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Midfield brother act has Retrievers feeling bullish

By Mike Klingaman

September 17, 2008

UMBC midfielders Dan Bulls (left) and younger brother Andrew have great chemistry and "read each other real well," coach Pete Caringi said. (Baltimore Sun photo by Lloyd Fox / September 16, 2008)

Brother Act: It's playing at UMBC to rave reviews.

Dan Bulls is senior co-captain of the Retrievers soccer team. His brother Andrew, a freshman, is one of the team's top scorers. Together, the pair from Millersville have helped propel UMBC, 3-1-1 entering today's game at Towson (4 p.m.).

The Bulls brothers are the first siblings to start for Pete Caringi, the school's coach for 18 years. They play side by side as midfielders.

To their teammates, they are known simply as "Bulls" and "Baby Bulls."

"Their chemistry amazes me," Caringi said. "They read each other real well. Against Adelphi [a 3-2 double-overtime victory], Andrew scored the winner on a play that Dan had started."

Born four years apart, the Bulls brothers had never gotten to play organized soccer together. Until now.

"I've been waiting for this all my life," said Andrew Bulls (McDonogh).

As kids, they chased the ball in their backyard in Anne Arundel County.

"Sometimes we got carried away and hit the neighbor's house," said Dan Bulls (Old Mill). 'When that happened, we ran inside real fast."

Last week, when the brothers orchestrated the deciding goal in sudden death against Adelphi, it was too much for their mother to bear. Pat Bulls climbed out of the stands and jumped into the pile of players.

"Mama Bulls was in the thick of the victory celebration," Caringi said.

A polite tack

Play Navy in water polo and you lose. For years, that was so for Johns Hopkins, which played the Midshipmen on 30straight occasions and was keelhauled every time.

Until Saturday.

When Hopkins defeated Navy, 9-8, it was the school's first victory in 18years over a storied water polo team that made the NCAA DivisionI final four last year.

But you won't hear idle boasting by Hopkins players. Why? The Jays (3-5) play 11th-ranked Navy again tonight at 8 in Annapolis.

Besides, his charges have too much respect for the Mids (4-4) to gloat, Hopkins coach Ted Bresnahan said.

"These [Navy] guys are not paid to protect their pool; they are paid to protect their country," Bresnahan said. "So we're not going to rub their noses in anything."

Better at night

Salisbury's inaugural night football game at home had it all: a raucous crowd, a runaway victory and a milestone event for the 35-year-old program.

The 48-6 rout of Geneva College on Saturday was the Sea Gulls' 200th football victory. And it was played before more than 2,200 fans, many of whom had no choice but to sit on the visitors' side.

"The game felt big-time," Salisbury coach Sherman Wood said. "You could hear every voice, every cheer. Sounds seem to carry better at night."

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Midfield brother act has Retrievers feeling bullish

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