Articles by: sports

 

• Mason Looks to Muzzle Huskies

  Sports October 1, 2009 at 2:01 pm Comments are Disabled

  Yasin Jama, Broadside Correspondent The George Mason University women’s soccer team, ranked fifth in the NSCAA Mid-Atlantic Region Polls, will continue their conference tune-up when they host the Northeastern Huskies. The game will be played at George Mason Stadium at 2 p.m. The team is off to a great start with its young roster, winning eight of the first nine games. Redshirt junior midfielder Omolyn Davis leads the team with six goals and has 14 points. Davis is among two other players with 14 points, which includes senior forward Kelly Keelan and freshman forward Tiana Kallenberger. Keelan has four goals and six assists while Kallenberger has three goals and five assists. Fellow freshman goalkeeper Katie Frey earned the CAA Rookie of the Week this week. Of Mason’s eight victories, four of them have come from playing at home, that stat propelled by the fact that Mason has not given up an opposing team’s goal at home. With the exception of Mason’s 3-1 loss to the Pennsylvania Quakers, Mason has been terrific so far in the 2009 season. However, Mason could be facing its toughest game of the season this Sunday when they take on the third-ranked Huskies. Freshman Devin Pets […]

   

• Double Feature: Conference Home Openers: Mason Hosts Conference Games This Weekend

  Sports October 1, 2009 at 1:59 pm Comments are Disabled

  John Powell, Asst. Sports Editor George Mason University: The volleyball team has made a strong showing this year so far, coming back from a dismal season. Finishing their non-conference schedule, the Patriots went 11-4 before opening up their conference schedule. Mason took two of three matches at the West Virginia Invitational, before dropping the finale to the West Virginia Mountaineers. Mason won eight consecutive sets before dropping the last three to the Mountaineers. The win surge has come on the back of a staff writer and defensive specialist. Junior setter Fernanda Bartels earned the Co-Defensive Player of the Week award. This is the first weekly award of her career and the second Patriots’ award of the season. She was second on the team in digs and blocks in the West Virginia Invitational. The Brazilian recorded 36 digs, 11 blocks and 101 assists in the tournament. Bartels leads the CAA and is second in assists per set. Another defensive star is Kelsey Bohman who earned the Co-Defensive Player of the Week award two weeks before her teammate. The Patriots have tallied the most non-conference wins since their 1996 season and hoped to ride on the back of this recent success as […]

   

• Mason Lances Longwood: Kelley Holds Lancers Scoreless

  Sports October 1, 2009 at 1:56 pm Comments are Disabled

  John Powell, Asst. Sports Editor The George Mason Universitymen’s soccer team took on the Longwood Lancers Wednesday night. The Patriots recorded only one goal in the first half but a second-half offensive surge led to a 4-0 win. Going into the game, Longwood had only scored only one goal, for a record of 1-3-2, with two no-score tie games. On the opposite end, Mason entered the game with a 3-2 record, backed by senior goalkeeper Sean Kelley. In the first six minutes of the game, the Lancer sophomore goalkeeper Joel Helmick was injured and taken off the field after colliding with a Mason player. This set the tone for the game as many more players were taken off the field due to injuries from both teams throughout the game. Neither team showed any urgency to score during the first half, as each team took only four shots. Lancer freshman backup goalkeeper Ben Eanes managed one save, while letting one other ball through. Kelley, on the other hand, made two saves, not letting any pass him by. Coming back from last year’s season-ending injury, sophomore defender Eric Zuehsow took the ball from redshirt junior forward Irvin Martinez and knocked it in […]

   

• Phillies Look for Repetition: Phillies to Defend Last Season’s Title

  Sports October 1, 2009 at 1:55 pm Comments are Disabled

  Chris DeMarco, Staff Writer The New York Yankees accomplished a back-to-back World Series title in grand fashion: winning it three consecutive times from 1998 through 2000. Since then, no team has accomplished such a feat. The Philadelphia Phillies will have their shot this year. Last year, not even the die-hard Phillies’ fans expected to win the World Series. When they did, it was extremely bittersweet for all fans of Philadelphia sports teams. I would know, since I have been living and dying with Philly sports for 22 years, and I was ecstatic when they won. What really epitomizes the Phillies’ remarkable run is the support they receive from their fans. For example, my father jumped through the roof when Brad Lidge struck out Eric Hinske to win the World Series. My father has been a Phillies’ fan forever. After all the years of heartbreak, his reaction said it all. It had been too long, and now we expect it again. In order to keep Phillies’ fans happy, the Phillies have to do a couple things and hope that some things fall in their favor again. The biggest key to winning another title will ultimately hinge on the pitching of the […]

   

• The Goode Side of Hollyball: Junior Lives the Goode Life at Mason

  Sports October 1, 2009 at 1:53 pm 1 comment

  Brian T. Chan, Sports Editor Junior middle blocker and opposite hitter Holly Goode claims that she was really bad when she first encountered volleyball in high school. Goode, who needed just two years of experience prior to joining the George Mason University women’s volleyball team, is finally at the breakout point of her career as a full-time starter. Entering the season’s conference opener, Goode led the team with 129 kills and a .312 attack percentage. Goode has been on a tear lately, recording double-digit kills in the past five matches. During that span, she averaged 3.15 kills per set and posted a .361 attack percentage. “Sometimes if I play well the first game with my hair a certain way, I will [have the routine to] do my hair that way [for upcoming games],” said Goode. Goode had a career-high 11 kills against the UNC-Wilmington Seahawks last season. She already surpassed that total five times this season. Goode registered 17 kills in just the second match this season, a five-set thriller against the Georgetown Hoyas in the D.C. Volleyball Challenge. Goode, an exercise science major, arrived at the Fairfax campus two years ago and immediately fell in love with the campus. […]

