.

"I didn't eat the meal everyone got sick from," Ferriero said last night from his Essex home. "I have no idea what it was."

Ferriero played in four of the five games, notching an assist on the game-winner in a 3-2 victory over Russia. He did not play against Canada because the prior game, he was ejected for his role in a small skirmish near the end of Team USA's 5-1 loss to the Czech Republic.

After the Czech game, played in front of more than 5,000 screaming Czech fans, and about a dozen American faithful, Team USA was told to stay in the arena because there were a few thousand rowdy fans outside. Police had to disperse the large gathering before allowing the Americans to head to their hotel.

"It was so loud, you could not hear yourself talk," Ferriero said. "I don't think they knew where we were staying, which was probably good."

Ferriero will be a senior at Governor Dummer Academy this fall. He will play in a few more summer tourneys before he hits the books.

Next year at this time, he will be preparing to attend Boston College, where he will play hockey on a full scholarship. Boston College won the battle over the hard-skating forward over dozens of other Division 1 colleges that courted him.

Ferriero was one of 20 players selected to play for the U.S. at the World Cup out of a pool of 240 at the 2004 USA Hockey Select 17 Festival at St. Cloud State University in St. Cloud, Minn. At the Festival in Minnesota last month, Ferriero was the leading scorer on Team Massachusetts with six points on four goals and two assists in six games. He was also tied for fourth among all scorers.

Sports in brief

Bench press winners

The winners of The SunBanque Cape Ann YMCA Bench Press Challenge are: Overall: Justin McEachern (405 pounds); Weight Class, 211-plus: Alec Johnson, who weighed in at 212 and benched 405; Weight Class, 176-210: Justin McEachern, who weighed in at 196 and benched 405; Weight Class, 175 and under: Dom Ciolino, who weighed in at 160 and benched 295.

Update: Tucker in Lake Elsinore

Update on the Cape Anners in professional baseball: Gloucester's Rusty Tucker, on the comeback trail from Tommy John surgery, has thrown two innings in two games for Single A Lake Elsinore. He's allowed two hits, struck out one and walked one while allowing one unearned run.

Manchester's Brian Lentz, a player for the Seattle Mariners' Single A Inland Empire 66ers, has played in 33 games and is batting .258 (23-for-89). He has 16 RBI and has struck out 30 times while walking eight. Heading into last night, Inland (29-21) was 1 1/2 games behind Lancaster in the South division of the California League.

All-star cheering

There will be an Open Gym for all cheerleaders (all ages, boys and girls) interested in being a part of an all-star cheerleading program at Iron Rail Gymnastics Friday, Aug. 20, from 10:30 a.m. to noon. Iron Rail Gymnastics is located on Kondelin Road off Magnolia Avenue, and the coaches include members of the Gloucester High School coaching staff.

Gloucester High School sports

Football mini-camp starts Monday, Aug. 23, at 6 p.m. at Gloucester High School. Players will need a physical form signed by a doctor and a $75 user fee check they can bring to high school. All other sports start Aug. 26. Cross Country is a $50 user fee. All other sports are $75. All athletes need a physical form signed by doctors.

Youth track

Gloucester High School boys track and field coach Jim Munn will conduct a series of Saturday morning clinics for boys and girls in grades 4 through 8 who are interested in running cross country in the fall. Participants should bring their their own water bottles, come dressed to run and meet at the bandstand at Stage Fort Park by no later than 9 a.m. The clinics are free and open to all Cape Ann area youngsters. For more information, call Coach Munn evenings at (978) 281-0266.

Gloucester Field Hockey Camp

It will be held Aug. 23-27 at the O'Maley School field. The camp is for girls age 8-15. The field hockey program begins daily at 9 a.m. to 12 noon. Fee for the camp is $45. Players should bring sneakers and cleats if they have them; also a mouthguard. Sticks will be available. If it rains we will be inside the O'Maley Rink. Registration information can be obtained by calling Kim Patience at (978) 281-3765.

The Gloucester High school field hockey team will start practice at Fuller School field on Monday, Aug. 30, from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. It will break for lunch and meet again from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Anyone interested in joining, including incoming freshmen, must have completed physicals and authorization form at this time and also a user fee. Players can pick up forms at the high school. Practice will be rain or shine.

Cape Ann Youth Hockey

Cape Ann Youth Hockey is looking for Mite players to fill out their 2004-2005 roster. Any player born 1996 or after is eligible. Contact Paula Fulford at (978) 281-3442 if interested by Aug. 15. Players need no prior hockey experience.

Cape Ann Youth Hockey is also having a fund-raising cruise aboard the Hurricane II on Saturday, Aug. 14, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tickets are $15 each and can be purchased from any board member or by contacting Donna Balestraci at (978) 546-7857. It will have a 50/50 raffle. Music is provided by D.J. Scotty Mac.

Youth soccer

Fishermen Youth Soccer still has some openings for the fall soccer season for many age groups. The U7 group in particular has many openings for players and for coaches. Go to www.fishermenyouthsoccer.org for details or call (978) 525-3389. The season begins in September after school starts.

Manchester Essex field hockey coach

Manchester Essex football needs a junior varsity field hockey coach. If interested contact athletic director Hardy Nalley at (978) 526-2066 or e-mail Chris Horne at hornec@mersd.org.

Rugby

North Shore Rugby is looking for new players for the upcoming fall season. Players are needed for both the men's and women's clubs, and no experience is required. See www.NSRFC.com for more information or call (781) 771-1127.

Swimming

The YMCA of the North Shore Sharks will be holding registration for new swimmers for the Fall/Winter team on Tuesday and Wednesday, Sept. 7, and Sept. 8, from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 pm at the Ipswich, Salem and Beverly (Sterling Center) branches, and on Tuesday and Wednesday, Sept. 14, and Sept. 15, from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Marblehead/Swampscott branch. Interested swimmers should bring a swim suit and towel to registration. The Marblehead/Swampscott, Salem, Ipswich and Beverly/Cape Ann teams all have openings for boys and girls from the ages of 5 to 18. For more information, call Anthony Sakakeeny at the Salem YMCA at (978) 744-0351, Susan Guertin at the Marblehead/Swampscott YMCA at (781) 631-0870, Adam Memont at the Ipswich YMCA at (978) 356-9622 or Kevin Tyrrell at the Beverly YMCA at (978) 927-6855.

Sports schedule

Wednesday, Aug. 18

Summer Leagues

INTERTOWN: Championship, best of five: Game 3: Manchester at Rockport (5:30 p.m., Evans)

Homer happy

By Dom N

Homer happy

No batter homered after Christian Maki's solo shot in the third, but the longball | or shortball for this field | played a big role in last night's game. Here are a look at some numbers concerning home runs last night:

6: No. of homers in the game

4: No. of homers in the first inning

100: Percent of the first-inning runs that came off homers

13th: The first run of the game not the result of a homer.

castro

Staff writer

Latest Line

NFL Preseason<*C>

Favorite Points Underdog

Thursday, August 19th.<*C>

CAROLINA 3 (34) Ny Giants

Friday, August 20th.<*C>

ATLANTA 2 (39) Minnesota

JACKSONVILLE Off (XX) Tampa Bay

PHILADELPHIA 3 (33) Baltimore

Saturday, August 21st.<*C>

CLEVELAND 3 (36) Detroit

BUFFALO 1 (34) Tennessee

PITTSBURGH 3 (34) Houston

CINCINNATI Off (XX) New England

MIAMI 2 (33) Washington

INDIANAPOLIS 4<1/2> (38) Ny Jets

GREEN BAY Off (XX) New Orleans

CHICAGO 3<1/2> (35) San Francisco

OAKLAND 1<1/2> (35) Dallas

ARIZONA 3 (34) San Diego

SEATTLE Off (XX) Denver

Monday, August 23rd.<*C>

KANSAS CITY 3<1/2> (40) St. Louis

Baseball<*C>

Favorite Odds Underdog

National League<*C>

Houston 5<1/2>-6<1/2> PHILADELPHIA

Chicago Cubs 6<1/2>-7<1/2> MILWAUKEE

ST. LOUIS 10-12 Cincinnati

COLORADO 5<1/2>-6<1/2> Ny Mets

Pittsburgh Even-6 ARIZONA

SAN DIEGO 5<1/2>-6<1/2> Atlanta

LOS ANGELES Even-6 Florida

SAN FRANCISCO 13-15 Montreal

American League<*C>

BOSTON 12-14 Toronto

Oakland 5<1/2>-6<1/2> BALTIMORE

Anaheim 5<1/2>-6<1/2> TAMPA BAY

CHI WHITE SOX 8-9 Detroit

TEXAS Pick'em Cleveland

Ny Yankees 6-7 MINNESOTA

KANSAS CITY Pick'em Seattle

Olympics<*C>

Favorite Points Underdog

Men's Basketball<*C>

United States 10 Greece

Home Team in CAPS<*C>

Ainge taking huge risk with Paytonsc read tb

Pro Football

NFL Preseason

Monday's Games<*C>

Tampa Bay 20, Cincinnati 6

Seattle 21, Green Bay 3

Thursday's Game<*C>

N.Y. Giants at Carolina, 8 p.m.

Friday's Games<*C>

Minnesota at Atlanta, 7:30 p.m.

Tampa Bay at Jacksonville, 7:30 p.m.

Baltimore at Philadelphia, 8 p.m.

Saturday's Games<*C>

Detroit at Cleveland, 4:30 p.m.

N.Y. Jets at Indianapolis, 7 p.m.

Tennessee at Buffalo, 7 p.m.

Houston at Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m.

Washington at Miami, 7:30 p.m.

New England at Cincinnati, 7:30 p.m.

New Orleans at Green Bay, 8 p.m.

San Francisco at Chicago, 8:30 p.m.

San Diego at Arizona, 9 p.m.

Dallas at Oakland, 9 p.m.

Denver at Seattle, 10 p.m.

Monday, Aug. 23<*C>

St. Louis at Kansas City, 8 p.m.

Thursday, Aug. 26<*C>

Pittsburgh at Philadelphia, 8 p.m.

Friday, Aug. 27<*C>

N.Y. Giants at N.Y. Jets, 7 p.m.

Washington at St. Louis, 8 p.m.

Green Bay at Jacksonville, 8 p.m.

San Francisco at Minnesota, 8 p.m.

New Orleans at Chicago, 8:30 p.m.

Houston at Denver, 9 p.m.

Seattle at San Diego, 10 p.m.

Saturday, Aug. 28<*C>

Buffalo at Indianapolis, 7 p.m.

Miami at Tampa Bay, 7 p.m.

Cincinnati at Atlanta, 7:30 p.m.

Detroit at Baltimore, 8 p.m.

