Lemon returned the opening kickoff for his first of four scores and Billy Cosh set a new state record for touchdown passes in Arundel's 49-15 victory over North County in the Class 4A East Region semifinal last night.

"I knew he was going to do it right away," Cosh said. "I just had that feeling. He's a great player."

The Syracuse-bound receiver caught a pair of touchdown passes and returned his second interception 38 yards in the third quarter to hold North County at bay a year after Arundel had to come from behind in the final minute for a region final berth.

Lemon led the Wildcats with nine catches for 181 yards, part of his 375 all-purpose yards.

"He's the best player in Anne Arundel County," Wildcats coach Chuck Markiewicz said. "I don't know how anybody can dispute that."

Cosh, who threw five touchdown passes for the fifth consecutive game, broke the public school record with a 5-yard pass to Scott Green in the second quarter to give Arundel a 14-7 lead. But he was just getting started.

Cosh found Lemon twice and threw touchdown passes to R.J. Harris and Derrick Rhodes in the second half.

"I could tell from last year, him being a backup, that he could break this," said Lemon, who has caught 21 touchdown passes. "Especially with the weapons we have."

Cosh played behind Nick Elko last season and watched him throw a record 43 touchdowns while leading Arundel into the Class 4A state final and a 13-1 mark.

Through 11 games, Cosh has 48 touchdowns, and he's got at least one to play. The Wildcats will host Severna Park at 7 p.m. Friday in the Class 4A East Region final.

"There was a lot of talk about it and everything," Cosh said. "I just wanted to win and play another week. Fortunately, we get to do that and do it at home."

North County (9-3) lost consecutive games for the first time this season. Following a 7-6 loss to Broadneck last week - denying them a share of the county championship - the Knights played without rushing leader Dino Stevens for much of the last three quarters.

After Stevens tied the score at 7 on a 6-yard run at the start of the second quarter, North County couldn't maintain much of an attack and watched Arundel score the next 35 points.

"That's part of the game," Knights coach Gary Liddick said. "You've got to live and die with it."

Stevens ran for 65 yards on 11 carries before leaving the game with 5:31 left in the second quarter. After a two-yard gain, Stevens was slow to get up and needed help walking off the field because of an injured knee.

"I just went down," said Stevens, who finished the season with 1,555 yards and 21 touchdowns. "It might be a little bit sprained, but it's nothing too serious."

Cosh connected with Green for a 5-yard score with 6:43 left in the second, and he and Lemon hooked up for a 42-yard touchdown five plays after Stevens left for a 21-7 lead.

Harris began the third period by taking a pass from Cosh down the left sideline for a score. Harris caught the ball on the 20-yard line and moved to his right to get by North County's Brett McKay for a clean shot at the end zone with 9:43 left.

Lemon, who picked off Travis Delizio's first pass, stepped in front of another one near the end of the third quarter. Lemon moved in front of Knights receiver Steve Perkins and dashed 38 yards to put Arundel up, 35-7.

"Our coaches put us in a great spot," said Lemon, who scored on a 22-yard pass at the end of the third quarter. "I was right there for both interceptions and just made plays on them."

Steadman Beatty capped a nine-play drive for North County with a 4-yard touchdown run and added a 2-point conversion run, but Cosh answered with a 41-yard pass to Rhodes three plays later.

"I guess they wanted it more than we did," Stevens said. "They came to play, and we didn't come to play."

North County (8-3) 0 7 0 8 - 15

Arundel (10-1) 7 14 21 7 - 49

AR - Lemon 85 kick return (Alderman kick)

NC - Stevens 6 run (Stevens kick)

AR - Green 5 pass from Cosh (Alderman kick)

AR - Lemon 42 pass from Cosh (Alderman kick)

AR - Harris 42 pass from Cosh (Alderman kick)

AR - Lemon 38 interception return (Alderman kick)

AR - Lemon 22 pass from Cosh (Alderman kick)

NC - Beatty 1 run (Beatty run)

AR - Rhodes 41 pass from Cosh (Alderman kick)

RUSHING: NC - 33-157 (Stevens 11-65, Drummond 12-37, Perkins 1-30, Delizio 5-19, Davis 2-6, Beatty 2-0); AR - 12-20 (Rhodes 4-17, Sisk-Johnson 2-7, Lemon 2- minus-1, Cosh 4- minus-3). PASSING: NC - Delizio 12-28-3=160 yards; AR - Cosh 26-38=402 yards.