Recent Posts

• Spirited Students make mardi gras homecoming a success

  News1 February 22, 2010 at 1:35 pm Comments are Disabled

  Ethan Vaughan, Asst. News Editor n true Mardi Gras fashion, a variety of spirited events marked Homecoming Week. Highlights of the week included Monday’s Mardi Gras Madness, The Big Easy Pageant in Dewberry Hall, a can drive, a talent competition and a comedy show in the JC Cinema. The two major snowstorms that caused the university to close for nearly a week earlier this month caused some disruptions to scheduling, but they were minimal and most plans were carried out smoothly. “Everything is going well, especially [considering that] we had to change some things around because of the Snowpocalypse,” said Michelle Davis, Student Activities’ assistant director of programming. “We were supposed to have a tent in the North Plaza with different activities and we couldn’t because of the snow, but we just moved it to the Johnson Center,” said Davis, “We still had at least 100 people come around every day to participate, and while we would have had more if we’d done it outside it was still successful.”

   

• Fan Fave Tributes

  Lifestyle February 21, 2010 at 8:59 pm Comments are Disabled

  Pearson Jones, Asst. Style Editor Not everyone has the nerve to pick up the mic on karaoke night. It only takes ridicule from one audience member channeling his inner Simon Cowell to leave pop idol dreams destroyed and two for one drink deals at karaoke bars often leave you alone to defend yourself against a crowd full of liquid courage. George Mason University’s first ever lip syncing contest, “Lip Syncing on the Bayou” created a solution for all these possible karaoke downfalls, however. Last Wednesday, students from different George Mason University organizations competed in a lip synching competition. It was a battle of fan fave tributes where students didn’t have to worry about their voice cracking or messing up the lyrics. The homecoming event welcomed a large group of students eager to support their favorite groups. Fraternity and sorority chapters mainly dominated the night’s lineup of performers, but a few groups including the Mason Crew Club, Hispanic Student Association, a group called Tika and a free style rapper named V also performed. The show commenced with a tribute to Phil Collins by Kappa Sig mouthing the instantly recognizable “In the Air Tonight,” a song made even more popular recently by […]

   

• Georgetown Teams with Mason; Schools Form ‘George Squared’

  News1 February 18, 2010 at 12:14 pm Comments are Disabled

  Natisha Venzen, Broadside Correspondent Students pursuing careers in medicine may have just found their golden ticket. Say hello to “George Squared.” According to George Mason University Provost Dr. Peter Stearns, George Squared is a partnership between George Mason and Georgetown medical schools to find ways to develop and deliver medical education programs based on Mason’s Prince William Campus. “Georgetown will provide the medical strength and George Mason will provide strength in areas like biomedical technology, proteomics and other aspects of medical related research,” said Stearns. The collaboration will additionally generate a joint certificate program next year designed for people who are hoping to improve their preparation for medical school, and in the following year, that is fall 2011, we will open a joint masters program also designed for people heading in the health professions,” Stearns continued. George Squared promises to be an exciting collaboration of schools that medical students will soon be able to take advantage of. “We have really good professors from George Mason and Georgetown, and with this partnership, teachers from both colleges will be training these students, and people who go through this training will have [a] top notch education,” said Abigail Perez, a freshman nursing major. […]

   

• Revised Exam Schedule Unveiled; No Readings Days, Shorter Exams Part of New Plan

  News1 February 18, 2010 at 11:55 am Comments are Disabled

  Emily Sharrer, Editor-in-Chief To make up classes missed due to last week’s snowstorms, final exams originally scheduled for May 5-7, will be pushed back to May 8-12 and a reading day scheduled for May 4 has been cancelled. Final exams, which are usually two hours and 45 minutes long, will be reduced to two hours, with six exams scheduled over four days, as opposed to the original plan of having five exams over five days. George Mason University Provost Peter Stearns announced the makeup class plan and unveiled the new final exam schedule to students, faculty and staff via e-mail on Friday. Classes at the university, which were cancelled since 12:30 p.m. Feb. 5, resumed Friday. “We can press the exam schedule back and that frees up several days — plus the reading days — to make up as best as possible for the days we missed in this latest series of storms,” said Stearns. This is the first time within at least ten years the university has scheduled exams on a Saturday according to Stearns. “We’ve used Saturdays in case of difficulty, as well as for some Saturday classes, but this is the first time to my knowledge that […]

   

• Grab a Mask; Mardi Gras Themed Homecoming Week to Commence

  News1 February 18, 2010 at 11:31 am Comments are Disabled

  Bridgit Fox, Broadside Correspondent Homecoming 2010 is guaranteed to work the George Mason University community into a frenzy with a whole week of inspiring events, which began yesterday with our women’s basketball game against Old Dominion University. The week’s events are to include the highly anticipated “Big Easy” Pageant hosted by Reann Ballslee, also known as Ryan Allen, Lip Syncing on the Bayou, Can-Can for Cans and many more. Considering Homecoming will fall during Mardi Gras, everyone is asked to “Unmasque Your Spirit” with a quintessential New Orleans theme. “We started planning for Homecoming back in the beginning of the fall semester,” said Assistant Director of Programming in Student Activities Michelle Davis. “It can get tricky because we don’t know the time of the game until two weeks before, so we have to be careful of that as well.” Can-Can for Cans, taking place on Tuesday in the Student Union Building II ballroom is the charity event Mason will be supporting during Homecoming this year. This competition invites students to craft structures out of non-perishable food donations, all the while being as imaginative as possible. Each team will be critiqued not only on their creativity, but also on the amount […]

   

