The day many Maryland student-athletes circled on their calendar came on Tuesday, as the first day of fall sports practice took place for all state public high schools.
Thousands of area football, soccer, field hockey and volleyball players, along with many cross-country runners and golfers, turned out to their respective schools hoping to make the team of their choice.
With the beginning of practice comes optimism for a better season than the one before, that your team can rise to the next level and in many cases bring home a county, regional and/or state championship.
Playoff football teams like Old Mill, Milford Mill, Westminster, Joppatowne and City are looking to reverse the trend of being dominated by Prince George?s and Montgomery counties and bring home a state title to the greater Baltimore area.
Other teams looking to build on last year?s success include Severna Park and South River in field hockey; C.M. Wright and Eastern Tech in girls soccer; Liberty, River Hill and Towson in boys soccer; Broadneck, Wilde Lake and Liberty in boys cross country; Severna Park and Hereford in girls cross country; and Glenelg and Centennial in volleyball.
All of those teams won state titles in their respective sports last year and will look to defend it this season.