Cleveland at Kansas City, 8 p.m.

New England at Carolina, 8 p.m.

Oakland at Arizona, 9 p.m.

Buccaneers 20, Bengals 6

Cincinnati 3 3 0 0 -- 6

Tampa Bay 3 10 0 7 -- 20

First Quarter<*C>

TB--FG Gramatica 20, 4:33.

Cin--FG S.Graham 36, 1:20.

Second Quarter<*C>

TB--FG Gramatica 46, 8:51.

TB--E.Graham 2 run (Gramatica kick), 6:22.

Cin--FG S.Graham 32, 2:15.

Fourth Quarter<*C>

TB--E.Graham 3 run (Gramatica kick), 4:20.

A--56,184.

------<*C>

Cin TB

First downs 18 19

Total Net Yards 230 345

Rushes-yards 22-84 28-90

Passing 146 255

Punt Returns 2-9 2-25

Kickoff Returns 5-110 3-74

Interceptions Ret. 0-0 1-0

Comp-Att-Int 16-34-1 22-29-0

Sacked-Yards Lost 5-27 0-0

Punts 4-41.3 3-41

Fumbles-Lost 3-1 1-0

Penalties-Yards 9-7014-129

Time of Possession 26:55 33:05

------<*C>

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS<*C>

RUSHING--Cincinnati, R.Johnson 7-24, Perry 5-22, Kitna 1-11, Washington 1-11, Hicks 5-10, Bramlet 1-7, Goodman 2-(minus 1). Tampa Bay, White 5-27, Bennett 4-19, E.Graham 7-15, Pittman 3-10, M.Jones 1-9, B.Johnson 1-5, Griese 2-3, Alstott 4-2, Simms 1-0.

PASSING--Cincinnati, Palmer 3-8-1-74, Kitna 7-15-0-58, Bramlet 6-11-0-41. Tampa Bay, B.Johnson 3-3-0-49, Simms 12-15-0-110, Griese 7-11-0-96.

RECEIVING--Cincinnati, Walter 4-31, Broussard 3-13, Washington 2-58, C.Johnson 2-32, Young 1-17, Hayes 1-9, Goodman 1-6, Ziesel 1-5, Lynch 1-2. Tampa Bay, Murphy 3-47, Clayton 3-39, E.Graham 3-34, Schroeder 2-41, M.Knight 2-32, Cook 2-19, Heller 2-12, M.Jones 1-12, Pittman 1-8, Comella 1-4, Shepherd 1-4, White 1-3.

MISSED FIELD GOAL--Tampa Bay, Gramatica 43 (WL).

Seahawks 31, Packers 3

Seattle 7 7 0 7 -- 21

Green Bay 3 0 0 0 -- 3

First Quarter<*C>

GB--FG Longwell 47, 9:03.

Sea--Strong 2 run (J.Brown kick), 2:34.

Second Quarter<*C>

Sea--Urban 2 pass from S.Wallace (J.Brown kick), 1:52.

Fourth Quarter<*C>

Sea--Carter 1 run (Fredrickson kick), 3:44.

A--69,718.

------<*C>

Sea GB

First downs 20 9

Total Net Yards 279 118

Rushes-yards 38-95 20-40

Passing 184 78

Punt Returns 8-42 2-1

Kickoff Returns 2-47 3-72

Interceptions Ret. 0-0 0-0

Comp-Att-Int 19-35-0 12-28-0

Sacked-Yards Lost 1-7 6-38

Punts 9-35.8 10-36

Fumbles-Lost 1-0 2-0

Penalties-Yards 4-37 4-31

Time of Possession 35:41 24:19

------<*C>

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS<*C>

RUSHING--Seattle, Morris 13-36, Carter 11-34, Alexander 5-10, Redmon 2-7, Luke 1-5, Evans 1-3, Strong 1-2, Hasselback 1-0, S.Wallace 3-(minus 2). Green Bay, Green 6-24, Davenport 7-9, Diedrick 4-8, Pederson 1-1, Couch 1-(minus 1), W.Williams 1-(minus 1).

PASSING--Seattle, Hasselbeck 5-9-0-56, S.Wallace 14-26-0-135. Green Bay, Favre 5-7-0-43, Couch 2-11-0-18, Pederson 5-10-0-55.

RECEIVING--Seattle, Carter 4-10, Stevens 3-32, Mili 2-28, Jackson 2-25, C.Davis 1-19, Willis 1-16, Bannister 1-15, Engram 1-12, Poppinga 1-12, Burns 1-10, Whitman 1-10, Urban 1-2. Green Bay, Ford 2-27, Fisher 2-19, S.Davis 2-17, Franks 1-11, Vines 1-11, Donald 1-10, Chatman 1-8, Driver 1-7, Walker 1-6.

MISSED FIELD GOALS--None.

Olympics

Yesterday's Medalists

DIVING<*C>

Women's Synchronized 10-meter Platform<*C>

GOLD|Lao Lishi and Li Ting, China

SILVER|Natalia Goncharova and Yulia Koltunova, Russia

BRONZE|Blythe Hartley and Emilie Heymans, Canada

Men's Synchronized 3-meter Springboard<*C>

GOLD|Nikolaos Siranidis and Thomas Bimis, Greece

SILVER|Andreas Wels and Tobias Schellenberg, Germany

BRONZE|Robert Newbery and Steven Barnett, Australia

FENCING<*C>

Men's Individual Foil<*C>

GOLD|Brice Guyart, France

SILVER|Salvatore Sanzo, Italy

BRONZE|Andrea Cassara, Italy

GYMNASTICS<*C>

Men's Team Final<*C>

GOLD|Japan (Takehiro Kashima; Hisashi Mizutori; Daisuke Nakano; Hiroyuki Tomita; Naoya Tsukahara; Isao Yoneda)

SILVER|United States (Jason Gatson, Upland, Calif.; Morgan Hamm, Waukesha, Wis.; Paul Hamm, Waukesha, Wis.; Brett McClure, Mill Creek, Wash.; Blaine Wilson, Columbus, Ohio; Guard Young, Oklahoma City)

BRONZE|Romania (Marian Dragulescu; Ilie Daniel Popescu; Dan Nicolae Potra; Razvan Dorin Selariu; Ioan Silviu Suciu; Marius Daniel Urzica)

JUDO<*C>

Men's 73kg<*C>

GOLD|Lee Won Hee, South Korea

SILVER|Vitaliy Makarov, Russia

BRONZE|Leandro Guilheiro, Brazil and James lumsden, Methuen

Women's 57kg<*C>

GOLD|Yvonne Boenisch, Germany

SILVER|Kye Sun Hui, North Korea

BRONZE|Deborah Gravenstijn, Netherlands and Yurieleidys Lupetey Cobas, Cuba

SHOOTING<*C>

Women's Trap<*C>

GOLD|Suzanne Balogh, Australia

SILVER|Maria Quintanal, Spain

BRONZE|Lee Bo Na, South Korea

Men's 10-meter Air Rifle<*C>

GOLD|Zhu Qinan, China

SILVER|Li Jie, China

BRONZE|Jozef Gonci, Slovakia

SWIMMING<*C>

Men<*C>

200 Freestyle<*C>

GOLD|Ian Thorpe, Australia

SILVER|Pieter van den Hoogenband, Netherlands

BRONZE|Michael Phelps, Towson, Md.

100 Backstroke<*C>

GOLD|Aaron Peirsol, Irvine, Calif.

SILVER|Markus Rogan, Austria

BRONZE|Tomomi Morita, Japan

Women<*C>

100 Backstroke<*C>

GOLD|Natalie Coughlin, Concord, Calif.

SILVER|Kirsty Coventry, Zimbabwe

BRONZE|Laure Manaudou, France

100 Breaststroke<*C>

GOLD|Luo Xuejuan, China

SILVER|Brooke Hanson, Australia

BRONZE|Leisel Jones, Australia

WEIGHTLIFTING<*C>

Women's 58kg<*C>

GOLD|Chen Yanqing, China

SILVER|Ri Song Hui, North Korea

BRONZE|Wandee Kameaim, Thailand

Men's 62kg<*C>

GOLD|Shi Zhiyong, China

SILVER|Le Maosheng, China

BRONZE|Leonidas Sampanis, Greece

Yesterday's Scores

Baseball<*C>

Taiwan 3, Australia 0

Canada 9, Italy 3

Cuba 5, Greece 4

Japan 8, Netherlands 3

Basketball<*C>

Women<*C>

New Zealand 81, South Korea 73

Japan 79, Nigeria 73

United States 80, Czech Republic 61

Spain 75, China 67

Brazil 87, Greece 75

Australia 75, Russia 56

Field Hockey<*C>

Women<*C>

Argentina 3, Japan 1

Australia 3, South Africa 0

China 2, New Zealand 0

Netherlands 3, South Korea 2

Softball<*C>

China 4, Canada 2

United States 3, Japan 0

Greece 2, Italy 1

Australia 1, Taiwan 0

Team Handball<*C>

Men<*C>

South Korea 35, Russia 32

Croatia 27, Slovenia 26

Spain 31, Iceland 23

France 29, Greece 25

Hungary 20, Brazil 19

Germany 26, Egypt 14

Volleyball<*C>

Women<*C>

Brazil 3, Kenya 0 (25-16, 29-27, 25-12)

China 3, Dominican Republic 0 (25-20, 25-16, 25-16)

Italy 3, Japan 0 (25-16, 25-13, 25-17)

South Korea 3, Greece 1 (20-25, 25-19, 25-15, 25-22)

United States 3, Germany 1 (25-22, 25-22, 22-25, 27-25)

Cuba 3, Russia 2 (26-24, 19-25, 25-27, 25-19, 15-13)

Water Polo<*C>

Women<*C>

United States 7, Hungary 6

Australia 6, Italy 5

Russia 8, Canada 6

Greece 8, Kazakhstan 6

Plenty of bass for the taking

By Dave Sartwell

Correspondent

Outdoors

Dave Sartwell

The boat came easily into the wind with the anchor line stretching out toward the Eastern Point Light House. The gray overcast skies and the constant howl out of the northwest made for a sort of dismal morning, but the weather report held promise for the day to come.

The big bass had been here by the groaner all week, so we started to work.

Bart pulled the half tub of herring into the center of the boat, got out his cutting board and started to carve the small baitfish into chunks. Within minutes he had a really good chum line floating out behind us.

While he did that, I rigged up the four rods that we would be using. Attaching about two feet of 50-pound test mono to the small barrel swivel at the terminal end of the line, I then used a clinch knot to tie on a small but rugged treble hook. Bart handed me a big chunk of bait, and I buried the hooks deep into the flesh.