• Not the Great Escape; Mason Falls to Georgia State in Final Minutes

  Sports February 18, 2010 at 11:20 am Comments are Disabled

  Brian T. Chan, Sports Editor The men’s basketball team fell for the first time in nearly a month, losing in a 61-57 decision to the Georgia State Panthers last Wednesday. Mason (15-8, 10-2), winners of seven straight, had its road winning streak end at three games, while the Panthers (10-14, 4-8) evened up the season series. Sophomore forward Ryan Pearson led the Patriots with 13 points and eight rebounds, and freshman forward Luke Hancock added 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting. But the team could not contain Panthers’ reserve player Jihad Ali, who scored a game-high 22 points to surpass his previous high of 12 points. Ali hit the eventual game-winner, a 3-pointer with 42 seconds left to give the Panthers a 58-57 lead. Mason was in control in the first half, leading by as much as seven points. Junior guard Isaiah Tate nailed two 3-pointers leading to his eight first-half points. The Patriots went into the half with a 27-22 lead, but both offenses had a sluggish start in the first 20 minutes. The Panthers shot just 29.6 percent from the field but Mason was not any better, shooting 34.5 percent. In the second half, the Panthers clawed back from […]

   

• Powell’s Playbook

  Sports February 18, 2010 at 11:19 am Comments are Disabled

  John Powell, Asst. Sports Editor I’ll admit. I was a bit perturbed after watching the clock wind down with only one Mason point on the board. The Monarch fan laughing maniacally in my ear for the entire game did not help either. A 16-point run at the beginning of the game was, needless to say, disconcerting. The first half of the Old Dominion game got me thinking, “Why is it that when the Patriots travel to play a decent team, they seem to flounder on offense?” I was reminded of the pitiful game at George Washington, but at least that loss did not count for a conference record. “Guys, we’re playing George Mason, not Georgetown,” said an ODU fan sitting behind me at the game. Have the Patriots really come to this? Mason was once in sole possession of the top spot in the conference, ahead of the Old Dominion team that subsequently handed Mason a terrible loss, sending them to third place. I had high hopes for the team after seeing them do well, albeit losing, in the game against then-No. 5 Villanova in the ESPN Puerto Rico Challenge. Because of this loss in Norfolk, Va., however, I find […]

   

• Advancing on the Path; World Cup: U.S. Soccer Team Finds Pressure

  Sports February 18, 2010 at 11:17 am Comments are Disabled

  Donald O’Mahony, Broadside Correspondent The expectations will be high when the United States soccer team arrives at this summer’s World Cup. After their surprise run in 2002 and their tough draw in 2006, the Americans are poised for a solid showing in 2010. Americans everywhere were thrilled on Dec. 9 of last year when their team was drawn into a group with England, Algeria and Slovenia. Many worried that the U.S. would be drawn into another tough group like they were in 2006, with Italy, Czech Republic and Ghana. However, Group C looks to be one of the most straightforward groups going into the summer. If everything goes as expected, the U.S. should finish second in Group C and would likely take on Germany in the round of 16. The Americans would be looking to avenge a controversial loss to the Germans in the quarterfinals of the 2002 World Cup. It will be very important for Head Coach Bob Bradley to have his team playing at the highest level possible going into the summer. Whispers of a coaching change for the U.S. were starting to be heard before their outstanding performance at the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, in which they […]

   

• And the Beat Goes On; Patriots Outlast Rams in Overtime

  Sports February 18, 2010 at 11:16 am Comments are Disabled

  Cody Norman, Staff Writer The men’s basketball team carried a 17-game home conference winning streak back into the Patriot Center for another Colonial Athletic Association matchup with the VCU Rams on Tuesday night. Mason had dropped back-to-back games for the first time in 2010 while the Rams were one of the hottest teams in the CAA, winning eight of their previous nine contests. The ESPNU crew was in attendance to broadcast the thrilling rivalry, former Washington Redskins linebacker LaVar Arrington sat courtside and the Patriot Center was packed with the most students in school history. Tuesday night’s game had all the makings of an unforgettable matchup, and it certainly lived up to all the hype. The Patriots came out a little flat-footed in the first half and got beat to seemingly every loose ball. VCU capitalized on 22 points in the paint while connecting on 13 points off nine Mason turnovers. VCU left the court at halftime with a comfortable 41-28 lead and appeared to have the Patriots right where they wanted them. But Mason’s only senior, forward Louis Birdsong, gave his team a much needed lift as he scored five straight points highlighted by an impressive one-handed slam over […]

   

• Second Half Rally Falls Short

  Sports February 18, 2010 at 11:15 am Comments are Disabled

  Brian T. Chan, Sports Editor For the second straight game, the women’s basketball team fell short in an inspiring effort on the road. Mason lost its seventh consecutive game and 11th overall road game in a 51-47 loss to the UNC-Wilmington Seahawks on Thursday night. The Patriots dropped to 8-15 overall and 1-11 in the Colonial Athletic Association while the Seahawks improved to 8-15 overall and 3-9 in the conference. In the first half, junior guard Brittany Poindexter led Mason with eight points on 4-of-9 shooting and grabbed four rebounds, and freshman forward Janaa Pickard and junior guard Ashleigh Braxton added four points apiece. The team trailed 27-18 at halftime after shooting just 32.1 percent from the field. Mason started the game down 5-4 at the 15:37 mark, but the Seahawks responded with a 9-0 run and eventually extended its lead to 15 late in the first half. Down 25-10 at the point, the Patriots closed the half on an 8-2 run. Mason’s persistent run had gradually trimmed into the Seahawks’ lead; midway through the second half, Mason had trailed by just three points at 39-36. The Seahawks scored the next six points, but Mason again mounted a comeback, cutting […]