April 16, 2008

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - No. 12 George Mason (10-3) had a tough time on the road against No. 4 Virginia (12-3) on Wednesday evening at Klockner Stadium in Charlottesville, Va. as the Cavaliers played stellar defense throughout to earn a 16-3 victory.

With the loss, Mason falls to 0-10 in the all-time series with Virginia, which dates back to the 1999 season. The three goals was a season-low for the Patriots' potent attack. Mason entered the contest outscoring its opponents 164-113 in its previous 12 games.

The Patriots' offense struggled to find their rhythm from the outset as Mason was held without a score while Virginia found the back of the net 10 times in the first 30 minutes of play. Senior attacker Kaitlin Swagart and junior midfielder Blair Weymouth both scored three goals in the first half for Virginia, while sophomore attacker Caity Whiteley tallied two. Junior midfielder Ashley McCullough dished out four helpers in the half.

Of the five shots that Mason took in the first half, the Patriots had two excellent opportunities to score when both Chelsea Gamble and Alana Chan fired shots at close range. However, both times the shots were turned away by senior goalkeeper Kendall McBrearty.

After the intermission, the Cavaliers scored four more goals before the Patriots broke through with a score of their own. With 17:52 remaining, freshman attacker Madalyn Jamison made a nice pass to senior midfielder Alex Velesz, who took a low shot that made its way past McBrearty for Mason's first tally.

After another score by Virginia, senior attacker Laura King scored a free-position goal with 6:28 left on the clock for the Patriots' second goal. Following that goal, Mason added another score when King threw the ball downfield to freshman attacker Caroline Hoyt, who had an uncontested path to the net for her seventh goal of the season. Virginia tacked on one more goal for the final score of the evening.

Hoyt, King and Velesz all scored goals for the Patriots, while King added an assist for two points. Senior midfielder Megan Bartlett led Mason with four caused turnovers and three ground balls.

Weymouth finished with four goals on five shots to lead all players. Prior to the game, Virginia honored its five seniors with a ceremony on the field.

George Mason closes out its 2008 schedule with three consecutive CAA games. The first of those three games will be this Friday at 7 p.m. against Drexel at George Mason Stadium.