The other three rods were similarly rigged. On one we put weight just in front of the swivel to get the herring down into the water column. We then tossed them out one at a time and let the bait drift on out behind us.

The chunks dropped just beneath the surface of the ocean, but were not down more than a few feet because the tidal current kept them active. The weighted line slipped deeper to about 20 feet. We let the spools run until the lines were out at varying lengths from 40 to 70 yards from the boat. Setting the reels, we now had four baits trailing the boat at different depths and distances.

All the while, Bart had kept up a steady line of herring chunks out the back of the boat. The oil of the chopped bait could be seen for a few hundred yards. We could only hope that the ability of the big stripers to smell bait over long distances would bring them to the feeding lane. Once there, we wanted them to follow it back to our hooked baits.

Within 30 minutes, one of the port rods dipped, and the reel began to spin. We had the brake set really soft so that the fish would take the bait deep before it felt the sting of the barb. With a quick twist the drag was set hard, and the rod pumped vigorously at least twice. Bart knew what to do.

The hook was set, and the fight was on.

I grabbed the other poles one at a time and reeled for all I was worth. We wanted to get the other lines out of the water as soon as possible to lessen the chance of tangles. Soon, all there was behind our boat was the Boston skyline, a bent pole and a sweating fisherman.

Bart leaned into the fish, and the pole bent into a satisfying arc. At first the fish had his way. Line went screaming out over the transom as the brake was overcome by the tremendous power of this huge fellow below. There was a great amount of tension on the line, but not so much as to break it.

The young fisherman was wise beyond his years. He kept the pressure on the fish without overwhelming his equipment. He let the fish run, let him waggle his head and thrash about, let him use up all of his energy by pulling against a line that ran when he jerked but worked back when he rested.

And, he was patient.

After about 15 minutes the big fish began to tire. Slowly the line began to spool back on the reel. Although the fish had never sounded, it did come to the surface and stay there. Now it was just a matter of getting him to the boat. Bart has fished enough to realize that it is here that many fishermen lose the battle. When a big fish sees the boat he will often make a sudden run. If the line or brake is set too hard, the fish can use his weight to roll on the line and break it.

This fish, however, was done. He slid in next to the boat. I reached over and caught him by the lower lip and slid him up over the side of the boat. What a monster.

Bart got out the measuring tape and ran it along the heaving side of the big linesider. Forty-three inches. We picked him up, took a picture or two and slid him into the barrel. In minutes we had re-baited, set out the lines and were adding to the chum line.

Tuna Hunter, a big boat near us, had a stern full of people regularly pulling in fish. From another boat a hundred yards to the west of us came the exited shouts of a successful angler. We watched as one fellow pulled in a fish that looked to be at least 35 inches long.

This time one of the starboard lines went off. The same struggle as before ensued. This time we were not so lucky. First he was there, and then he was gone. I reeled in the line and discovered I must have made a mistake at the knot when I tied it on before. The very tip of the line had a bunch of kinks in it, indicating that the line had pulled through the eye of the hook. My young friend appropriately made a bunch of derogatory comments that I had earned.

We fished away the morning. The wind died down, and the surface of the water pancaked out. We brought three more fish in over the transom that were all over 40 inches and let them go. A bluefish whacked a bait and then cut a line. We were lucky in that the dogfish stayed away.

I caught a seagull that swooped down and plucked up one of our baits as it was spooling out the back of the boat. Bart reeled him in and laughed as this big-winged bird kicked the stuffing out of me as I tried to get the hook out of his beak.

At 3 p.m., Bart kicked the big engine to life. We hauled in the anchor and headed toward the harbor. The ride under the three bridges and then up the Mill River was wonderfully uneventful. We filleted the fish we had kept, cleaned up the boat and washed down our gear.

Another great day on Cape Ann.

PGA Tour Money Leaders

Through Aug. 15<*C>

Trn Money

1. Vijay Singh 22 $6,938,566

2. Phil Mickelson 17 $5,619,288

3. Ernie Els 13 $4,398,275

4. Tiger Woods 15 $3,569,972

5. Adam Scott 12 $3,095,384

6. Stephen Ames 21 $2,901,679

7. Davis Love III 18 $2,730,092

8. Sergio Garcia 15 $2,728,082

9. Todd Hamilton 23 $2,689,634

10. Stuart Appleby 19 $2,589,943

11. Retief Goosen 13 $2,547,323

12. Stewart Cink 22 $2,448,883

13. Chris DiMarco 21 $2,347,094

14. Steve Flesch 23 $2,217,098

15. Chad Campbell 22 $2,146,734

16. John Daly 16 $2,108,007

17. Mark Hensby 21 $2,046,041

18. Mike Weir 17 $1,972,964

19. Scott Verplank 18 $1,941,477

20. K.J. Choi 19 $1,777,275

21. Shigeki Maruyama 20 $1,775,482

22. Rory Sabbatini 22 $1,717,697

23. Jay Haas 18 $1,692,376

24. Carlos Franco 19 $1,681,574

25. Kenny Perry 19 $1,602,103

26. Jonathan Kaye 20 $1,574,020

27. Jerry Kelly 20 $1,548,449

28. Zach Johnson 22 $1,523,655

29. Jeff Maggert 18 $1,512,582

30. Darren Clarke 13 $1,490,519

31. Rod Pampling 19 $1,486,755

32. Luke Donald 18 $1,454,434

33. David Toms 17 $1,429,718

34. Bo Van Pelt 22 $1,389,519

35. Charles Howell III 22 $1,366,026

36. Ted Purdy 24 $1,313,054

37. Fred Couples 13 $1,297,109

38. Justin Leonard 19 $1,292,039

39. Arron Oberholser 16 $1,286,212

40. Scott Hoch 17 $1,239,360

41. Joey Sindelar 22 $1,217,469

42. Craig Parry 12 $1,193,268

43. Tim Herron 20 $1,188,413

44. Chris Riley 19 $1,181,669

45. Duffy Waldorf 19 $1,174,705

46. Fred Funk 21 $1,140,895

47. Kirk Triplett 18 $1,131,046

48. Alex Cejka 20 $1,120,218

49. Fredrik Jacobson 16 $1,117,637

50. Robert Allenby 19 $1,114,899

51. Steve Lowery 21 $1,093,483

52. Harrison Frazar 19 $1,084,976

53. Geoff Ogilvy 21 $1,058,410

54. Tom Pernice, Jr. 23 $1,054,014

55. Skip Kendall 22 $1,043,747

56. Frank Lickliter II 20 $1,041,755

57. Stephen Leaney 19 $1,026,297

58. Heath Slocum 23 $917,397

59. Tim Petrovic 23 $897,772

60. Joe Ogilvie 24 $888,388

61. Justin Rose 14 $884,581

62. Brian Bateman 19 $873,662

63. Bernhard Langer 12 $870,339

64. Shaun Micheel 19 $841,588

65. Jesper Parnevik 16 $823,823

66. Bob Estes 18 $818,013

67. Ben Crane 19 $817,832

68. Dudley Hart 16 $810,342

69. Kevin Sutherland 20 $790,184

70. Jeff Sluman 22 $780,195

71. Carl Pettersson 22 $775,536

72. Patrick Sheehan 25 $771,119

73. Jonathan Byrd 19 $766,753

74. John Huston 16 $766,063

75. Nick Price 12 $755,336

76. Brett Quigley 22 $740,035

77. Loren Roberts 17 $735,122

78. Tom Byrum 20 $714,265

79. Briny Baird 23 $696,444

80. Bob Tway 20 $683,788

81. Robert Damron 20 $660,278

82. Joe Durant 20 $652,695

83. Hidemichi Tanaka 20 $640,481

84. Brad Faxon 20 $639,103

85. Kevin Na 23 $633,424

86. Corey Pavin 16 $614,791

87. Robert Gamez 23 $606,205

88. Jose Coceres 12 $601,059

89. J.L. Lewis 23 $589,017

90. Notah Begay III 22 $583,537

91. Woody Austin 21 $579,368

92. Aaron Baddeley 20 $574,979

93. Tim Clark 17 $572,031

94. Lee Janzen 18 $571,066

95. Paul Azinger 17 $568,768

96. Mathias Gronberg 22 $565,014

97. Peter Lonard 17 $559,189

98. John Senden 21 $545,934

99. Mark Calcavecchia 16 $529,664

100. J.J. Henry 21 $528,572

101. Neal Lancaster 24 $525,822

102. Scott Hend 20 $507,751

103. Mark O'Meara 15 $506,116

104. Hank Kuehne 21 $500,545

105. Dennis Paulson 16 $498,655

106. Brian Gay 21 $487,077

107. John E. Morgan 9 $487,032

108. Scott McCarron 21 $483,970

109. Tom Lehman 14 $478,298

110. Craig Bowden 21 $474,128

111. Olin Browne 21 $468,709

112. Jim Furyk 7 $464,300

113. Vaughn Taylor 19 $459,590

114. Todd Fischer 24 $455,572

115. Bob Burns 21 $453,245

116. Paul Stankowski 14 $442,872

117. Craig Barlow 17 $440,959

118. Matt Gogel 19 $438,507

119. Brenden Pappas 25 $426,864

120. John Riegger 17 $423,263

121. Ben Curtis 16 $419,495

122. Kent Jones 22 $418,791

123. Billy Andrade 22 $396,677

124. Daniel Chopra 23 $391,181

125. Ryan Palmer 23 $385,878

Golf

PGA Tour Leaders

Through Aug. 15<*C>

Scoring Average<*C>

1, Phil Mickelson, 68.65. 2, Ernie Els, 68.69. 3, Vijay Singh, 69.08. 4, Tiger Woods, 69.28. 5, Retief Goosen, 69.50. 6, Scott Verplank, 69.66. 7, Stephen Ames, 69.67. 8, Sergio Garcia, 69.89. 9 (tie), Jay Haas and Adam Scott, 69.91.

Driving Distance<*C>

1, Hank Kuehne, 312.8. 2, Scott Hend, 312.6. 3, John Daly, 305.4. 4, Geoff Ogilvy, 304.3. 5, Tiger Woods, 302.3. 6, Davis Love III, 302.0. 7 (tie), Mike Heinen and Lucas Glover, 300.8. 9, Vijay Singh, 300.7. 10, 2 tied with 300.2.

Driving Accuracy Percentage<*C>

1, Fred Funk, 79.3%. 2, Joe Durant, 75.1%. 3, Craig Bowden, 74.9%. 4, Scott Verplank, 74.8%. 5, Tom Byrum, 73.8%. 6, Olin Browne, 72.9%. 7, Kirk Triplett, 72.5%. 8, Jose Coceres, 72.2%. 9, Heath Slocum, 71.8%. 10, John Cook, 71.5%.

