June 14, 2004
GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY WRESTLING
2003-04 Season in Review
The 2003-04 season did not live up to overall expectations for the George Mason wrestling team, but several individual success stories enabled the Patriots to finish the year with hopes of a bright future.
George Mason struggled through its third consecutive non-winning campaign as it posted a 4-9 overall record and a 3-5 mark in the Colonial Athletic Association. Mason opened its dual meet season with a narrow 20-19 loss at home to Virginia Military Institute.
Entering the CAA Duals in Fairfax, the Patriots dropped their opening bout, but rebounded to claim two league wins over Wagner and Binghamton to move to 2-2 overall. Mason, however, would drop its final two Duals contests en route to a five-match losing skid that had the Patriots at 2-7 by mid-February. Against arch-rival James Madison, Mason came out on fire, topping the Dukes 42-6 to snap the skid. The Patriots claimed their final dual match win at American by a score of 30-15 before dropping their final two matches.
George Mason, which had won five CAA titles and not finished lower than third in the first 10 years of the league, placed fourth at the CAA Championships at Rider University, improving on its seventh-place showing the previous two years.
But individual performances brightened the landscape for the Patriots and ninth-year head coach Brian Shaffer. Senior Adrian Austin won the individual title at 149 pounds at the CAA Championships to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships - his third trip to Nationals in his career - while senior Rob Becker was fourth at 141 and received a "wild-card" berth to the national tournament. It was Becker's third straight trip to the NCAA Championships, and with both Patriots advancing, it marked the 18th consecutive year George Mason sent at least one wrestler to the national event. Austin's individual title was Mason's first at the CAA since the 2000-01 season.
Austin had a tremendous season, posting a 38-8 overall mark at 149 as he was ranked nationally for much of the year. He won 20 of his final 22 matches, going 1-2 at the NCAA Championships. Austin claimed two other 149-pound individual titles to go with his CAA championship, winning the Beast of the East College Invitational and the Virginia Intercollegiate State Championship. He also placed highly at several prestigious national tournaments (eighth at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and second at the East Stroudsburg Open). Austin also had a 13-0 record in dual meets, including an undefeated 8-0 CAA mark.
Becker was a steady and imposing presence at 141 at the start of the year as he won 13 of his first 14 matches. But, a nagging shoulder injury limited his schedule and his effectiveness in later meets. Despite the injury, Becker still managed an undefeated dual mark at 7-0, including going 4-0 versus CAA opponents, and finished the year with a 24-9 overall record. He won the individual title at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational and finished second at the Virginia Intercollegiate State Championship and the Beast of the East College Invitational.
A number of other Patriots also had solid seasons. Senior Sean Early placed third at the CAA Championships at 165 and ended the season with an 18-14 record. Junior Nick Webster battled injuries for the much of the year, yet finished with an 11-8 mark and fourth-place showing at the league championships at 174. David Emison opened a lot of eyes with his abilities as the freshman 133-pounder captured individual titles at the Millersville/Hitchcock Classic and the Virginia Intercollegiate Championships en route to a 24-9 record. He also earned a fourth-place finish at the CAA Championships, going 5-2 against league opponents during the regular season and earning a 9-2 dual mark.
Several younger Mason athletes offered notable performances, including freshman Mitch Webster's 17-16 record at 157, freshman Jim Martin's mark of 6-13 at 184, freshman Harry Zander's 18-16 showing at 197 and freshman Ryan Kittrick's record of 9-20 at heavyweight.
