Maryland
Maryland gymnastics turned its weakness on beam into its biggest strength
Maryland gymnastics’ beam unit has earned consistent scores in its first two meets of 2024. Coach Brett Nelligan’s gymnasts posted a 49.225 on the beam in their battle with West Chester, and most recently, a 49.150 in their win over Rutgers.
The Terps now sit at No. 8 nationally on the event, per Road to Nationals, and No. 1 in the Big Ten. Last year, Maryland took four meets to crack above a 49.150 on beam, eventually finishing the season No. 33 nationally on the event.
Despite drastically improving finishes, Nelligan’s beam team this season is only slightly modified from 2023’s lineup.
Emma Silberman, Josephine Kogler, Madeline Komoroski, Victoria Gatzendorfer, Elizabeth DeBarberie and Reese McClure were consistent beam performers last season. Nelligan also occasionally turned to Olivia Weir and Alexsis Rubio.
Without the likes of DeBarberie and McClure, who each competed in at least 10 meets on the beam in 2023, Nelligan needed to find new key pieces to revamp the Terps’ worst scoring unit.
His solution: Natalie Martin and Weir.
[Maryland gymnastics wins Big Ten opener over Rutgers, 196.450-195.550]
Martin, a freshman and beam runner-up at the 2022 Ohio State Championship, has fit seamlessly into Maryland’s beam rotation. She began her routine perfectly tumbling into a back handspring and back layout against Rutgers. She showed off a few dance elements, then seamlessly transitioned to a side aerial with ease.
Martin finished her beam work with a dynamic leap sequence and full turn. She executed her dismount, a back handspring to a Gainer one and a half, with squeezed legs and only a slight hop for a 9.850.
“Natalie, gosh, she’s just having fun out there, we’re having fun with her,” Nelligan said. “For her to have to finish that meet for us on a big note, that is really gonna boost her confidence and push her forward as the year goes on.”
Weir, who competed on beam in six meets last season, averaged 9.629 in 2023. She performed second in Friday’s lineup and attacked the beam powerfully. Like Martin, Weir started her routine with a back handspring to back layout, flawlessly landing her feet on the apparatus. She then floated into a switch leap and flipped into a back layout step out just slightly out of line.
The senior completed a leap series and a full turn before finishing her routine in a back handspring to a one and a half gainer, similar to Martin. Weir took a step backward on her landing, lowering her score to a 9.575 after marking a 9.800 against West Chester the previous week.
Maryland’s other beam workers, Silberman, Komoroski, Kogler and Gatzendorfer, helped add to the team’s total with precise leaps, balanced tricks and straight tumbling, all key factors to a high score on the event.
[No. 25 Maryland gymnastics posts a 196.150 in season-opening victory against West Chester]
Komoroski, a key role in the Terps’ beam outing last season, earned a 9.825 after a clean beam performance against Rutgers. She had the highest average of Maryland gymnasts as a freshman last year at 9.807. The sophomore executed a one arm back handspring in each beam routine of her collegiate career, a skill special to her among teammates.
Gatzendorfer and Silberman averaged 9.566 and 9.705 on beam in 2023, respectively. This year, the pair have posted an average of 9.850 and 9.775 in two meets. Gatzendorfer offered tricky balancing skills to the lineup, like a forward roll, while Silberman possessed quick-hitting tumbling series, double back handspring to back layout.
Kogler, Maryland’s anchor, closed out the Terps’ impressive beam lineup. The junior capitalized on her leap sequences, extending her legs to near 180 degrees on switch leaps. Kogler easily moved between each series and to a near perfect landing off the dismount for a 9.875, Maryland’s highest beam score of the competition.
As Big Ten play continues, the Terps will face imposing beam units. No. 17 Minnesota, Maryland’s next opponent, finished week three at No. 18 on the event nationally after receiving a 49.125 in its most recent outing.
Maryland
Maryland confirms 5 new measles cases, bringing year’s total to 9 – WTOP News
The state said the five recently traveled together to “a location in the U.S. experiencing an active measles outbreak.”
Maryland health officials confirmed five more measles cases, all in Carroll County.
“These individuals recently traveled together to a location in the U.S. experiencing an active measles outbreak,” the state Department of Health said in a release.
The agency said others may have been exposed on the afternoon of July 13 in the emergency department waiting room at Carroll Hospital Center in Westminster.
Another measles case recently prompted warnings from health officials in Maryland, Virginia and the District. On June 17, a Maryland resident traveled through Dulles International Airport and visited a D.C. urgent care clinic.
Measles is highly contagious. It can spread through the air through coughs, breathing, and sneezes. Early symptoms can include fevers of over 101 degrees, coughs, runny noses, watery eyes and face or body rashes.
It can take up to 21 days after exposure for the first symptoms to appear, and those who are not fully vaccinated or otherwise immune to measles are especially vulnerable.
The five new measles cases in Maryland bring the state’s year-to-date total to nine. The state health department confirmed three cases in 2025, and one in each of the previous two years.
“All Marylanders should review potential exposure times, watch for symptoms, and confirm they are up to date on their measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccinations,” the health department said.
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Maryland
Maryland Fall Home & Garden + Craft Show returning in October
Baltimore may be under an extreme heat alert, but residents can dream about autumn, as tickets are now on sale for the Maryland Fall Home & Garden + Craft Show returning to the Maryland State Fairgrounds in October.