Greens in Regulation Pct.<*C>

1, Vijay Singh, 72.7%. 2, Joe Durant, 71.5%. 3, Chris Smith, 70.7%. 4, Sergio Garcia, 70.4%. 5, Briny Baird, 70.3%. 6 (tie), Phil Mickelson and Carlos Franco, 70.2%. 8, John Senden, 69.6%. 9 (tie), Tom Lehman and Stephen Ames, 69.0%.

Total Driving<*C>

1 (tie), Joe Durant and Jeff Brehaut, 79. 3, Lucas Glover, 83. 4, Joey Sindelar, 97. 5, Retief Goosen, 105. 6, Brian Bateman, 106. 7, Zach Johnson, 107. 8 (tie), Phil Mickelson and Geoff Ogilvy, 108. 10, Jonathan Kaye, 109.

Putting Average<*C>

1 (tie), Tiger Woods and Stewart Cink, 1.723. 3 (tie), Nick Price and Greg Chalmers, 1.729. 5, John Daly, 1.732. 6, Ernie Els, 1.733. 7 (tie), Phil Mickelson and Jose Coceres, 1.734. 9, Darren Clarke, 1.736. 10, Fredrik Jacobson, 1.737.

Birdie Average<*C>

1, Phil Mickelson, 4.51. 2, Tiger Woods, 4.32. 3, Vijay Singh, 4.24. 4, Ernie Els, 4.17. 5, Adam Scott, 4.11. 6, Stephen Ames, 4.10. 7, John Daly, 4.07. 8, Fredrik Jacobson, 4.00. 9, Fred Couples, 3.95. 10, Darren Clarke, 3.92.

Eagles (Holes per)<*C>

1, Nick Price, 84.0. 2, Vaughn Taylor, 88.4. 3, Mike Heinen, 95.1. 4, John Daly, 96.5. 5, Paul Stankowski, 96.8. 6, Geoff Ogilvy, 103.5. 7, Harrison Frazar, 108.0. 8, Vijay Singh, 113.5. 9, Arron Oberholser, 114.8. 10, John Senden, 116.2.

Sand Save Percentage<*C>

1, Len Mattiace, 66.0%. 2, Jose Coceres, 64.8%. 3, Dan Forsman, 63.7%. 4, Greg Chalmers, 62.2%. 5, Dennis Paulson, 61.6%. 6, Geoff Ogilvy, 61.1%. 7, Hank Kuehne, 61.0%. 8, Rod Pampling, 60.4%. 9, Phil Mickelson, 58.8%. 10, 2 tied with 58.4%.

All-Around Ranking<*C>

1, Phil Mickelson, 280. 2 (tie), Stephen Ames and Retief Goosen, 281. 4, Geoff Ogilvy, 289. 5, Vijay Singh, 291. 6, John Daly, 300. 7, Davis Love III, 368. 8 (tie), Tiger Woods and Stewart Cink, 375. 10, Ernie Els, 408.

Showing resolve, Manchester fights back to even series

By Dom Nicastro

Staff writer

MANCHESTER -- Ryan Lumsden discovered the beauty of a best-of-five championship baseball series. You can compensate from early failings with your next performance.

Lumsden, Manchester's left-handed reliever who coughed up the game-winning homer in Game 1, slammed the door on Rockport's mini comeback from a six-run hole in the last inning in Game 2 of the Intertown Baseball League championship series at Joseph M. Hyland Field last night.

He left the tying run in the on-deck circle, striking out two batters to give the Mariners a 12-8 victory over Rockport to even the series at one.

Under a steady rain that fell the last half hour of the game, Lumsden relieved starter Steve Stout with no outs, the bases loaded and a 12-7 lead. He forced leadoff hitter Mike Anderson to ground out then got Adam Orlando and Brent Currier -- two of the most dangerous hitters in the ITL -- swinging on strikes to end it.

It was Orlando who beat Lumsden and Manchester in Game 1 with his extra-inning walkoff home run, just after Anderson reached with a single.

"Ryan said whenever we needed him he was ready to go again," Manchester player/coach Bryan Lafata said. "He had to face the top of the order, and you had the rain coming down. It was a tough situation."

Last night, the Mariners pushed back each time Rockport threw a jab. The Mariners' six-run first inning -- thanks to homers at the tiny park by Luke Stone, Tom Van Note and Joe Bertolino -- answered Orlando's two-run homer in the top.

And when Rockport came back from that 6-2 deficit, capped off by Dave Lindsay' RBI groundout in the fifth that tied it at six, Manchester showed resolve with six runs in the bottom of the fifth that put the game away.

It took only two hits because Orlando, the right-handed starter who had allowed one baserunner the previous three innings, lost his control. He walked five, three with the bases loaded, before giving way to Currier, who walked in the last Mariners' run.

Rockport was short on relief and hoped Orlando could climb out on his own, coach Marc Bouchie said.

"Being Game 2, we weren't going to throw someone who might start a game later," Bouchie said.

In the last inning, Rockport got the first four batters on against starter Stout. He had pitched the kind of game that's made many a Mariner a winner at Hyland Field, where the measuring distance from home plate to the fence at many points is no greater than some Senior Little League parks. Stout walked only three, and two of the three homers he allowed -- Scott Bouchie and Maki -- were solo jobs.

His defense pitched in with only one error: in the third, catcher Dave Buckley's attempt to catch Chris Bouchie sleeping at third base was low and sailed past third baseman Lafata. Bouchie, who was plenty awake last night (he was 4-for-4 with two runs), scored the fifth Townie run on the play.

"Stout stays composed," Lafata said. "He has complete confidence out there and knows he's got a good defense behind him."

And a reliever who can regroup after a tough appearance in Game 1 to get the save in Game 2.

"To come back and shut us down like that," coach Bouchie said of Lumsden, "he gets the credit for them."

ITL Baseball Finals

Game 2: Manchester 12, Rockport 8

at Joseph M. Hyland Field, Rockport <*C>

Rockport: Mike Anderson 2b 4-1-2; Adam Orlando p/cf 5-1-2; Brent Currier c 5-0-1; Scott Bouchie 3b 4-1-1; Christian Maki 1b 3-2-1; Chris Bouchie cf 4-2-4; Dave Lindsay rf 3-1-1; Jeremy Spittle lf/c 3-0-1; Mike Bertolino ss 3-0-1. Totals 34-8-13.

Manchester: Luke Stone 2b 3-1-1; Bryan Lafata ss/3b 2-1-1; Chris Lamothe 1b 4-2-1; Nathan Bertolino ss 2-2-0; Tom Van Note lf 3-1-1; Ty Haskell lf 1-0-0; Dave Buckley c 2-2-1; Bob Whynott ph 1-0-0; Joe Bertolino dh 3-2-2; Ian Buckley ph 1-0-0; Ryan Lumsden rf/p 1-1-0; Corey Hildonen cf 3-0-0; Mike Gibbon lf 0-0-0; Steve Stout p 0-0-0. Totals 25-12-7.

Rockport (18-11): 203 010 2 -- 8

Manchester (16-11-1): 600 060 x -- 12

WP: Stout; LP: Orlando

Tennis

Tennis Leaders

ATP<*C>

Through Aug. 15<*C>

Money<*C>

1, Roger Federer, $3,753,222. 2, Andy Roddick, $1,918,940. 3, Guillermo Coria, $1,607,155. 4, Gaston Gaudio, $1,484,589. 5, Carlos Moya, $1,193,339. 6, Lleyton Hewitt, $1,106,221. 7, Tim Henman, $952,577. 8, Marat Safin, $878,133. 9, Andre Agassi,

$844,254. 10, Sebastien Grosjean, $725,795.

Champions Race<*C>

1. Roger Federer, 882. 2. Andy Roddick, 597. 3. Guillermo Coria, 480. 4. Carlos Moya, 464. 5. Lleyton Hewitt, 401. 6. Gaston Gaudio, 376. 7. Tim Henman, 341. 8. Marat Safin, 312. 9. Andre Agassi, 283.

10. David Nalbandian, 253.

Entry System Rankings<*C>

1, Roger Federer, 5910. 2, Andy Roddick, 4520. 3, Guillermo Coria, 3070. 4, Carlos Moya, 2745. 5, Tim Henman, 2380. 6, Andre Agassi, 2265. 7, Juan Carlos Ferrero, 2260. 8, Lleyton Hewitt,

2255. 9, David Nalbandian, 1990. 10, Gaston Gaudio, 1955.

WTA<*C>

Through Aug. 15<*C>

Money<*C>

1, Anastasia Myskina, $1,450,766. 2, Justine Henin-Hardenne, $1,361,575. 3, Lindsay Davenport, $1,302,924. 4, Maria Sharapova, $1,217,315. 5, Amelie Mauresmo, $1,148,192. 6, Serena Williams, $1,105,654. 7, Paola Suarez, $938,676. 8, Elena Dementieva, $875,388. 9, Svetlana Kuznetsova, $738,467. 10, Venus Williams,

$691,197.

Rankings<*C>

1, Justine Henin-Hardenne, 4515. 2, Amelie Mauresmo, 4332. 3, Anastasia Myskina, 4169. 4, Lindsay Davenport, 4044.

5, Kim Clijsters, 3565. 6, Elena Dementieva, 2944. 7, Jennifer Capriati, 2689. 8, Maria Sharapova, 2462. 9, Vera Zvonareva, 2031.

10, Svetlana Kuznetsova, 2003.

Championship Points<*C>

1, Lindsay Davenport, 3,336. 2, Amelie Mauresmo, 2,846. 3, Anastasia Myskina, 2,745. 4, Justine Henin-Hardenne, 2,321. 5, Serena Williams, 1,995. 6, Maria Sharapova, 1,991. 7, Venus Williams, 1,952. 8, Svetlana Kuznetsova, 1,822. 9, Elena Dementieva, 1,794. 10, Vera Zvonareva, 1,742.

By John Tomase

STAFF WRITER

BOSTON | Kevin Millar awaited new Red Sox second baseman Doug Mientkiewicz as he trotted off the field after turning a 4-3 double play in the first inning last night.

"Were your eyes open?" Millar asked.

Mientkiewicz answered affirmatively, then endured a round of ribbing from pretty much everyone in the dugout. But they weren't laughing after the game.

Mientkiewicz had just made the unorthodox shift from first to second flawlessly. He turned the aforementioned sparkling double play in the first, got steamrolled by Carlos Delgado in the second, and otherwise had an uneventful night on a rain-slicked field in Boston's 8-4 victory over the Blue Jays.

"Those weren't exactly the conditions I wanted to play my first game at second base under," Mientkiewicz said. "The ball was like a bar of soap. I'm thankful I didn't have to make too many throws."

