May 1, 2008
2008 CAA Awards in PDF Format 
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - Junior defender Maggie Bridges was named the 2008 Colonial Athletic Association Defensive Player of the Year and joined three of her teammates in earning First-Team All-CAA honors, the conference announced at its annual awards banquet held on Thursday night on the eve of the 2008 CAA Women's Lacrosse Championship, which is being hosted by top-seeded William & Mary. In addition, three members of the Patriots' talented freshman class earned CAA All-Rookie honors.
Mason's four First-Team All-CAA performers was the most of any team in the conference. Senior midfielder Megan Bartlett, junior attacker Brittany Berger, Bridges and senior attacker Laura King all earned First-Team honors. Attacker Chelsea Gamble, defender Caitlin Hoffen and attacker Madalyn Jamison were all named to the All-Rookie squad.
Bridges was named the CAA Defender of the Year for leading a Mason defense that ranked sixth in the nation in caused turnovers per game and seventh in ground balls per game. The two-time All-CAA First Team performer anchored a defense which allowed only 9.75 goals per game, second-best in the conference and 24th in the nation. Bridges picked up 36 ground balls for the Patriots, third most on the team. She also had a career-high 20 caused turnovers. The Fairfax, Va. native is the first Mason athlete to earn Defensive Player of the Year honors since Kinsley O'Garrow won the award in 2000.
Joining Bridges as a First-Team All-CAA performer was Bartlett, who was named to the team for the first time in her career. After playing three years on defense, Bartlett switched to the midfield position this season and set career highs in goals, assists and points. She has 26 goals, nine assists and 35 points this season to go along with 34 ground balls, 21 caused turnovers and 23 draw controls. Three of her goals were game-winners.
Also earning All-CAA honors for the first time in her career was Berger, who set career highs in goals, points and draw controls this season. She ranked second on the team with 39 goals and 49 points, and tied for second in draw controls with 23. An integral member of the attack, Berger also recorded three game-winning goals during the season.
King made the All-CAA Team for the third straight season, earning First Team honors for the second consecutive year, for her part in powering George Mason's record-setting attack. The Patriots broke the school record for goals scored in a season with 201 through 16 games. A superb all-around player, the Springfield, Pa. native leads the team in goals (40), assists (14), points (54), game-winning goals (4), draw controls (34), and ranks second on the team in caused turnovers (23).
Mason had three freshman named to the CAA All-Rookie team for the first time since the 2005 season, tying William and Mary for the most players named to the team. Gamble scored 20 goals and added eight assists to make the team at the attack position. She was named CAA Rookie of the Week once during the regular season. Joining Gamble on the team was two-time Rookie of the Week award-winner Jamison, who finished with 14 goals, including a game-winner, and 13 assists for 27 points. Rounding out the freshman honorees was Hoffen, who led the team with 25 caused turnovers and 42 ground balls during her debut season.
The second-seeded Patriots (12-4, 5-2 CAA) face third-seeded Towson (11-5, 5-2 CAA) in the semifinal round on Friday at 7:30 p.m. No. 1 seed William and Mary (9-8, 5-2 CAA) will face No. 4 seed Delaware (11-5, 4-3 CAA) in the day's other semifinal at 5 p.m. The winners of the semifinal games will meet in the championship on Sunday at 1 p.m.
The Patriots enter the tournament fresh off the finest regular season in the history of the program. Mason set a school record with 12 wins and tied the school record for conference wins with five. George Mason reached the highest ranking in school history earlier this year when they reached No. 9 in both polls. Currently ranked 13th in the IWLCA/Under Armour National Poll and 16th in the Inside Lacrosse Media Poll, the Patriots are the highest-ranked team in the CAA in either poll.
