Sports

A recreational group from Milan, NH plays softball one evening as steam from the Berlin pulp mill surrounds them. 250 jobs will be lost when the mill closes.
  
Maia Chaka is one of the few female football referees in the area. She officiates a game at Greenbrier Christian Academy in Chesapeake, Va.
   
Jesse Pereira, 22, briefly holds onto a moment of defeat while skating with friends in Denver on Wednesday, January 21, 2009. People around the city enjoyed the unseasonably warm temperatures which were expected to break the record high of 70 degrees set in 1950. "It's the best day all winter," he said.
     
  
Despite his best efforts, Kearsarge's Tom Bloch can't make the save during a 0-2 loss to Bow High.
   
Ocean Lakes' Audrey Batzel collapses on her father Mark after finishing first in the Eastern Region cross country meet at Bells Mill Park in Chesapeake, Va., on Thursday, November 4, 2010. At left is her mother Kathy Batzel. (Preston Gannaway/The Virginian-Pilot)
   
Inmate Matthew Warren shoots hoops in the activities area gym yesterday at the new Merrimack County Jail. At the new facility, inmates are rewarded with freedoms for good behavior.
     
  
A NASCAR fan tries to get a photo of a driver through the fence before the Lenox 300 at New Hampshire International Speedway in Loudon on July 1, 2007.
   
Rick Guardino, of the Sin City Skulls, catches his breath during a game at the U.S. Quad Rugby Association National Championships in Birmingham, Ala.
   
Coe-Brown High School third baseman Larry Potvin gets tangled up with Merrimack Valley's Tyler Craigue during a game at Rolfe Park.
     
  
Atil Tosun practices breath-holding techniques underwater during the Mid-Atlantic Long Fins Club's practice at Dive Quarters in Virginia Beach, Va., on Thursday, July 8, 2010. The club is for people who spear fish while free diving. They hold their breath for 1-4 minutes.
   
Quinton Ellis, 9, practices his dismount in preparation for the goat-tie event in front of his mother, LeAnne, at the Santa Fe County 4H Rodeo at the Santa Fe rodeo grounds. This was Ellis' first year participating in 4H rodeo.
   
Gilford High senior Nate Babcock, 17, practices his javelin throw on a rainy afternoon. In 2004, Babcock was No. 2 in the state for javelin. In 2005, he went through three types of chemotherapy. Before his cancer diagnosis, Babcock planned on focusing on the state title.
     
  
Players form a scrum during a recent practice. Kearsarge Regional High School has one of the few rugby clubs at a New Hampshire public school.
   
Grayson Richey (left) and Warren Billings congratulate each other after collapsing next to their rowing machines following a rigorous workout. The Concord High School boys' crew team is preparing for the Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston. "I think this will be the most important race of my entire life," Billings said.
   
Players from the Merrimack Mudcats team watch the action and offer support from the sidelines during the annual Mud Bowl Championship in North Conway, NH.