Sports

Women’s lacrosse look forward to A10 after winless season

Featured, Sports April 30, 2013 at 8:21 pm Comments are Disabled

Coach Lauren Hay congratulates seniors, encourages returning players The final seconds ticked off the collegiate career of eight women’s lacrosse seniors on April 21, as Mason fell to William & Mary, 16-12. Senior attacker Allie Hilderbrandt led the way in scoring with a career- high six goals for Mason, capping off a season of solid play for the team. The loss was Mason’s seventh consecutive defeat, all of which were against CAA rivals. “We played an exciting game, our girls fought back late in the second half and it is always tough to lose, especially when you are saying goodbye to the senior class.” said coach Lauren Hay. “I would like to recognize the hard work of all eight seniors have put in their careers at Mason. All will graduate from here and I am proud to have watched them grow as people and athletes.” Looking back on the season as a whole, Mason had and up and down season, claiming all of their victories against non-conference opponents while being bested by all their CAA foes. Mason finished the season with a record of 5-11, going 0-7 in CAA play. “Overall, we had many contributions by numerous players. Our seniors […]
Workout of the week: Squats, deadlift, bench press

Sports April 30, 2013 at 8:18 pm Comments are Disabled

It is important to use proper form when squatting, as incorrect form can lead to injury. When completing any of the three traditional lifts, the squat, bench or the deadlift, make sure that you start out with a light weight and always use a spotter. Squat The squat targets the gluteus maximus, hamstrings, quadriceps, and requires you to stabilize your core. Implementing squats into your leg routine can strengthens your legs, increases flexibility, and strengthens the muscles around your knees. To begin, set the bar in the rack at about mid-chest level. Then position your feet shoulder width apart, directly under the bar. Place the bar evenly above your upper back muscles at the base of your neck. By lifting the elbow up, you can create a shelf for the bar to rest on so that it is not resting directly on your spine. Step forward and then begin the movement downwards with your weight on your heels and sink your hips by moving them backwards as if you were going to sit in a chair. Keep your chest up and look forward to maintain a straight back. Once your hips are parallel with the ground, drive your heels downward […]
Play by play: Life lessons from sports

Sports April 30, 2013 at 8:12 pm Comments are Disabled

Finals week. Ready- No? Tough tinsel. The coach is putting you in anyway and you’ve got some big plays to make. You’re coming late into the game and there is nothing you can do to change that, so you’ll have to roll with it. Take what you’re given and hopefully put on a little late semester magic. If you aren’t sure how you’re going to pull this off and hope seems lost, here is a rundown of some steps that should give you a game plan. Check the scoreboard. Even if you have been paying attention to the game the whole time, you need to forget about it for now and look at the scoreboard. It gives the honest facts of the right here and now. It doesn’t tell you how you got lucky by guessing C three times in a row after a string of all A’s and B’s on that last quiz. The scoreboard does not care about outliers, flukes, runs, momentum swings or any of that. It tells you that you have this grade,it can go up or down by this much with the final and how much time you have until it’s here. The situation is clear. […]
Underwater Hockey team prepares for nationals

Sports April 30, 2013 at 4:20 pm Comments are Disabled

The underwater hockey team is preparing for their upcoming national tournament in Milwaukee, Wisconsin this July, the team’s fourth and final tournament of the year. This year, they have traveled to Canada, Orlando and have held their own tournament at the AFC. “I love going tournaments, especially nationals, is really fun,” said Dan Yocum, president of the team who will be taking his third trip nationals this summer. “Preparing for it is difficult and getting everything organized. It is fun to push yourself for three months for the big tournament so we can play high level hockey. We are lucky at Mason because every practice we get in a high level game.” Underwater hockey is an interesting vari- ation of hockey in a pool where swimmers have a mask, snorkel, fins, gloves, small stick and weighted puck. It is played with six people in the pool per team, typically with three forwards and three defensemen but no goalie. Yocum believes it is the type of sport where people will get a lot more out of it then they expect. “Underwater hockey was weird when I started and I did not know what to expect, but I thought it was […]
Inline hockey club makes top 10 in the nation

Sports April 23, 2013 at 7:33 pm Comments are Disabled

The inline hockey club travelled to Fort Meyers, Fla. for the 2013 National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association (NCHRA) Championship from April 10-13, where they finished in the top 10. For most of the senior-heavy club, it would be their fourth consecutive year competing at the NCRHA Championships, but it would be no small task to topple fully-funded roller hockey powerhouses from across the nation. Mason came into the tournament ranked 10th in the nation and was placed in a pool with Grand Valley State University, University of Illinois and West Chester University. “It was great to beat Illinois 5-2 as they are such a good team. I think we were all disappointed that West Chester University tied us 5-5 with a goal in the last 30 seconds of the game, but that shows how competitive our pool was,” said coach Eric Hardman. The winner of the pool was Grand Valley, whose team scored 19 goals in three games of pool play, while only allowing two. “The most surprising development was how good they looked in the pool play only to lose to University of Pittsburgh 6-2 in the first round of elimination round play,” Hardman said. “Pittsburgh was one of […]
Ultimate frisbee makes regionals for first time in team history