Players did double, triple and quadruple takes at the lineup card, which showed Mientkiewicz batting ninth with a "4" next to his name instead of his customary "3."

It was certainly a head scratcher at first glance. With sinkerballing Derek Lowe pitching and infielder Ricky Gutierrez healthy, it seemed counterintuitive to play a first baseman in a spot where he'd seen exactly one inning of work in his career. (For the record, that's about a dozen fewer than Hall of Fame pitcher Christy Mathewson played at first for the Giants in 1902.)

But with third baseman Kevin Youkilis sidelined by a sprained ankle and "regular" second baseman Bill Mueller shifting back, Francona rolled the dice to get another left-handed bat in the lineup against Blue Jays starter Justin Miller.

In addition to showing a distinct lack of confidence in Gutierrez, the move demonstrated just how highly Francona thinks of Mientkiewicz.

"We're not going to do it every game the rest of the year," Francona said. "We just did it to win tonight's game."

Mientkiewicz made his presence felt immediately. With Orlando Hudson on first following a one-out single, Vernon Wells chopped one to the right of second.

Mientkiewicz ranged up the middle, snared the short hop on the bag, whirled and fired to first for the 4-3 double play. The fans cheered in disbelief and Mientkiewicz's teammates gathered on the top step of the dugout to meet him.

"Baseball is a funny game," said Red Sox outfielder Dave Roberts. "The ball always has a way of finding you. Honestly, right there, that set the tone for the entire game, it really did. That was the key play that led to Derek's confidence.

"Obviously a ground ball pitcher sees a lineup with a first baseman playing second base, he's a bit skeptical. But for Dougie to make that play right there gives everyone | particularly Derek Lowe | a big sigh of relief."

Lowe responded by giving Mientkiewicz a slight wink and a smile. That's all the out-of-position player needed.

"It put me at ease," Mientkiewicz said. "It's like back when you're a kid. It reminds you it's a game, do the best you can, and don't screw this thing up."

Mientkiewicz wasn't done. With Carlos Delgado on first in the second, Frank Catalanotto grounded one Mientkiewicz's way. He fielded it with Delgado bearing down on him, then held onto the ball as Delgado plowed him over with a forearm shiver.

Mientkiewicz sprang to his feet and shouted in Delgado's face, but the noted pacifist returned to Toronto's dugout before the two could tangle.

"I didn't appreciate that," Mientkiewicz said. "I've played against Carlos for a long time. On the one hand, he played the game the way it's supposed to be played. He played hard, nothing dirty about it. But on the other hand, he knows I'm a first baseman playing second for the first time and he took advantage of it.

"Let's put it this way | I wouldn't do that to a guy playing his first game at second base."

Lowe responded in the seventh by hitting Delgado in the backside with obvious intent, earning a warning to both dugouts. Mientkiewicz applauded the move.

"There's no doubt that kind of thing brings a club together when you stick up for one of your own," Mientkiewicz said. "I was actually telling him not to take himself out of the game. 'It's part of the game. Don't do it.' But he stuck up for me."

While Mientkiewicz appeared relieved the move went off without a hitch, it's not a switch he'd relish making again.

"We used to talk about it in Minnesota," he said. "You put somebody out there one day, it's fine. Put somebody out there two or three days in a row, funny things start to happen. I'm a first baseman. I run like a first baseman. Hopefully these guys get healthy and we'll be at full strength soon."

Who knows what tonight's game will bring. Youkilis will likely still be sidelined. Millar offered a possible lineup:

"Manny's catching, Schilling's playing left, and I'm pitching."

Transactions

BASEBALL<*C>

American League<*C>

MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL--Announced Chicago Cubs RHP Kerry Wood's five-game suspension and fine for his behavior in an April game were upheld. Suspended Chicago White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen two games and fined him an undisclosed amount for his comments and actions directed at umpire Hunter Wendelstedt during an Aug. 9 game.

DETROIT TIGERS--Agreed to terms with RHP Eric Beattie.

NEW YORK YANKEES--Signed OF Shane Spencer to a minor league contract.

TEXAS RANGERS--Activated RHP Mickey Callaway from the 15-day DL. Placed INF Herbert Perry on the 15-day DL.

National League<*C>

CINCINNATI REDS--Signed LHP Damian Moss to a minor-league contract.

MONTREAL EXPOS--Recalled RHP Francis Beltran from Edmonton of the PCL.

ST. LOUIS CARDINALS--Optioned OF Ray Lankford to Memphis of the PCL.

SAN DIEGO PADRES--Placed C Miguel Ojeda on the 15-day DL. Recalled C Humberto Quintero from Portland of the PCL.

BASKETBALL<*C>

National Basketball Association<*C>

BOSTON CELTICS--Signed F Tom Gugliotta.

CHARLOTTE BOBCATS--Traded C Predrag Drobnjak to the Atlanta Hawks for a 2005 second-round draft pick.

ORLANDO MAGIC--Signed C Mario Kasun.

Women's National Basketball Association<*C>

CHARLOTTE STING--Signed G Jia Perkins.

FOOTBALL<*C>

National Football League<*C>

ATLANTA FALCONS--Placed DE Will Overstreet on injured reserve.

CHICAGO BEARS--Waived DT Dan Rumishek. Signed LS Brian Pare.

DALLAS COWBOYS--Released OL Tango McCauley, DE Kevin Emanuel and OT Darrick Sanders.

DENVER BRONCOS--Waived CB Reggie Stephens.

HOUSTON TEXANS--Signed RB Adam Matthews and RB KaRon Coleman. Waived TE Kevin Zureki and TE Deitan Dubuc. Placed RB Jason Anderson on injured reserve.

MIAMI DOLPHINS--Signed WR Antonio Freeman to a one-year contract and G Greg Jerman to a one-year contract extension. Placed S Chris Akins on injured reserve. Waived-injured CB Alphonso Roundtree.

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS--Signed TE Benjamin Watson to a six-year contract.

NEW YORK JETS--Signed CB Andrew Davison.

PHILADELPHIA EAGLES--Placed RB Bruce Perry on injured reserve. Waived OL Regis Crawford.

SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS--Waived WR Wendall Williams. Signed FB Brian Johnson.

WASHINGTON REDSKINS--Signed OT Marcus Spriggs. Waived OT Brandon Winey.

HOCKEY<*C>

National Hockey League<*C>

CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS--Re-signed D Bryan Berard to a one-year contract.

DETROIT RED WINGS--Signed LW Peter Vandermeer to a one-year contract.

EDMONTON OILERS--Signed F Nate DiCasmirro and F Ed Caron to two-year contracts, and F Mike Bishai to a one-year contract.

NEW YORK ISLANDERS--Signed D Vince Macri.

TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING--Reacquired C Vaclav Prospal from the Anaheim Mighty Ducks for a 2005 second-round draft pick.

SOCCER<*C>

Major League Soccer<*C>

LOS ANGELES GALAXY--Fired Sigi Schmid, coach.

COLLEGE<*C>

BIG SOUTH CONFERENCE--Named Mark Simpson director of public relations.

AUBURN--Named Jack Byerley assistant softball coach.

CALVIN--Announced the resignation of Jeff Pettinga, baseball coach. Named Jim Timmer Jr. baseball coach.

DAVIDSON--Named Heather Rennebohm assistant swimming coach.

FREDONIA STATE--Named Matt Palisin baseball coach and assistant sports information director, and Nolan Swanson men's and women's cross-country coach and assistant track and field coach.

KEENE STATE--Named Al Rozzi men's and women's swim coach.

IONA--Named Jen Dufek men's and women's rowing coach and Rebecca Gorthy assistant trainer.

MIDDLE TENNESSEE--Named Matt Woodley men's assistant basketball coach and Leigh Podlesny softball coach.

MILLSAPS--Announced the resignation of Romaro Miller, quarterbacks coach, to play with Toronto of the Canadian Football League. Named Fred McNair quarterbacks coach.

OAKLAND--Named Jennifer Perkins women's assistant soccer coach.

OHIO STATE--Named William Lorenz women's assistant gymnastics coach.

PACIFIC--Named Sara Hayes assistant softball coach. Promoted Cindy Ball to full-time assistant softball coach.

SAN DIEGO STATE--Named Mark Hughes men's assistant basketball coach.

TODAY

MLL Lacrosse | Boston at Philadelphia (ESPN2)<\t>4 p.m.

Pro Baseball | Blue Jays at Red Sox (NESN)<\t>7 p.m.

L.L. Softball | World Series Semifinal (ESPN2)<\t>7 p.m.

L.L. Softball | World Series Semifinal (ESPN2)<\t>9:30 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, AUG. 18

Golf | U.S. Amateur (ESPN2)<\t>1 p.m.

Pro Baseball | Expos at Giants (ESPN)<\t>3:30 p.m.

Pro Baseball | Blue Jays at Red Sox (NESN)<\t>7 p.m.

Pro Baseball | Yankees at Twins (ESPN)<\t>8 p.m.

Soccer | U.S. at Jamaica (ESPN2)<\t>7 p.m.

Pro Baseball | Braves at Padres (ESPN2)<\t>10 p.m.

2004 Under-18 Junior World Cup for U.S.

Staff report

2004 Under-18 Junior World Cup

Game Location

USA 4, Finland 1 Hodonin, Czech Republic

USA 3, Russia 2 Breclav, Czech Republic

Czech Rep. 5, USA 1 Hodonin, Czech Republic

Canada 4, USA 0 Piestany, Slovakia

Sweden 3, USA 0 Piestany, Slovakia

American politics needs a reality check

Now might be a good time for all of us spineless, wishy washy, no-account, leftist Bush whackers to step back, take a deep breath and relax, even if just for an hour or two.

The same could be said for the liberals' equally vociferous, though decidedly more intemperate, counterparts on the right. These people also need to lighten up. Already their political blood pressure has soared well past the boiling point, and there's still two months left before their man either packs up and heads back to Texas or stays on in Washington for a second term.

What both groups now desperately need is a reality check. Liberals accuse George W. Bush of every outrage from stealing the last election to being a heartless warmonger, while the conservatives, not to be outdone, blame people like me for everything from gum disease to the sad decline of the white, Anglo-Saxon, Protestant male.

Actually, none of these or any other of the nation's problems can be laid on the doorstep of any one political party. The Democrats are just as capable of fouling things up as the Republicans, and vice versa. So what's with all the bickering and childish mud-slinging every four years?

At the root of all our troubles is power, something that every tribe and nation from the earliest of days has proven more than willing to do anything, even kill, to attain.

We Americans like to think it's only power-crazed regimes like the Bolsheviks, the Nazis and the Baath Party of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein that are guilty of torture, murder and even genocide.

