March 22, 2005

FAIRFAX, Va. - George Mason begins an important week of lacrosse action against nationally-ranked opponents at home Wednesday when the Patriots take on No. 12 Johns Hopkins at 5 p.m. at George Mason Stadium. George Mason is 1-3 on the season, while Hopkins is 3-2.

Mason is 3-3 overall against the Blue Jays in the series, which dates back to 1999. The Patriots have won two of the last three meetings by a combined score of 32-30. Last year, Hopkins led 7-6 at halftime and out scored George Mason 6-5 in the second period to take a 13-11 victory in Baltimore.

The Patriots are in the midst of a three-game home stand that started with a narrow 10-9 five overtime defeat to then-No. 9 Maryland last week. Senior All-American goalkeeper Meg Dentler (Crofton, Md./Arundel) tied her season-high with 17 stops in the contest. The Patriots led 7-3 at halftime and pulled out the overtime session after senior attacker Kristy Manas (Harwood, Md./Southern) tied the contest at 9-9 with a goal with 1:20 remaining in regulation. Mason is 0-2 this year versus ranked opponents.

Johns Hopkins has won two straight contests on the road and completes a five-game road swing with its match at George Mason. Since suffering back-to-back road defeats in early March, the Blue Jays have come on strong in their two most recent wins, out scoring opponents 27-6, including a 13-6 victory at then-No. 16 Vanderbilt on Friday. Hopkins is 2-2 on the road this season and 2-1 against unranked opponents.

George Mason looks to earn its first home win of the season in the contest against Hopkins after starting the year at 0-2 in Fairfax for the first time since 1996.