   

• Leaving Out Lester: Southpaw Makes His Pitch for the Cy Young

  Sports October 1, 2009 at 1:52 pm Comments are Disabled

  Brian T. Chan, Sports Editor Take the following blindfolded taste test: Pitcher A, valued at $23 million according to FanGraphs, posted a 16-6 record with a 3.21 ERA last season, and Pitcher B posted an 18-3 record with a 2.90 ERA, but was valued at $14.9 million. Which pitcher was considered for the AL Cy Young award last season? Unlike last year, Boston Red Sox pitcher Jon Lester faces a stiffer competition this season. Dominating the AL, Kansas City Royals pitcher Zack Greinke is the frontrunner to win the award, the first for a Royals’ pitcher since David Cone won the Cy Young 15 years ago. Like Cone, who won in the shortened season due to the infamous strike, Greinke faces a situation in which the skeptical voters may reluctantly select a representative from the team that currently sits in the cellar of the league. I will avoid the Greinke discussion, which emerges in the media everyday, and rather provide an argument for Lester to be considered in this year’s ballot. This season it has been a complete turnaround in the wrong direction for Lester’s teammate Daisuke Matsuzaka, although he recently had one of his best outings since returning from […]

   

• In My Own Words: Visiting Some Old Friends

  Sports October 1, 2009 at 1:49 pm Comments are Disabled

  Fernanda Bartels, Staff Writer With conference games starting this weekend, the real competition begins now. I have been waiting for this time of the season since the beginning of August. We are at the point where we played enough games to become a cohesive unit, but we still have some adjustments to make. We have improved in fundamental aspects, but we are not playing our best yet. We overcame some tough opponents, but the most amazing victories have yet to come. There is no better time during the season than now. It has been exciting especially due to the fresh start this season. Even though we have been playing for over a month, I still have that cold feeling in my stomach when I step on the court for our first conference match. It’s amazing how that feeling doesn’t go away even after many years of volleyball. Besides the excitement of a first game, it is also good to play our rivals. There is a big difference between playing the James Madison University Dukes and the Wright State Raiders. In my collegiate career, I have played against Wright State once. My expectations for Wright State were based on the information […]

   

• The Rise of Stadiums: Teams Look for Change in Scenery

  Sports September 22, 2009 at 2:58 pm Comments are Disabled

  John Powell, Assistant Sports Editor The last year has seen a gargantuan difference in stadium trends. Two $1 billion stadiums have been constructed. The world’s largest replay board was constructed not once, but twice for the same stadium. Two comparisons can be made: the billion-dollar budget baseball stadiums in New York and the differences in the two largest stadiums in the National Football League. The new Yankee Stadium has become the monument of the New York Yankees. The Steinbrenner philosophy, “This is the Yankees, everything has to be done first-rate,” is embodied in the $1.5 billion stadium. While many other ballparks have a relatively low seating capacity, the Yankees play in front of a stadium which accommodates 52,000 fans. The average ticket price has risen to $72.97, a 76 percent increase from 2008. There are seats for everyone’s price range. Tickets are only $5 for the obstructed view seats while the premium seats can go for up to $2,625 per game. 1,400 video monitors give fans the ultimate game experience, used for instant replays and delayed video for fans that get out of their seats for the concessions. The new Yankee Stadium is the most expensive ballpark in the game, […]

   

• Sean Kelley, Keeper of the Safe: Senior Goalkeeper Dominates Opponents

  Sports September 22, 2009 at 2:57 pm Comments are Disabled

  Fernanda Bartels, Broadside Correspondent For opposing offenses, facing the George Mason University men’s soccer goalkeeper Sean Kelley is their worst nightmare. The Lexington, Ky. native held opponents scoreless in six of the nine final games last season. Kelley started playing soccer when he was young. Coming from a family of athletes, the talent for sports came naturally.  His father, Scott Kelley, played basketball in college. “[My dad] was a big influence with sports [and was] always very supportive,” said Kelley. Kelley played baseball, basketball and soccer before focusing only on soccer. When it came down to choosing his main sport, he chose soccer over the other sports because he was “better at soccer” and also his friends’ influence helped him choose. Kelley was a standout player in high school, where he was recognized nationally in his senior year, being nominated as a member of the NSCAA All-America team, Gatorade Player of the Year as well as winning other honors. He was one step away from Mason after he caught Head Coach Greg Andrulis’ attention. “I was part of [Andrulis’] first recruiting class. I liked where he wanted to go with the team. I also wanted to go away from home,” […]

   

• In My Own Words: Five-Set Frenzies, The Life of a Mason Student-Athlete

  Sports September 22, 2009 at 2:54 pm Comments are Disabled

  Fernanda Bartels, Broadside Correspondent The most exciting way to win in any sport happens when you rally from a deficit, when your team was behind for most of the game. In a volleyball match, being down two sets does not mean the game is over. Instead, it means it is about to start. We have to fight to take the third set with a different mindset, now that we have nothing to lose. The pressure is not on our side of the court anymore. After losing two sets, there are no responsibilities of winning the match. Holding back is not an option; we must leave all our feelings and energy on the court. If something went wrong in the past two sets, learn from the mistakes, but let the anger go. It is time to try every play in the playbook, and every player must push to do their best. It is essentially all or nothing. With that attitude, we go back to the court feeling great. Even though we are losing the match, numbers have no meaning when the result is all that matters. That is when everything starts to work out for our team. We start to work […]