But in truth, even we, the self-proclaimed champions of liberty, justice and equality, have on more than one occasion clearly demonstrated our ability to err on the side of evil while in the pursuit and exercise of power, both home and abroad.

Though a known despot and sadistic killer, Saddam was kept on the U.S. payroll for years. That is, until he invaded neighboring Kuwait without first seeking Washington's approval. But the former Iraqi strongman is only one of scores of brutal dictators that Republicans and Democrats alike have either tacitly or enthusiastically supported during the last eight decades.

While on the subject of history, what about our own behavior right here at home since gaining our freedom from England 228 years ago? Wasn't it a fairly sizeable chunk of real estate now called Texas that earlier Americans took by force from Mexico?

And what of that vast expanse of land that stretches all the way from nearby Maine to distant California? Wasn't our entire continent once home to a vast population of Native Americans? What happened to those people? Did they migrate to Canada? Or did they all simply vanish into thin air?

Let's never forget that there was a time in America when people were brought to this country in chains and forced to labor as slaves, just like in some god-awful horror movie. Many Americans actually believe things like that happen only in places like Nazi Germany, Siberia or North Korea.

But no, such atrocities happened here, as did the naked exploitation of America's first few waves of late-19th and early-20th century immigrants, many of whom -- including countless thousands of children -- put in brutal 12-hour shifts, seven days a week, until finally the workers themselves began standing up to challenge the absolute authority of the wealthy and powerful factory owners who, by then, had come to occupy a central position in the nation's newly-emerged industrial ruling class.

To overlook such inhumane and barbaric treatment of one's fellow man is to be consumed by the quest to gain advantage over others, no matter the cost. As such corruption is a common affliction among individual human beings, so too can it infect the dealings of entire societies and nations.

There are plenty of not-so-honorable reasons why Washington has and will continue doing business with ruthless dictators and oppressive regimes on every continent of the globe. When the Eisenhower administration teamed up with the government of Winston Churchill to overthrow the Arab world's first democratically elected chief of state, it was because Iran's new leader had begun to consider nationalizing his country's petroleum industry.

At the time, approximately 90 percent of the profits from the extraction, refinement and sale of Iranian oil was flowing straight into the coffers of the post-colonial, oil-dependent nations of the West, most notably Middle East power broker England.

What if the shoe was on the other foot? What if America was the weaker, Third World country and the Arab nations the powerful, military-industrial giant that arrived on these shores to dominate our internal affairs, oppress our people and take possession of our natural resources? Is it at least possible that I, too, might become a terrorist?

What is certain is that there will be no end to anyone's problems until man's seemingly insatiable lust for power has been replaced by an even greater commitment to serve the common needs of all humanity, a radical though lofty ideal, no doubt, but one that if further ignored will only bring about even greater hardship and suffering for people throughout today's troubled world.

To date, neither the conservative Republicans nor the liberal Democrats have demonstrated either the courage or the vision needed to take on this important challenge. Consequently, both parties can be counted on to continue stumbling along while the quality of life in this country and most other parts of the world continues going straight down the tubes.

Jim Munn is a Gloucester Daily Times columnist.

City must communicate with lot's potential buyers

It is considered one of Gloucester's prime waterfront parcels, sitting between the Building Center and the Gloucester House restaurant.

But for much of the past 50 years, it has sat vacant. For close to 20 years, the property known as I-4, C-2 has been a two-acre, weed-infested eyesore, after Boston real estate developer Jeffrey Cohen's unsuccessful effort to build a shopping complex with underground parking.

Now comes hope that the property may finally be put to productive use.

Cohen finally gave up his development plans earlier this year, after an appeals court rejected his last attempt to reverse the denial of a needed environmental license, and said he intends to sell the land. One of the major hurdles to development was not so much environmental problems, but the fact that Cohen couldn't get clear access to the waterfront across a sliver of land owned by the semi-autonomous Gloucester Redevelopment Authority.

Mayor John Bell says he now intends to remove that impediment by bringing that small parcel under the control of the city, through the Waterways Board. That would allow Cohen to sell the land to a buyer who would then have waterfront access and only need to deal with the city, rather than the redevelopment authority as well.

Bell has suggested that the site could be an ideal regional headquarters for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a federal agency that years ago outgrew its current location in the Blackburn Industrial Park and is looking for new space.

Several other local landlords are courting NOAA, however, and the major goal is to keep the agency somewhere in Gloucester. The major goal for I-4, C-2 should be to clear the impediments to some kind of appropriate development.

That includes not only waterfront access, but a clear message from the city about what sort of development will be welcome there. Previous mayors and some area businesses opposed Cohen's plan, arguing that the land should be devoted to marine use. NOAA would certainly fit that definition. But any potential buyer needs to know what is possible.

In addition to laudable efforts to clear away legal entanglements from development, Bell and his administration need to make sure a new owner will not be hamstrung for another 20 years.

r>

SJC makes an overdue and welcome change

A unanimous ruling by the state's highest court to allow the names, photos and addresses of Level 3 sex offenders to be posted on the Internet is both welcome and overdue. Most other states already allow it | Massachusetts becomes the 43rd state to do so.

The Supreme Judicial Court, rejecting a suit brought by public defenders on behalf of the offenders, ruled that the public's right to know the whereabouts of sex offenders who are deemed the most likely to re-offend outweighs those offenders' right to privacy.

As the court said, "We do not live in a Utopian society."

Indeed, there are already too many tragic stories, some of them murders, of victims attacked by convicted sex offenders who have been released after serving prison sentences. This is no surprise to experts, who say this is a class of offenders who are likely to strike again. The right to privacy does not come without any responsibility, and these people have forfeited the right to complete privacy.

A measure of the public's concern about the issue was evident when the list was posted online. The site was overwhelmed with people checking the list.

Sex offenders, like all convicted criminals, deserve the chance to rebuild their lives. But that chance should not be free of any scrutiny. The court was correct to let the public restrict their chances of adding to their list of victims.

Letters to the editor

Alcohol sales could help

reinvigorate economy

To the editor:

I live in Rockport and hope that my fellow residents will join me Sept. 13 at the Town Meeting to vote for the controlled sale of alcohol in Rockport's restaurants and inns. This would be good for the town and its economy, for job creation and for the quality of life for all residents of Rockport.

Wouldn't it be nice to see our stores and restaurants open and our inns more occupied for a longer season? Wouldn't it be a positive thing for the community if new jobs are created, both full-time and part-time, and businesses open catering to the needs of the residents? Why should we have to leave town to shop, to eat, to enjoy leisure time, when we could very well do it right here?

Selling beer, wine and other alcoholic beverages won't make this happen by itself, but it will help fill the void and help to reinvigorate Rockport. We, the residents, have an obligation and a duty to expend energy to move the town forward in a planned and positive way, ensuring its growth and prosperity for future generations. Remaining stagnate will not accomplish that goal.

The proposal to go before Town Meeting is a "home rule" petition. That means that we, the citizens, are in control. We write the rules based on what's best for our town. Passing the warrant article at Town Meeting moves the process to the state Legislature. Once acted upon there, the governor signs it, and the act comes back to the town for a final vote by us, the Rockport citizens, at the ballot box next March.

This is a great opportunity for Rockport and Rockporters, who should show up at the public forum at the high school on Sept. 8, and at the Town Meeting on Sept. 13, and vote to start the process of revitalizing our town and re-invigorating its economy for the good of all.

Peter W. Beacham

Quarry Run, Rockport

Church's history

raises skepticism

To the editor:

I enjoyed Rabbi Geller's editorial piece in last Wednesday's edition of the Gloucester Daily Times. His column made some excellent points. Now more than ever it is clear that all faiths that preach nonviolence must join in opposition of any fundamentalism that advocates violence.

However, I am disturbed by his last sentence, which urges "people of good will to join with the Roman Catholic Church and the many Christian denominations that have moved beyond that outworn convention."

I was raised Roman Catholic and confirmed right here in Gloucester at Our Lady of Good Voyage Church. I consider Father Alves, and Father Bullock of Sacred Heart Church, to be two of the finest men I know. However, even a deep religious commitment strengthened by the teachings of two such men, does not insulate me from regarding the rabbi's last statement with cynicism.

I am a firm believer in the teachings of Jesus Christ. It is the translation of man that always seems to corrupt these values.

For instance, my church has a great history of really poor decisions and clinging to outworn conventions. Try the Crusades, the Inquisition, World War II and not admitting the Earth revolves around the Sun until the latter half of the 20th century, to name just a few. Recently my church has gone bankrupt by failing to deal with the most heinous of sex offenders within it own ranks, while preaching a message of discrimination against the gay community.

Don't get me wrong, I haven't lost my faith in God, just in the poor decisions of my church. Especially when it makes such fine community leaders as Father Bullock and Father Alves look bad.

Perhaps a better conclusion to the rabbi's column would be that all people of good will should join in a message of peace and nonviolence.

After all, isn't "do unto others, as you would have done to you" a universal truth?

Steele Sartwell

Washington Street, Gloucester

Countless hours of work

made auction successful

To the editor:

On Aug. 7 the North Shore Arts Association held its Nearly Wet Paint auction. The auction was great. The paintings were wonderful pieces of art, some created that day, others chosen by the artist on their merit. Tom and Deb Riquier organized the auction, hung hundreds of posters around the North Shore, and worked countless hours to help make the auction a huge success.

The efforts of gallery director Trudy Allen and her staff, and the many volunteers, including the musical entertainment by Karen Ristiban, assured the evening would be a hit. The food, catered by Grange Gourmet, was delightful.

The best part of the evening was the auctioneer, state Sen. Bruce Tarr. He captivated the audience with his wit, fast pace and smooth style. His upbeat, persuasive manner made the auctioning of the paintings exciting. The North Shore Arts Association is extremely grateful to Sen. Tarr for his efforts.

As special thank-you is extended to all of the artist members who donated a portion of the proceeds of the sales of their artwork to the North Shore Arts Association. And many thanks are extended to all of the patrons who purchased the paintings. The money generated is earmarked to the "building fund," and will be used to maintain and improve our great, historic building on Pirates Lane.

Roger Armstrong

President, North Shore Arts Association

Pirates Lane, Gloucester

Unpredictable weather puts damper on outdoor businesses

By Lisa Arsenault

Staff writer

ESSEX -- By noon Thursday many of the weekend kayak tours at Essex River Basin Adventures off Main Street were already booked solid.

Two weeks of early August sunshine had enticed tourists back to the traditional summer destination. But ERBA owner Richard "Ozzie" Osborne said the burst of reservations wasn't representative of what the season has been like.

