Opening Day

"The one constant through all the years has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It's been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt, and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game, is a part of our past. It reminds us of all that once was good, and what could be again." - James Earl Jones in Field of Dreams (1989)

It's Opening Day ... the official start of spring for baseball fans. Some would argue that football has surpassed baseball as the national past-time ... well, here is 100 reasons why baseball is so much better than football, courtesy of Thomas Boswell.

In the interest of fairness, Microsoft Encarta provides us with 10 Reasons Baseball is a Weird Sport.

And we'll wrap this up with comedian George Carlin, who offers one of the most famous stand-up baseball comedy routines as he compares "Baseball and Football."

#1 vs. #2 Highlights Weekend Action

I don't recall a spring weekend in the 15-year history of the Conference where we had two games featuring the top two teams in the country ... but here we go. In women's lacrosse, it's a rematch of the 2007 national title game as defending champion and top-ranked Franklin & Marshall travels to the Eastern Shore to take on #2 Salisbury. In men's lacrosse, the top-ranked Sea Gulls come north to the Battlefield to take on #2 Gettysburg.

Franklin & Marshall at Salisbury (Women's Lacrosse)
What a matchup! The Diplomats (3-0 CC, 7-0) have a 28-match winning streak, including a pair of wins against the Sea Gulls (12-0), winners of 33 of their last 35 games. F&M captured the NCAA Division III title with an 11-8 win against Salisbury last season. Five Diplomats have scored 15 or more goals through seven games, led by Jen Pritchard's 21.

Salisbury at Gettysburg (Men's Lacrosse)
It's one of the premier matchups in the South Region each season and this year is no different, as the top-ranked Sea Gulls (10-0) take on the second-ranked Bullets (8-0). Salisbury has a 33-game win streak and has won 72 straight regular-season games since the 2003 campaign. Only three men's lacrosse coaches in NCAA history (all divisions) have won 300 games and two of them - Gettysburg's Hank Janczyk and Salisbury's Jim Berkman - are the only two active coaches to reach that milestone. You can watch the action on a pay-per-view basis.

Washington at Haverford (Men's Lacrosse)
It may not be #1 vs. #2 ... but the other big game around the country Saturday features the #5 Shoremen (3-0, 8-0) and the #8 Black Squirrels (1-1, 6-1). Washington has never lost to Haverford in 17 previous games, but last season's match went four overtimes before the Sho'men pulled out a 9-8 win in Chestertown. The two teams are ranked 1-2 in goals per game in the CC with the Fords averaging 13.75 per game and Washington a shade behind at 13.50.

Washington at Swarthmore (Women's Tennis)
It could be a playoff preview along Crum Creek as the Shorewomen (2-0, 7-1) visit the Garnet (3-1, 3-2). Washington has lost six straight to Swarthmore since a 6-3 triumph in 2002. The Garnet is looking to rebound from a 9-0 loss to Johns Hopkins earlier in the week. Keep an eye on the #1 singles match between Washington's Allison Daciek and Swat's Jennie Park.

McDaniel Invitational (Men's Golf)
This is definitely a championship preview as Dickinson, Franklin & Marshall, Gettysburg, Muhlenberg and Swarthmore will participate in the McDaniel Spring Invitational at The Bridges Golf Club - site of the 2008 Centennial championship tournament.

Five-Star Matchups

Gettysburg at Dickinson (Men's Lacrosse)
It could be the ultimate trap game for the Bullets (2-0 CC, 7-0), ranked #2 in the country. Gettysburg plays host to top-ranked Salisbury on Saturday, but cannot be caught looking past the Red Devils (1-0, 6-1), who are looking for their first win against the Orange and Blue since 1975 and first in Carlisle since 1970.

Big Games Inside and Outside

Although there are still big games being played indoors as the winter season comes to a close, the important games also are being played outdoors, as the spring season kicks into high gear this weekend.

Gettysburg at Ursinus (Men's Basketball)
Seen this one somewhere before? For the fourth time this season, the Bullets (24-4) and the Bears (27-2) will meet on the hardwood. The stakes this time? A trip to the NCAA Elite Eight. This is the first time that two Centennial men's teams have reached the "Sweet 16" and the Conference is guaranteed a spot in the national quarterfinals for the first time since Franklin & Marshall reached the "Final Four" in 2000. Ursinus has won nine straight from Gettysburg to close its all-time deficit to 33-20. The Bullets' last win was a 71-63 triumph in Collegeville in 2005.

Haverford at Gettysburg (Men's Lacrosse)
It's a top-10 battle as the Fords (4-0) and the Bullets (4-0) meet on the Battlefield in the Conference opener for both teams. Haverford is ranked ninth nationally, while Gettysburg is No. 2 in the country. Last season, the Black Squirrels upset the then-#2 Bullets, 6-5, at Walton Field, in the CC opener. Gettysburg avenged that defeat in the Centennial semifinals, 12-11. The key matchup could be Haverford sophomore attacker Brian Fleischhacker (19-2-21) against Gettysburg All-American senior defender Andrew McGann.

Franklin & Marshall at McDaniel (Women's Lacrosse)
The defending national champion Diplomats (2-0) open defense of their 2007 Centennial title on the road in Westminster against the Green Terror (4-0). F&M has won six straight in the series to take a commanding 29-6-1 advantage. McDaniel's last win win was a 6-5 triumph in the 2004 ECAC first round. Keep an eye on a pair of fabulous sophs - the Diplomats' Blake Hargest (5-1-6) and the Terror's Brittany Baer (21-3-24).