Nov. 2, 2004

Box Score

HARRISONBURG, Va. - Freshman Melanie Schaffer (Allison Park, Pa./Hampton) converted a penalty kick in the 35th minute to give James Madison to a 1-0 win over George Mason in the first round of the Colonial Athletic Association Women's Soccer Tournament Tuesday night at the JMU Soccer Complex.

With the victory the fourth-seeded Dukes (11-6-3) advance to Friday's (Nov. 5) semifinal vs. top-seeded Virginia Commonwealth on the Rams' home field in Richmond, Va. George Mason, the tournament's number five seed, ended its season with a 10-7-3 record.

"It's a big psychological game," Schaeffer said of the penalty kick. "You don't think about anything else but placing the ball and getting the result."

The penalty was assessed after a George Mason defender took down JMU freshman Katita Sherman (Oakton, Va./Oakton) in the penalty box.

JMU junior goalkeeper Jessica Hussey (Kanata, Ontario/Holy Trinity) made three saves and covered a number of dangerous balls in the penalty box en route to her 17th career shutout, a school record. Hussey, who recorded her sixth shutout of the season, surpassed the former career record of 16 set by Suzanne Wilson (1998-2001).

"This was probably Jess's best game of the year and one of the three best of her career," said JMU coach Dave Lombardo.

Mason's closest scoring chance came in the 79th minute, when a shot by senior Dianna Russini (Old Tappan, N.J./Northern Valley) was cleared off the goalline by junior Karly Skladany (Westerville, Ohio/St. Francis DeSales).

NOTE: Third-seeded William and Mary defeated number six seed Old Dominion in Tuesday's other first round game. The Tribe faces second-seeded Hofstra in an 8 p.m. semifinal Friday.