Aug. 20, 2004

2004 George Mason Women's Lacrosse Season In Review There were a lot of questions for the 2004 women's lacrosse team entering the season. Most notable on offense, how would the team adjust after losing to graduation two-time All-American attacker Jill Toomey, who accounted for 50-plus goals in each of her final two seasons? Defensively, how would the unit fare following the loss of three starters, including three-time first-team all-Colonial Athletic Association defender Paula Priest and rising sophomore Katie Linnertz, who started all 17 games in the backfield in 2003, but had to sit out the 2004 season with a knee injury? The answer was quite simple, actually; the team would make adjustments, young players would step up, and the more experienced players would lead by example. Combining an astute mix of veteran leadership and youthful exuberance, Mason returned to the national spotlight for the fifth time in six seasons, as the 2004 Patriots ended the year ranked 19th in the final Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) top 20 poll. Mason put together another solid season, completing the campaign with a 7-10 overall record and a third-place tie in the CAA standings with a 4-3 mark. In the process, the Patriots earned their 11th straight CAA tournament appearance. George Mason started the season, slowly, losing back-to-back games for the first time since 1997 - both losses were against nationally-ranked opponents. The team rebounded, however, to even its mark with wins in its next two games, including a 10-8 victory at No. 15 Boston University. Mason then dropped four of its next six contests to move its record to 4-6 overall. During the stretch, the Patriots earned determined wins over CAA foes Old Dominion (13-9) and Delaware (10-9), but also suffered two defeats by a combined five goals against nationally-ranked CAA opponents, leaving the Patriots at 2-2 in the league. To secure its conference tournament hopes, Mason needed to win two of its final three CAA matches before the league event. Just like in years past, the Patriots performed when they had to most, outdistancing Drexel and Hofstra 17-8 and 13-4, respectively, to improve to 4-2 in the league and 6-6 overall. Mason lost a close 9-8 overtime game in its next match at No. 8 James Madison to round out its CAA slate. The Patriots entered the CAA tournament as the No. 4 seed with a 7-8 overall mark after splitting two non-conference matches prior to the event. Mason fell to top-seeded James Madison in the tournament semifinal and finished out the season with a close loss at No. 3 Maryland for a 7-10 overall record. Balance, both offensively and defensively, proved to be the key throughout the season as eight players scored 15 or more goals for the Patriots, including five who had 20 or more. While on defense, the Patriots completed the campaign listed first in the CAA, and ranked second nationally for the second consecutive season in caused turnovers per game (12.53), playing with two freshmen in the starting lineup. Several post-season accolades were issued to Mason's best at the completion of the season. Junior goalkeeper Meg Dentler, who became the school's all-time leader in saves during the year, led five players to the all-CAA teams. Dentler, along with senior midfielder Stacy Berger, were each named to the first team. Senior midfielder Lisa Hagan, junior attacker Kristy Manas and sophomore defender Michele Brady were selected to the second team. Dentler produced another outstanding season in the cage for the Patriots, stopping 224 shots (one shy of tying her own single-season record), while posting a 9.88 goals-against average. Her .570 save percentage on the year was the fifth highest mark in the nation for the second consecutive season, helping her earn IWLCA/USL Harrow Sports second-team All-America accolades. Dentler played every minute of every game and recorded six contests of 15 or more saves, including 24-save performance against Boston University and a 20-stop outing at Maryland. She also denied a point-blank shot with two seconds left in the contest at Delaware to preserve the win as she notched 12 saves. Dentler ended the campaign with 656 career saves. Berger, a team co-captain, had a phenomenal finish to her Mason career. She concluded the year with single-season bests in goals scored (19) and points (23), ranking fifth on the team, and added four assists while leading the team with a 46.3 shooting percentage. A pivotal presence both on offense and defense, Berger collected 29 ground balls, caused 19 turnovers and ranked second on the squad with 23 draw controls. She recorded a career-best four