This three-day celebration of home and garden takes place from Friday, Oct. 16 through Sunday, Oct. 18 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day. Expect hundreds of exhibitors, local makers, home improvement experts, family-friendly experiences and celebrity guests. The show offers everyone the chance to explore the very latest in home improvement, landscaping, outdoor living and decor, the chance to take part in hands-on experiences, and do some holiday shopping all under one roof.
This year’s show will have more than 300 exhibitors, including more than 100 crafters from around Maryland in the Makers Market. There will be unique exhibits, stage presentations and a special appearance by Chase Morrill, Ashley Morrill-Eldridge and Ryan Eldridge from Magnolia Network’s hit series “Maine Cabin Masters.” The three will have two Main Stage appearances, one on Friday, Oct. 16 at 4 p.m. and the second on Saturday, Oct. 17 at 12 p.m.
“As temperatures start to drop and the holiday season comes into view, the Maryland Fall Home & Garden + Craft Show is a place to gather ideas, meet local experts and get inspired before the busy season begins,” said Dave Paul, show manager, in a statement. “Whether attendees are planning a home project, looking for outdoor living ideas or getting a head start on holiday shopping, the show brings together resources and experiences for every kind of homeowner, maker and DIY enthusiast.”
In addition to the Makers Market and stars of “Maine Cabin Masters”, the Maryland Fall Home & Garden + Craft Show will have a petting zoo, a Kids Market where attendees can shop from local children, and much more.
Tickets are available online and at the door. Prices are as follows:
Online:
- Adults: $8
- Senior Citizens (60+): $6
- Children (ages 6-12): $4
- 4-Pack Online: $30 for four tickets, valid for one admission each and one day only
At the door:
- Adults: $10
- Senior Citizens (60+): $8
- Children (ages 6-12): $4
- Friday & Saturday: $4 after 4 p.m. at the door only
Special Offers:
- Active and retired military personnel, veterans, firefighters and police officers receive free admission all weekend, along with one guest, with valid ID at the box office.
- Attendees who show a CharmPass app, Light RailLink ticket or eligible transit pass at the box office receive free admission any day of the show. One admission is available per pass.
The Maryland State Fairgrounds is located at 2200 York Road in Lutherville-Timonium.
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Maryland
Maryland police arrest alleged bank robber wielding stolen cat: ‘Tried to use her as an accessory’
Law enforcement agencies are accustomed to dealing with cat burglars – but now a Maryland police department is saying it grappled with a cat-wielding bank robber.
The Prince George’s county police department said its officers arrested a man suspected of stealing a cat and then taking the animal with him to a PNC bank branch in the local community of Beltsville to rob the establishment on Monday morning.
“The cat was returned” after the suspect was arrested, the police department said in a statement to the Guardian on Tuesday. The agency said no injuries were reported, and it declined to name the suspect or release additional details, saying the case – bound for a spot in the annals of bizarre reported US crimes – remained under investigation.
Nonetheless, a social media post from rescue shelter Beltsville Community Cats provided more information.
A Beltsville Community Cats Facebook page post on Monday identified the cat at the center of the alleged botched caper as Magnolia, a three-and-a-half-month-old tuxedo kitten. The shelter recounted how the suspect first snatched Magnolia from her “adoption habitat” at Beltsville’s Pet Supplies Plus store, took her across the parking lot to a PNC branch, and “tried to use her as an accessory in [an] attempted robbery”.
“He asked the bank manager to hold the kitten while he wrote a note, then handed the note to a teller demanding all the cash,” the post continued. “Thankfully, the robbery was unsuccessful, the suspect was arrested, and Magnolia was found safe and sound in the bank manager’s office, where the two had bonded over their shared ordeal.”
Pet Supplies Plus store employees told the NBC affiliate in nearby Washington DC that Magnolia’s cat napper had come in daily for about two weeks and focused on the kitten each time.
Finally, on Monday, he managed to use a key to open a cat adoption area and whisked Magnolia away, store employees said to the outlet, WRC.
Store manager Aaron Kurkowski told WRC that Magnolia’s thief “came in and saw none of my team was nearby the front – and he just went right to her and ran right on out”.
According to WRC, Stephanie Stullich of Beltsville Community Cats then received a call from a pet store employee who alerted her to Magnolia’s plight.
That prompted Stullich to run over to the store, where she said to WRC that she “immediately saw all of these police cars and … thought, ‘Wow, that’s a heck of a response for a stolen cat’.”
“But then I realized they all were going down to the bank,” Stullich recalled to WRC. “They came back out a few minutes later and said, ‘Yes, there is a cat inside the bank.’”
Two days before her catnapping, Magnolia was the subject of a Beltsville Community Cats Facebook post inviting people to see her at Pet Supplies Plus and consider adopting her.
Magnolia as of Monday was still waiting to be adopted, Beltsville Community Cats said in its post detailing the bank robbery.
The non-profit organization offered members of the public the opportunity to apply to adopt Magnolia by emailing rescue@beltsvillecats.net.
Beltsville Community Cats’ post also joked that Magnolia’s “brief ‘life of crime’ is behind her” – except for undoubtedly “stealing” hearts, treats, toys and cuddles wherever her forever home may be.
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