Sports April 23, 2013 at 7:31 pm Comments are Disabled

The men’s club ultimate frisbee team has undergone major improvements in the past four years. Originally a nonchalant club with a dozen members, it has evolved from the worst team in their section into a reputable program featuring a men’s A and B team and women’s team. This year the men’s A team has qualified for the regional tournament for first time in program history. Senior captain Andy Bausback attributes the change to fellow senior captain David Burg. “He really turned the program around,” Bausback said. “Our freshman year, things were awful. Berg has been very involved in bringing us closer to our goal of making regionals.” The senior class as a whole has been a big factor in the development of the team improving over the summer, by playing for club teams and trying out for professional teams. “All of these guys made academic, professional and personal sacrifices for this team,” Bausback said. It was not hard work on the field alone that changed the program. Major recruiting efforts have been underway to get more bodies out to practice. The team currently has 25 players on the A team, another 20 on the B team and 15 on the […]
Workout of the week: Stretching

Editorials, Sports April 23, 2013 at 7:28 pm Comments are Disabled

Stretching: Static vs Dynamic Flexibility training is an important aspect of any exercise regime. Achieving your optimum level of flexibility increases your body’s resistance to muscular injury by allowing your joints to move through their full range of motion. Flexibility training targets two different tissue adaptations: elasticity and plasticity. Elasticity refers to the muscle’s ability to return to original resting length after a stretch. Plasticity refers to the muscle’s tendency to assume a new and greater length after a stretch, even after the force is removed. The primary goal of stretching is to produce a plastic deformation over time, which causes a permanent increase in our range of motion. To achieve this goal, emphasize stretching to the point of minor discomfort, hold the stretch for at least 15 to 30 seconds and stretch after you have sufficiently warmed up the muscles. There are many factors that influence flexibility, including joint structure, age, core temperature and activity levels. While not all of these factors are controllable, we can implement different practices to increase our flexibility. Traditionally, static stretches are completed during warm-ups for the majority of stretching: holding positions such as a standing quadriceps stretch, a hurdler stretch or a basic sit and reach. […]
Play by play: Life lessons from sports

Editorials, Sports April 23, 2013 at 7:20 pm Comments are Disabled

So you messed up: bombed a quiz, embarrassed yourself in front of that girl, couldn’t close that sale. Or maybe you pulled it off and swept her off her feet, aced that quiz and landed a huge deal at work. While the outcomes are different, what you need to do to improve or keep improving is forget about it. There are too many things that happen in life to bother getting wrapped up in the outcome of one situation. You did it and it worked? Fantastic, now onto the next problem. Oh you screwed up? Well, let’s give the next one your best shot. Reflecting on the past is good it encourages growth and maturity. Dwelling on the past will create a mental crutch and stop you from moving forward. A teammate I deeply respect once told me “A good athlete has a short memory of both the good and the bad”. It is something I try to embrace whenever I step on the field. If you get hung up on a mistake it will tend to bring your whole performance down. You may start thinking of yourself as a loser or screw up, as someone who cannot be trusted. It […]
Nyla Milleson named new women’s basketball coach

Featured, Sports April 23, 2013 at 7:18 pm Comments are Disabled

On April 17, Nyla Milleson was announced as the new women’s basketball coach to fill the vacancy left after the resignation of four year coach Jerri Porter. Milleson comes to Fairfax after serving as the coach of Missouri State University’s women’s team for six years. A key factor in the decision to hire Milleson was her strong win record. She has a career record of 290-123 (.702) in 13 years as a collegiate head coach. Prior to MSU she was the inaugural coach of Drury University’s women’s team. While at Drury University, Milleson posted a very strong 185-36 (.837) record, including six Heartland Conference titles and five post- season appearances in the NCAA division II tournament. In her final four years there, Drury had the highest winning percentage of all Division II programs in the nation. Milleson’s track record of wins made her stand out early as a strong suitor for the position. Director of Athletics, Tom O’Connor spoke with Milleson in an interview before her selection and said at the press conference that he was impressed with her focus on the offcourt welfare of her players. “I am here first for the student athletes themselves. I care about them […]
Workout of the week

Sports April 15, 2013 at 6:18 pm Comments are Disabled

Spring Training: Running Spring is finally here! What better way to enjoy the weather than going outside for a run? Running may seem basic, but there are actually many factors to consider if one plans on logging some miles this year. Let’s cover some of the basics to help you enjoy your run. 1. Shoes Purchasing running shoes is literally where the rubber hits the road. A good pair of shoes increases comfort and can help prevent injuries. The process can be overwhelming. So, do your research and get properly fitted by a sales associate. How long should a pair of shoes last? Generally you should be replacing your shoes every 300-400 miles or every six months. It is also important to consider what type of surfaces you will run on. 2. Warm up and cool down Each run should begin with a warm up and end with a cool down. The warm up raises the temperature of the muscles for optimal flexibility and efficiency. It also serves to slowly raise your heart rate, which helps minimize the stress on your heart. On average, your warm up should last between 5-10 […]