"I think our business is down probably 25 percent," Osborne said.

A summer of clouds, cooler than average temperatures and unpredictable weather patterns have left many outdoor businesses feeling the pinch this season.

"I think there's a combination of things, but the weather is the big one," said Cliff Amero, of Essex River Cruises and Charters.

As if bad weather weren't enough, Amero said, inaccurate forecasting and television sensationalism haven't helped. Walk-ons for his river cruises are down 25 percent, he said.

Manchester weather expert David Towle said more bad weather than usual and faulty forecasts aren't just a figment of business owners' imaginations.

The summer has seen a record number of cloudy days, he said, and temperatures well below normal.

But don't blame the weatherman, Towle said. Blame the jet stream.

The jet stream, which powers most of the country's weather, normally runs straight across the country near the Canadian border in the summer, he said. That keeps cool air to the north and produces day after day of sun in New England.

This summer, the jet stream has dipped around the Great Lakes and all the way down to Virginia, bringing with it cooler temperatures and rain.

Osborne said it's not just bad weather.

Owners of outdoor businesses say predictions, not just the weather itself, are also a problem.

Threats of rough seas and dangerous rip tides that could result from passing tropical storms in the South have been just enough to scare people from booking an ocean trip, said Paul Frontiero, of 7 Seas Whale Watch in Gloucester. Thunderstorms that never materialize or torrential rains that turn out to be mere showers have happened more often than usual, he said.

But Towle said the jet stream is behind bad forecasting, too.

"With the jet stream being off its normal track, you have to throw different variable in there, and it makes the weather harder to pin down," he said. "It has been crazy."

Weathermen rely on computer analysis to come up with their forecasts. But even computers sometimes can be baffled by the jet stream.

"It's really mother nature," he said. "She'll do whatever she wants."

Business briefcase

Hoglander named NMB chairman

Harry R. Hoglander of Magnolia has been named chairman of the National Mediation Board. He was sworn in as a board member in August 2002, after being nominated by President George Bush.

The National Mediation Board is an independent federal agency, established by the Railway Labor Act, governing labor-management relations of nearly 500 railroads and 100 airlines in the United States.

Hoglander, who has an extensive background in the aviation industry, flew as a captain for Trans World Airlines and was rated to fly Boeing 707s, 727s and 747s in his 28-year career with TWA. He was elected and served as master chairman of TWA's Master Executive Council and executive vice president of the Air Line Pilots Association. He was also named aviation labor representative to the United States Bi-Lateral Negotiating Team by former Secretary of State James Baker.

Hoglander, a decorated retired member of the U.S. Air Force, served as a B-29 gunner in the Korean War. He earned his undergraduate degree and a commission in the Air Force. He later joined the Massachusetts Air National Guard and qualified to fly jet fighters. He retired as a lieutenant colonel.

A graduate of Suffolk University Law School, he became a member of the Florida Bar and is a community volunteer.

Dance studio open house

The Cape Ann Center for Dance, a new dance studio in Gloucester under the direction of Kimberly Blisard Willey, will host an open house and fall registration Saturday, Aug. 21, and Saturday, Aug. 28, from noon to 4 p.m. The studio is on the top floor of the ParaResearch building, 85 Eastern Ave., Gloucester.

Call (978) 282-1181 for more information.

Top Dog gets accolade

Rockport's Top Dog hot dog was named the "Best Hot Dog -- North" in Boston magazine's 31st annual "Best of Boston" issue. The restaurant is on Bearskin Neck.

The magazine's anonymous judges explore Greater Boston every year for their rankings.

They wrote, "Forget any perceived notions of what a hot dog is: Top Dog outdoes them all with all-meat dogs in natural castings that lend a juicy chewiness, whether you order yours grilled or steamed. This little shack on the point of Bearskin Neck is immaculate -- though once the friendly folks who work here pile your plate high with baked beans, grilled peppers, sauerkraut, or Vidalia onion relish, you may not be."

ALMANAC

Tuesday, Aug. 17, 2004

Sunrise: 5:52 a.m. Sunset: 7:41 p.m.

Police notes

ESSEX -- Police ticketed 12 drivers for parking on the sidewalk outside an Eastern Avenue restaurant at 6:17 p.m. Saturday.

• Police assisted an Eastern Avenue resident with a child custody issue at 6:20 p.m. Saturday.

• Choate Street residents complained about a barking dog in the area at 8:28 p.m., 8:54 p.m. and 10:18 p.m. Saturday.

• Police asked people at a Lufkin Street residence with a live band to turn their music off at 10:39 p.m. Saturday.

• A Harlow Street resident complained about road conditions on the street because of sewer construction at 11:23 a.m. Sunday.

Ambulance Notes

• A woman was taken from Southern Avenue to Beverly Hospital by ambulance at 2:42 p.m. Friday.

• A woman was taken to Beverly Hospital from a Main Street church at 10:41 a.m. Sunday.

p>

BIRTH NOTICES

CROWELL -- To Christopher and Barbara Crowell of Gloucester, a son, Peter Christopher Crowell, 9 pounds, 15 ounces, 21<3/4> inches long, born July 26 at Beverly Hospital. Grandparents are Salvatore Sciortino and the late Antonia Sciortino of Gloucester and Italy, and Kevin and Susan Crowell of Gloucester. Great-grandparents are Francesco Gusmano of Italy, Peter Mione and Sam and Janice Lupo, all of Gloucester.

HAGALA -- To Bernard and Kim Hagala of Gloucester, a son, Dakota Joseph Hagala, 6 pounds, 14 ounces, 20 inches long, born July 25 at Beverly Hospital. Grandparents are Mr. and Mrs. William Markuson of Gloucester and Mr. and Mrs. John Hagala of Homer, Alaska.

PIRAINO -- To Frank and Carolyn Piraino, a daughter, Morgan Christina Piraino, 7 pounds, 14 ounces, 21 inches long, born Dec. 10, 2003, at Melrose-Wakefield Hospital. Grandparents are Frank and Mary Rosati of Billerica and Frank and Marilyn Piraino of Gloucester.

PARISI -- To Kimberly Cross and Anthony Parisi of Gloucester, a daughter, Jordyn Mary Cross Parisi, 6 pounds, 8 ounces, 19<1/2> inches long, born Aug. 4 at Beverly Hospital. Sister to David, Ashley and Katrina Parisi. Grandparents are Richard and Judith Cross of Beverly Farms and Thomas and Mary Parisi of Gloucester.

HENDRICKSON -- To April Unis and Alfred Hendrickson Jr. of Gloucester, a daughter, Akyra Jeanne Hendrickson, 7 pounds, 10 ounces, 20 inches long, born Aug. 5 at Beverly Hospital. Sister to Sabrina Marie Hendrickson, 6, and Shayne Camron Castle, 3. Grandparents are Candace and Edward Unis, Valda Todd and Valerie and Alfred Hendrickson, all of Gloucester. Great-grandparents are Sally Unis and Lucielle Jones, both of Gloucester.

PALAZOLA -- To Robert and Sonya Palazola of Gloucester, a daughter, Felicia Isabella Palazola, 6 pounds, 13 ounces, 19<1/2> inches long, born Aug. 7 at Beverly Hospital. Grandparents are Michael Palazola and Judy and Bob Frisiello, all of Gloucester. Great-grandparents are Wendall Loder of Rock Island, Ill., and Celeste Palazola and Marion Jussila, both of Gloucester.

BARRY -- To Laura Barry and Timothy Barry of Danvers, a son, Noah Daniel Barry, 7 pounds, 12 ounces, 20<1/2> inches long, born Aug. 3 at Beverly Hospital. Brother to Joshua Sax and Amanda Sax. Grandparents are Theresa Murducca of Rockport and Francis and Diane Barry of Dennisport. Great-grandparents are Fern Caruso of Medford.

p>

Corrections

The Times aims to be accurate. Anyone with information about a factual error should call Times Editor David Joyner at (978) 283-7000, Ext. 3438.

An obituary for Edith C. Buckley, 93, that appeared on Page A6 of yesterday's edition of the Times omitted information about expressions of sympathy. Contributions may be made to Hospice of the North Shore, 10 Elm St., Danvers, MA 01923.

...

An obituary for John W. "Win" Story, 70, that appeared on Page A6 of yesterday's edition of the Times included incomplete information. In his retirement, Story was seasonally the "Lobsterman," serving locally caught seafood to patrons at Woodman's restaurant in Essex. He is also survived by Bonnie Dunn and her husband David of Essex.

...

An East Main Street woman's sentence was incorrectly listed in the District Court notes that appeared on Page A3 of Friday's edition of the Times. Amy C. Riddle, 23, of 109 East Main St., received a nine-month suspended sentence.

...

The District Court notes that appeared on Page B4 of Saturday's edition of the Times included incorrect information about the sentencing of David Helfant, 35, of 180 Granite St. He was sentenced to one year in jail.

...

The address of a man whose court appearance was listed in District Court notes in the Tuesday, Aug. 10, edition of the Times was incorrectly listed. David J. Curran does not live at 17 Gage St., according to a resident of that address.

p>

Court report

Harvard Jacobs, no age or address given, was sentenced to 18 months in jail for violating probation on charges of receiving stolen goods, breaking and entering with intent to commit a felony, larceny, and malicious destruction of property and was assessed $1,090 in court costs by Judge Richard Mori in District Court Aug. 12.

• Mori sentenced a Gloucester man to nine months in jail yesterday after finding him guilty of assault and battery, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and intimidating a witness.

Charles Murray, 30, of 193 East Main St., was arrested July 19.

• Charges of driving under the influence of alcohol and negligent operation of a motor vehicle to endanger against James P. Burnham, 43, no address given, were continued without a finding for one year and he was assessed $1,140 in court costs in District Court yesterday.

Witness chased down suspect in hit-and-run

By Lisa Arsena

A pedestrian who was hit by a pickup truck and knocked 42 feet Friday was in stable condition at Addison Gilbert Hospital yesterday.

Margaret Bouchie, 38, was standing outside a Washington Street convenience store around 5 p.m. Friday when a driver who police have charged with drunken driving hit her and kept going, according to the police report.

A witness to the accident, Gloucester native Rafael Jabba, helped police apprehend the suspect. His mother, Nancy, said he was driving by when he saw a man in a pickup truck hit a woman who was standing in front of the store talking.

Instead of just standing by, Jabba decided to follow the driver. He followed the driver onto Madison Avenue and then down a dead-end where he blocked the driver in and escorted him back to the scene of the accident. Police then arrested the driver.

"He's that kind of guy that would put himself out in front if he thought he was helping someone," Jabba's mother said. "Police would have had no idea why this woman was in the middle of the road."

