Articles by: sports

 

• Sweep and Sour

  Sports February 2, 2010 at 7:23 pm Comments are Disabled

  Cody Norman, Staff Writer The men’s volleyball team hung with the Ohio State Buckeyes, ranked 13th in the nation, for much of the evening but was unable to capitalize late in the sets as they fell on Thursday evening at St. John Arena in Columbus, Ohio. The Buckeyes swept Mason in three sets, 30-24, 33-31, 31-29. Junior outside hitter Eric Lucas led Mason in kills for the second consecutive match to open this season with a total of 16. The loss drops Mason’s record to 1-1 on the season after defeating Lees-McRae at the RAC on Jan. 23. Tied at 18, the Buckeyes scored the next three points after Grayson Overman recorded a solo block. Mason eventually rallied to cut the lead to 23-21, but a couple of errors gave the Buckeyes a 26-21 lead. The Buckeyes took the set 30-24 and hit a set-high .400 in the first-third of the match. Mason, on the other hand, hit only .057. Mason led for most of the second set, holding a 22-19 lead in the latter part of the set. After the Buckeyes came back to knot things up at 25, Mason regained the lead 27-25 and eventually had set point […]

   

• Mason to Take on the Pride on Thursday

  Sports February 2, 2010 at 7:21 pm Comments are Disabled

  Brian T. Chan, Sports Editor Overview: Entering Sunday’s game against the Northeastern Huskies, the women’s basketball team had an 8-11 overall record, winning only once in seven contests against the conference opponents. The Hofstra Pride are 11-9 and 4-4 in the conference. The two teams will square off on Thursday at 7 p.m. at the Patriot Center. Mason: The Patriots dropped its first home game against a conference opponent on Jan. 24 in a 69-55 loss to the William & Mary Tribe after winning its first conference game against the Northeastern Huskies the week prior to that. During the press conference after the loss to the Tribe, Head Coach Jeri Porter mentioned the team’s “lack of an interior game.” The Tribe out-rebounded the Patriots 54-35. Mason will face the tall task of going against the Pride’s two big players in forward Shante Evans and center Jess Fuller. Hofstra: Evans leads the Pride in scoring and rebounding with 13.3 points per game and 9.2 rebounds per game. Fuller provides a strong body in the post, recording 9.6 PPG and 7.3 RPG. Fuller is also the Colonial Athletic Association’s leading shooter. While trying to remain in the upper half of the ladder, […]

   

• Terps Top Mason: Injury Bug Bites Mason Wrestling

  Sports February 2, 2010 at 7:19 pm Comments are Disabled

  John Powell, Asst. Sports Editor Maryland 35, George Mason 6 125: Pat Strizki (Maryland) dec. Brian Wright (Mason), 8-4 133: Steve Bell (Maryland) major dec. Denny Herndon (Mason), 12-4 141: Matt Bogusz (Maryland) major dec. Jaaziah Bethea (Mason), 12-3 149: Jon Kohler (Maryland) dec. Brandon Butcher (Mason), 11-9 157: Kyle John (Maryland) dec. Aaron Keeton (Mason), 11-5 165: Josh Asper (Maryland) major dec. Ty Knepp (Mason), 15-4 174: Mendbagana Tovuujav (Mason) fall Owen Smith (Maryland), 4:30 184: Corey Peltier (Maryland) dec. Andrew Rock (Mason), 10-3 197: Hudson Taylor (Maryland) wins by forf. 285: Pat Gilmore (Maryland) tech. fall Hunter Masnpile (Mason), 15-0 (5:58) The Maryland Terrapins (16-4), ranked 11th in the nation, defeated the George Mason Patriots (3-8) by a final score of 35-6. Sophomore Mendbagana Tovuujav extended his amazing winning streak to nine matches. However, these were the only points scored by the Patriots all night. The first two matches saw quick covers by the Maryland wrestlers, sophomore Pat Strizki and senior Steve Bell. Sophomore Denny Herndon came off a leg injury from his freshman season and is now beginning to perform a bit better on the leg. “Steve Bell is one of the best kids in the country, […]

