March 16, 2004
FAIRFAX, Va. - For the 19th straight season, at least one Patriot wrestler will be competing at the NCAA Championships when the tournament gets underway Thursday and continues through Saturday at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, MO. And for the 15th time in the last 16 years, at least two George Mason student-athletes have found themselves in the national spotlight.
Seniors Adrian Austin (Colonial Heights, VA/Matoaca) and Rob Becker (Mickleton, NJ/Clearview Regional) will be representing George Mason at the NCAA Championships this season. Austin will be making his third trip to the national tournament after capturing the 149 pound title at the Colonial Athletic Association Championships March 6, while Becker earned his third trip to Nationals after receiving a "wild card" berth with his fourth-place finish at 141 pounds at the CAAs. Both wrestlers are ranked nationally in their respective weight classes with Austin listed 19th and 15th, respectively, by Amateur Wrestling News and InterMat. Becker is listed 12th and 13th, respectively in both polls.
Patriot head coach Brian Shaffer led George Mason to a 4-9 overall record and a fourth-place showing at the conference championships. Nagging injuries over the past three seasons halted the program's streak of 16 consecutive winning campaigns, but a solid youth movement and great senior leadership have kept the Mason program on pace as it continues to compete at a national level. Both wrestlers have excellent chances of giving George Mason its first All-American since 1995, when Matt Finacchio placed eighth at 126 pounds to become the fourth Patriot All-American.
"Both of these guys are solid wrestlers and could earn All-American honors this year," expressed Shaffer, who has coached 29 NCAA qualifiers in nine years at George Mason. "When you get into the NCAA Championships, it's all about match-ups and styles. We're not worried about the seeding. The important thing is to go in their healthy and to be focused on the little things and that's what I'll have them concentrating on."
Austin (37-6) enters the NCAA Championships having won 19 consecutive matches dating back to Jan. 16. Ranked nationally much of the year by InterMat and joining the top 20 in the AWN over the past couple of weeks, Austin was the CAA preseason favorite and finished the year 13-0 in dual matches and 8-0 in the CAA. He notched his 100th career victory as a Patriot when he pinned Wagner's Pat Larkin in a CAA quarterfinal match, becoming only the sixth Mason wrestler in history to earn 100 or more career victories. Austin, who owns three individual titles this season including the Beast of the East and Virginia Intercollegiate Wrestling Championship (VIWC) crowns, has a 2-4 mark at the NCAA Championships and a 102-45 career record. He posted a 5-6 mark against other wrestlers that made the NCAA field.
Becker (26-7) has been ranked the entire season in the InterMat and AWN polls, reaching as high as ninth in the nation. He enters the NCAA Championships having won 13 of his last 17 matches and owns a 109-35 career mark as a Patriot. Becker recorded his 100th career victory in the opening round of the VIWC. He won the 141-pound weight class at the prestigious Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and placed second at the Beast of the East and VIWC tournaments. Becker is 2-4 entering this year's NCAA Championships. He also posted a 5-6 mark against other wrestlers that made the NCAA field.
"Adrian and Rob are great individuals to represent George Mason and this program," said Shaffer. "They are hard workers and good students, and as three time NCAA qualifiers, they know that they can compete with anyone in the country if they wrestle to their abilities."