goals in a must-win game against Hofstra on Apr. 18 and scored the game-tying goal against then-No. 8 James Madison on Apr. 21, which sent that regular season contest into overtime. Hagan started every game this season and led George Mason in assists with 17. She concluded the year ranked second in points (37), totaled 20 goals and was eighth in the league in assists per game. She finishes her career with the Patriot record for assists (78), and is second all-time in points scored (152). Her 68 consecutive games started in a Mason uniform breaks the old mark for consecutive games started and consecutive games played. Hagan, a co-captain who also contributed 31 ground balls, 13 caused turnovers and 15 draw controls, finished her career ranked in the Patriot top 10 in four major statistical categories. Manas, a co-captain, led George Mason in goals scored with 24 and in scoring with 40 points. Among CAA leaders, she was ninth overall in assists per game, totaling 16 on the season. She started all 17 games and added 15 ground balls, six caused turnovers, and three draw controls, while shooting 40.0 percent from the field. Brady started every game on defense and was often charged with marking the opposing team's top defender. She finished second on the Patriots' roster with 37 caused turnovers and also collected 30 ground balls and two draw controls. Her 2.18 caused turnovers per game average ranked seventh nationally and was second overall in the CAA. Mason's attack unit included several other players that featured prominent roles. Tops among them were junior Tracy Waterson, sophomore Kate Scott, junior Jeannine Ohler and sophomore Sarah Bryant. Waterson started seven of 16 games and tied for second and third in goals scored (21) and scoring (27 pts), respectively. She also had two game-winning markers on the year. Scott contributed 16 goals and two assists for 18 points in 13 appearances with seven starts. Ohler chipped in 25 points (21G, 4A), starting all 17 contests, and led the Patriots with three game-winning markers. She also picked up 13 draw controls. Bryant started every game, tying for third on the team with 27 points on 21 goals and six assists. She also had 14 draw controls. The midfield included senior Kristen Olson and freshman Melissa Venturi. Olson, a co-captain, totaled six goals and one assist for seven points after starting 11 of 17 games contests. Venturi, a CAA all-tournament team selection, boasted 15 goals and five assists for 20 points in her rookie season, while earning two starts in 17 outings. She also listed third on the squad in draw controls (17). Defensively, junior Brandi Evans helped anchor the backfield along with freshmen Deona Donahue and Melissa Curry, and junior Amanda Thornburg. Evans, who started all 17 games and was named to the CAA all-tournament team, led the Patriots in several categories including ground balls (50), caused turnovers (39) and draw controls (31). Her 2.29 caused turnovers per game average was tops in the conference and ranked fifth in the nation, while her 2.94 ground balls per game average was third in the league. Evans also posted seven points (6G, 1A) on the year. Donahue and Curry put up impressive numbers as part of their rookie campaigns. Donahue, who made 15 starts in 16 appearances, collected 31 ground balls, had 16 caused turnovers and recorded 10 draw controls. She registered one goal and one assist for two points. Curry totaled 30 ground balls and 35 caused turnovers in 17 starts on the year. She ranked ninth nationally in caused turnovers per outing (2.06 ctpg), reaching third overall in the CAA. She also recorded an assist. Thornburg, who saw action in 13 games with nine starts, collected 10 ground balls and nine caused turnovers with one assist. Also in reserve for Mason were sophomores Jennifer Thomas and Robyn Yeatman as well as freshmen Becky Lee, Alez Velesz, Sarah Herschler, Jess Shelton, and Mikal Hemingway. Thomas and Yeatman each saw action in three contests. Lee and Velesz played in two and three games, respectively, while Herschler appeared in one contest. Hemingway saw action in two games, and Shelton played in nine contests, scoring one goal, while collecting a ground ball and a caused turnover. Amy Umbach, the school's all-time winningest coach, concludes her seventh season at George Mason after posting the 7-10 overall mark. Mason's second ever head coach, she now stands with a record of 54-60 as the Patriots' leader and has an overall mark of 62-68 in eight years as a collegiate head coach. Her 2004 squad finished second nationally in caused turnovers per game under the tutelage of assistant coach Liz Schaffner.