Corner Hall released; Carriker's deal redone
Forced to make moves to get below the NFL-mandated salary cap of $123 million, the Washington Redskins released cornerback DeAngelo Hall, restructured defensive end Adam Carriker's deal and were in the process of negotiating several other contract revisions Monday. The team had to be under the cap by 4 p.m. today, which marks the start of the new league year and free agency. Washington entered this past weekend roughly $3 million over the cap but still re-signed starting left guard Kory Lichtensteiger (an impending unrestricted free agent) and four restricted free agents: tight end Logan Paulsen, fullback Darrel Young, linebacker Rob Jackson and long snapper Nick Sundberg. They also extended a right-of-first-refusal qualifying offer to backup nose tackle Chris Baker. Those moves put the Redskins further over the cap. But the release of Hall saved the team $8 million, and the reworking of Carriker's contract is believed to have saved another $2.6 million. As of Monday evening, Washington sat at "about a million under the cap," coach Mike Shanahan said. "But if we do make some moves, some people will have to be released," he added. Shanahan said Washington found itself in the salary cap predicament because of the $36 million penalty the league leveled against the Redskins last year for the way they restrucutured some contracts during the uncapped 2012 season. The team still hopes to re-sign linebacker-special teams captain Lorenzo Alexander and tight end Fred Davis, who become unrestricted free agents today.
—Mike Jones, The Washington Post
College basketball
Coppin's Cole, Spotwood receive MEAC honors
Coppin State freshman Patrick Cole was named to the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference All-Rookie team, the conference announced Sunday. Cole, who earned conference Rookie of the Week honors three times this season, was third on the Eagles with an average of 10.3 points per game. He was second on the team in assists with 67 and tied for second on the team in steals with 36.
Women's honors: Coppin State senior Leola Spotwood was named to the All-Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference third team Monday. Spotwood, the Eagles' leading scorer and rebounder, averaged 13.0 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. She also led the team in steals with 75 and ranked second on the team with 26 3-pointers. ... Goldey-Beacom senior guard Devonne Richardson (Milford Mill) was chosen to the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference All-Tournament team. In two games, Richardson led the Lightning by averaging 19.0 points, 12.5 rebounds and 8.5 assists per game while nearly recording a tripledouble in each contest. She also led the team with six steals. Richardson will end her career as the Lightning's all-time leader with 1,110 career rebounds, 416 career assists and 224 career steals. She is one of two players in school history with 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds. ... UMES freshman frontcourt players Ashleigh Claybrooks and Alexis Udoji were selected to the MEAC All-Rookie team. Udoji leads the conference with 69 blocks, averaging 2.7 per game.
Division II men: Bowie State is an at-large selection for the NCAA tournament and is seeded No. 8 in the Atlantic Region; it will visit top-seeded West Liberty (W.Va.) at 6 p.m. Saturday.
More colleges
UMES' Schott named to watch list for Bench Award
The Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission announced that UMES catcher Brandon Schott has been placed on the Johnny Bench Award watch list. The award, started in 2000, is given each year to the top catcher in Division I college baseball. The list will be cut to semifinalists May 16, with the finalists being chosen June 4. The winner, voted on by Division I coaches, will be announced June 27 at the Greater Wichita Sports Banquet. In his second year with the Hawks after transferring from Allegany College of Maryland, Schott is batting .293 with a team-best five doubles, driving in seven runs. He is also second on the team in slugging at .415. Schott is the only player from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and the state of Maryland who was nominated.
More baseball: McDaniel senior Zach Jones was named Centennial Conference Pitcher of the Week for the second straight time after throwing a no-hitter against Penn State-York on Saturday. Jones struck out a career-high 12 batters in the Green Terror's 10-0 win in the first game of a doubleheader. He allowed just a fifth-inning walk in the seven-inning game. It was McDaniel's first no-hitter since March 14, 2001, and the first in the conference since March 10, 2010. ... Frostburg State senior infielder J.K. Filauro was named CAC Baseball Player of the Week, while Salisbury sophomore Brett Collacchi was selected as the Pitcher of the Week after throwing a one-hit shutout against Gallaudet. ... The game between Christopher Newport and host Salisbury scheduled for today was postponed because of expected inclement weather. The game will be played Wednesday at 2 p.m.
Women's bowling: UMES will have a chance to win another Intercollegiate Team Championships title after securing a berth in the United State Bowling Congress ITC event with a second-place finish overall in the Las Vegas sectional. The Hawks were one of seven NCAA teams at the college bowling sectional events to earn the automatic berth into the championship field.
Men's track and field: Shippensburg sophomore Steve Waithe (Loch Raven) earned Division II All-America honors as the Raiders finished 12th at the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships last week. ... UMES senior Andre Walsh earned second-team All-America honors from the United States Track & Field Cross Country Coaches Association for his performance in the 200 meters at the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships last weekend at Arkansas. Walsh finished 15th with a time of 21.51 seconds, just 0.6 of a second from qualifying him for the final round. Akheem Gauntlett, who began his career at UMES and now runs for the host Razorbacks, finished fourth with a time of 20.72.
Softball: UMBC sophomore Kayla Margentino earned America East Player of the Week honors, but the Retrievers lost a pair of contests Monday at the their Dawg Pound Invitational, falling in extra innings to Marist, 7-6, and concluding the tournament with an 8-1 loss to Rhode Island. ... Salisbury sophomore Rachel Johnson was selected as the CAC Pitcher of the Week for the second straight week after posting a 3-1 record with one save in six appearances. ... Mount St. Mary's will play a doubleheader at UMBC at 2p.m. Wednesday. The teams were originally scheduled to play today.
—From Sun staff and news services