   

• Winning Sweet 16: Mason Extends Home Winning Streak

  Sports February 2, 2010 at 7:18 pm Comments are Disabled

  Brian T. Chan, Sports Editor Head Coach Jim Larranaga has always praised Louis Birdsong’s athleticism. On Wednesday night, the senior forward received the starting nod and thrived from all angles as the men’s basketball team topped the Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens 77-66 to win its 16th consecutive home game against a conference opponent. Mason jumped out to an early 12-2 lead, and after the Blue Hens closed the gap to 14-10, the Patriots regained its composure and went on a 17-0 run. Coming off a three-game road trip, the team’s offensive explosion had not gone away, going into halftime with a 38-17 lead. In the first half, Mason shot on all cylinders, making 6-of-10 shots from long distance. Sophomore guard Andre Cornelius had the hot hand with 12 points on 3-of-4 from behind the arc in the first half. For the first 20 minutes, the defense completely locked down on the Blue Hens’ two leading scorers: guards Jawan Carter and Alphonso Dawson. Both players combined for just 1-of-12 shooting and two points. “In the first half, everyone had good intensity,” said Cornelius. “We [were] playing good defense, and we let down a little bit in the second half, but we […]

   

• Kallenberger: A Fresh Face: First-Year Forward Makes All-Conference Impact

  Sports February 2, 2010 at 6:25 pm Comments are Disabled

  John Powell, Assistant Sports Editor Freshman forward Tiana Kallenberger has been devoted to sports and has used her skills at George Mason University to power through defenses to put herself in the running for conference awards. Before coming to Mason, she played for the Trojans of University High School in Irvine, Calif. More than a decade ago, Kallenberger’s parents pushed her to play a wide variety of sports, throwing her into the world of an athlete at a young age. She spent her time playing soccer, basketball and swimming, while involved in student council and some school clubs. “In the beginning, I had [no skill]; it was just a bunch of running around,” Kallenberger said of the beginning of her soccer career. Her coaches molded her into an impact soccer player, which became her biggest influence in the game. “In addition to her exceptional soccer skills and natural athleticism, Tiana is also an extremely hard working and dedicated person,” said her former high school coach Chip Fuller. “Her individual work ethic is very rare in someone so young.” In high school, this led to Tiana receiving All-League and All-County honors. This season, she looked to make an impact and bring […]

   

• The Clash of the Fans: Mason Competes with VCU in the Facebook Face-Off

  Sports February 2, 2010 at 6:24 pm Comments are Disabled

  Brian T. Chan, Sports Editor Already one of the largest universities in the state of Virginia and the school with the largest attendance in the Colonial Athletic Association at the men’s basketball games, George Mason University has renewed its competitive rivalry with Virginia Commonwealth University to a whole new level: to obtain the most new Facebook fans. In a span of 22 days, the two schools will partake in the first-ever Facebook Face-Off, a contest to bring in the most new fans. The contest, which began at noon last Tuesday, will conclude at the same time on Saturday, Feb. 9. The winning school will be revealed at halftime during the men’s basketball game between Mason and VCU. The idea for the Facebook Face-Off originated from a contest between Louisiana State University and Texas A&M University for football, which led to Tammy Berwanger, the project manager in the VCU Department of Marketing, introducing the competition in the CAA last November. Both schools got on board with the contest. “Late last year, someone from the marketing department at VCU contacted us about it,” said Tara Laskowski, manager in the Office of Media and Public Relations. “They’ve been doing work in social media […]

   

