Oct. 6, 2009

Tiana Kallenberger, a freshman women's soccer player and Sean Kelley, a senior men's soccer player have had excellent starts to the 2009 season, with big victories and CAA weekly honors. They each picked up another honor when they were named George Mason Female and Male Athletes of the Month for September. Competitions in late August were included in the award.

Kallenberger, a native of Irvine, Calif., started 10 of Mason's first 11 games and she finished the month of September leading the team in goals and points while standing second in assists. She scored seven times in 11 games with five assists, 19 points and four game-winning goals. She is currently sixth in the nation in points per game by a freshman and 13th in the nation for goals per game by a freshman. In Mason school history she's fourth all-time in game-winning goals by a freshman and top 10 in points and goals by a freshman.

Kelley, a native of Lexington, Ky., posted a 6-2 record during September and Mason is currently on a five-match winning streak. On Sept. 29, Kelley posted a shutout win over No. 2 Maryland, the defending national champion. He closed the month without allowing a goal in his final 345 minutes of action. In eight starts, he has allowed a 0.51 goals-against average while recording 34 saves and four shutouts. This is the second time he's won the Mason Male Student-Athlete of the Month Award in his career. Kelley is a finalist for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award which is presented each year to the outstanding senior NCAA Division I Student-Athlete of the Year across nine different sports. The acronym "CLASS" stands for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School. The award celebrates the loyalty of seniors that honor a four-year commitment to their university. It recognizes these student-athletes for great achievement during competition and in their community while staying in school.

Kelley and the Patriots (7-2) are currently ranked 23rd in the nation. The host Towson on Wednesday at 7 p.m. before traveling to James Madison on Saturday. Kallenberger and the women's soccer team (9-4) will be in action this weekend at Georgia State and UNC Wilmington before returning home on Oct. 16 to host Drexel. The men's team