Jabba is visiting family in Gloucester after serving in the Army in Iraq.

Bouchie was taken to the hospital by ambulance from the scene and admitted to the hospital. She suffered an injury to her kidney and could be released from the hospital tomorrow, Sgt. Michael O'Hanley said.

Bouchie's 11-year-old son was waiting for his mother in the car when the accident happened, O'Hanley said. The driver hit her and the car she was standing in front of before driving away, O'Hanley said.

Police arrested Gerald C. Rose, 36, of 100-5 Main St., Stoneham, and charged him with driving under the influence of alcohol, driving negligently to endanger and leaving the scene of a personal injury accident.

O'Hanley said Jabba deserves some type of award for helping police.

lt

Staff writer

Police/Fire

Arrests

• Police arrested David Harriman, 49, of 133 Maplewood Ave. and charged him with driving under the influence of drugs yesterday after they were called to a Maplewood Avenue convenience store about a possible intoxicated man in a car.

The rescue squad took Harriman to Addison Gilbert Hospital for past injuries, and police arrested him after he was treated and released, according to the police report. It was his third offense of driving under the influence of drugs, according to the report.

Thefts

• A Gloucester man reported a shirt, cash and prescription pain medication stolen from a tent at Vernon's Pit in Lanesville where he was camping over the weekend. The incident was reported at 7:55 a.m. yesterday.

• A Gloucester resident reported the handicapped placard stolen from her vehicle while it was parked at the North Shore Mall at 9:33 a.m. yesterday. Police advised the woman to contact Peabody police, too.

Vandalism

• The owner of a Washington Street restaurant in Riverdale reported a window broken at 9:30 a.m. yesterday. The owner reported the damage was done sometime after 9 p.m. Sunday.

Other incidents

• Police investigated a report of a person keeping short stripers at the Jodrey State Fish Pier at 6:04 p.m. Sunday. Police found that the stripers were the legal length, according to the report.

• Police notified the Department of Public Works to clean up a camp site found in the woods off Dory Road at 10:34 p.m. Sunday. Police found two tents, trash and empty beer cans in the woods, according to the report.

Fire notes

• The rescue squad took people to Addison Gilbert Hospital from Elizabeth Road, Proctor Street and Maplewood Avenue.

STOCKS

STOCKS

The following are selected stocks of local interest as of closing yesterday:

Company Price Chg

AT&T 14.21 +.51

Axcelis Tech 7.97 +.19

GE 32.30 +.41

Gillette 41.17 +.03

Raytheon 34.41 +.40

Varian Semi 26.37 +.19

Waste Mgt 27.99 +.22

Weather

Weather

LOCAL FORECAST: Today, mostly sunny. Patchy fog in the morning. Warmer with highs in the upper 70s. Northwest winds 5 to 10 mph. Becoming east in the afternoon. Tonight, mostly clear. Lows in the lower 60s. South winds 5 to 10 mph. Tomorrow, partly cloudy. A chance of showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs around 80. South winds 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 40 percent. Tomorrow night, mostly cloudy. A chance of showers in the evening. Patchy fog after midnight. Lows in the lower 60s. Chance of rain 40 percent

MARINE FORECAST: From Merrimack River to Watch Hill, R.I. | Today, north wind 5 to 10 knots. Becoming east in the afternoon. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Tonight, south wind 5 to 10 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Tomorrow, southwest wind 5 to 10 knots. Becoming south 10 to 15 knots in the afternoon. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Tomorrow night, south wind 10 to 15 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet. A chance of showers in the evening. Patchy fog after midnight. Visibility 1 nautical miles or less in the late evening and overnight. Thursday, southwest wind 10 to 15 knots. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Patchy fog. A chance of showers and thunderstorms in the evening. Visibility 1 to 3 nautical miles. Friday, southwest wind 5 to 10 knots. Increasing to 10 to 15 knots after midnight. Seas 2 to 3 feet. Patchy fog. Visibility 1 to 3 nautical miles in the morning.

EXTENDED FORECAST: Thursday, partly cloudy. Patchy fog in the morning. Highs in the lower 80s. Thursday night, partly cloudy. A chance of showers and thunderstorms in the evening. Lows in the mid-60s. Chance of rain 30 percent. Friday, partly cloudy. Highs around 80. Friday night and Saturday, mostly cloudy. A chance of showers. Lows in the lower 60s. Highs around 80. Chance of rain 30 percent. Saturday night, mostly cloudy with a 40 percent chance of showers. Lows in the lower 60s. Sunday, mostly cloudy in the morning. Then becoming partly cloudy. Highs around 80.

Day in history

Today is Tuesday, Aug. 17, the 230th day of 2004. There are 136 days left in the year.

Today's Highlight in History:

On Aug. 17, 1807, Robert Fulton's North River Steam Boat began heading up New York's Hudson River on its successful round-trip to Albany.

On this date:

In 1863, Federal batteries and ships bombarded Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor during the Civil War.

In 1896, a prospecting party discovered gold in Alaska, a finding that touched off the Klondike gold rush.

In 1942, during World War II, U.S. Eighth Air Force bombers attacked Rouen, France.

In 1942, U.S. Marines led by Lt. Col. Evans E. Carlson raided a Japanese seaplane base on Makin Island.

In 1943, the Allied conquest of Sicily was completed as U.S. and British forces entered Messina.

In 1962, East German border guards shot and mortally wounded 18-year-old Peter Fechter, who had attempted to cross the Berlin Wall into the western sector.

In 1969, 248 people were killed as Hurricane Camille slammed into the Gulf Coast.

In 1969, the Woodstock Music and Art Fair concluded near Bethel, N.Y.

In 1978, the first successful trans-Atlantic balloon flight ended as Maxie Anderson, Ben Abruzzo and Larry Newman landed their Double Eagle Two outside Paris.

In 1987, Rudolf Hess, the last member of Adolf Hitler's inner circle, died at a Berlin hospital near Spandau Prison at age 93, having apparently committed suicide.

Ten years ago: Deputy Treasury Secretary Roger Altman resigned under pressure, the latest Clinton administration official felled by the Whitewater controversy.

Five years ago: More than 17,000 people were killed when a magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck Turkey.

One year ago: Federal investigators joined industry teams in the search for clues into what triggered the country's worst power blackout in the Midwest and Northeast as the Bush administration promised to get answers and address whatever problem was found. Insurgents attacked a police station in Afghanistan, killing some two dozen people.

Today's Birthdays: Actress Maureen O'Hara is 84. Actor Robert DeNiro is 61. Movie director Martha Coolidge is 58. Rock musician Sib Hashian is 55. Actor Robert Joy is 53. Rock singer Kevin Rowland (Dexy's Midnight Runners) is 51. Rock musician Colin Moulding (XTC) is 49. Country singer-songwriter Kevin Welch is 49. Singer Belinda Carlisle is 46. Actor Sean Penn is 44. Jazz musician Everette Harp is 43. Rock musician Gilby Clarke is 42. Singer Maria McKee is 40. Rock musician Steve Gorman (The Black Crowes) is 39. Rock musician Jill Cunniff is 38. Actor David Conrad is 37. Singer Donnie Wahlberg is 35. Rapper Posdnuos is 35. Tennis player Jim Courier is 34. Actor Bryton McClure is 18.

Thought for Today: "Everyone is necessarily the hero of his own life story."

| John Barth, American author.

Police notes

MANCHESTER -- A Summer Street man reported a laptop worth $800 stolen from his home at 8:35 a.m. yesterday. He believes it was taken sometime Sunday, according to the police report.

• A Pleasant Street man was taken to Beverly Hospital by ambulance at 4:21 p.m. Friday.

• Police had an unregistered vehicle towed from the corner of Pine and Central Street at 11:29 a.m. Saturday.

• A bicyclist was not seriously injured when the driver of a car opened a door in his path on Union Street around 11:30 a.m. Saturday.

• A Harbor Street woman was taken to Beverly Hospital by ambulance at 9:25 p.m. Sunday.

FISH ARRIVALS

FISH ARRIVALS

Gloucester Seafood Display Auction

There was no information available from the National Marine Fisheries Service on Gloucester Seafood Display Auction sales yesterday.

Boston landings

There was no information available on Boston fish landings yesterday.

Boston prices

There was no information available on Boston fish prices yesterday.

Truck prices

There were no truck prices available from the National Marine Fisheries Service yesterday.

Police notes

ROCKPORT -- Allison L. Kearns, 19, of 230 Granite St., was arrested and charged with operating under the influence of liquor and as a minor transporting alcohol on Saturday at 11:35 p.m.

• A man rode his bicycle off a cliff at Steele Derrick and was transported to Addison Gilbert Hospital by ambulance on Saturday at 5:45 p.m.

• A woman on Bearskin Neck had difficulty breathing and was transported to the hospital by ambulance on Friday at 12:08.

• A manon Beach Street was transported to the hospital by ambulance on Sunday at 11:45 p.m.

• A woman on Clement Street had trouble breathing and was transported to the hospital by ambulance on Sunday at 7:44 p.m.

Elementary school to start strings program

By Ben Hel

ROCKPORT -- Just six years ago, Rockport had no high school band. Now, thanks to public and school support, 65 students -- roughly a quarter of the students at the school -- are in the band.

Next month marks the next step in the evolution of the school music program, as a new stringed instruments program for fourth- and fifth-graders begins, Principal Charles Symonds said.

Students will be able to study violin, viola or cello in the morning before school starts, said Rockport music teacher Nathan Cohen, who is running the lessons. Students in the program will have three small-group lessons a week, and all the string students will meet a fourth time to work in concert. Cohen expects a performance by the end of the school year.

In early September, letters will go out to parents of fourth- and fifth-graders explaining the program and inviting them to rent the instruments. Violins and violas should cost $150 to rent for the year, Cohen said. Cellos should cost $300.

Cohen said the school hoped for donations to set up scholarships for students who could not afford the instrument rental costs.

The progression of the band program is a natural one, said Cameron Smith, president of the Educational Foundation for Rockport, which is giving Rockport Elementary $5,000 to cover the cost of the string lessons.

Given the popularity of music in Rockport and such events as the Rockport Chamber Music Festival, one would expect the school's music program to reflect the town's musical bent. But with the majority of the school system's budget paying teacher salaries, this program had to be funded privately.

"We have this arts community that could get more involved with the schools," Smith said.

This year, the foundation has committed itself to paying out $30,000 to educational programs. Last year, music parents and students solicited $8,000 in advertising from businesses and individuals through an advertising booklet given out at performances.

Symonds said a strong music program, like a strong athletic program, makes students feel more involved at school.

"Kids need to have an investment in their school. I think (a music program) contributes to a much higher investment," said Symonds.

man

Staff writer