• Offense Comes Alive: Long Logs in Another Career High

  Sports February 2, 2010 at 6:23 pm 2 comments

  Yasin Jama, Staff Writer The men’s basketball team continued its hot streak in conference play this past Tuesday in Hempstead, N.Y., defeating the Hofstra Pride 90-72. Mason (12-7, 7-1) extended its win streak to four games and won its second straight road game. The team won its fifth straight against the Pride (9-11, 2-6). Junior guard Cam Long led the Patriots with a career-high 27 points and seven assists, shooting 9-of-11 from the field and 4-of-5 from 3-point range. In his last game, Long matched his career high of 24 points. Mason also received key contributions from the three sophomores on the team. Scoring in double figures were forwards Ryan Pearson and Mike Morrison with 19 points and 10, respectively, and guard Andre Cornelius with 18. Pearson nearly recorded his second double-double of the season, falling one rebound shy. Mason started the contest red hot from the floor, similar to last weekend’s game against the James Madison Dukes. On Tuesday night, Mason shot 46.7 percent from the field, including 6-of-10 from 3-point range. Mason closed the first half with a 13-6 run to hold a 38-30 lead. Mason never trailed in the second half, building their lead as much as […]

   

• MLB Best and Worst Signings and Trades II

  Sports February 2, 2010 at 6:20 pm Comments are Disabled

  Chris DeMarco, Staff Writer Blue Jay Flies South Roy Halladay is considered to be one of the best pitchers in baseball over the last decade. Many top-tier teams were in hot pursuit of his services at the trading deadline last season, but no one could seem to match the ridiculous asking price that then-Toronto Blue Jays General Manager J.P. Riccardi was asking in return. One of those teams in pursuit of Halladay was the then-defending champs Philadelphia Phillies. The Blue Jays were asking the Phillies to give up their top prospects, and the Phillies initially balked at the idea and turned to the Cleveland Indians, landing Cliff Lee in what was considered to be the top move of last season. Since contract negotiations stalled with Lee, the Phillies finally made the deal for Halladay happen by sending top prospects Kyle Drabek and Michael Taylor to the Blue Jays. The Phillies immediately agreed on a three-year, $60 million extension with Halladay. This move marked the second big deal since July in which the Phillies landed a former Cy Young-winning pitcher. This was one of many moves the Phillies needed to make to remain the top team in the National League. With […]

   

• MLB Best and Worst Signings and Trades

  Sports February 2, 2010 at 6:18 pm Comments are Disabled

  Brian T. Chan, Sports Editor It Takes Two to Close After exhibiting a reluctance to spend money last offseason, many teams have taken a different route this winter, signing relief pitchers – not even the premium guys – to multi-year contracts. The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim signing Fernando Rodney for two years and $11 million to consolidate the back-end of the bullpen poses a challenge for Brian Fuentes. Despite picking up a career-high and major league-leading 48 saves, Fuentes blew seven save opportunities and had his lowest strikeout rate in his career. The Rodney acquisition may signify the Angels’ distrust in Fuentes holding the closer incumbency without a little competition. With the Detroit Tigers last season, Rodney converted 37 of 38 saves. Known for his mid-90s gas, Rodney saw his groundball rate swell to 57.9 percent with his effective changeup. Yet, in spite of the positive aspects from 2009, Rodney still struggled with his control. He walked 4.88 batters per nine innings (BB/9), an improvement from 6.69 BB/9 in 2008, but in addition to a plunge in his strikeout rate, his strikeout-to-walk ratio actually decreased as well. Rodney’s role for 2010 is undetermined since Fuentes will likely reprise his […]

   

• New Faces, New Impact

  Sports February 2, 2010 at 6:16 pm Comments are Disabled

  Fernanda Bartels, Staff Writer The men’s volleyball team started their season last Saturday against Lees-McRae College. The Patriots finished last season with a 14-16 overall record and a 5-7 conference record. With new faces and a changed lineup, the team looks to be as strong as ever. “We are going to be a more evenly balanced team than we were last year,” said Head Coach Fred Chao. “We won’t be necessarily as big, especially in our outside hitter’s slots, but I think the quality of the volleyball players that we are going to have in those positions is going to be very good.” Senior outside hitter Luke Maloney and junior outside hitter and libero Eric Lucas are key players on the court. “[Maloney and Lucas] are our best overall volleyball players,” said Chao. “We are going to need them on the court on whatever capacity” said Chao. Lucas switched his position from libero to outside hitter for this season. He was the starting libero last season, leading the team with 309 digs, the highest single-season total in school history and the second-best total of all time. After having a great season in 2009, Maloney enters his last season at Mason. […]