The Colonials continued play over Thanksgiving weekend as basketball season gets into full swing:

Men's Basketball
-GW shot nearly 62 percent in Saturday's 80-56 victory over Hofstra at the Charles E. Smith Center.

-Senior Lasan Kromah led the Colonials with 15 points followed by freshman Kevin Larsen with 14 points and six rebounds. 
-Senior Isaiah Armwood recorded his first double-double as a Colonial with 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds with five blocks. 

-GW had its largest lead of the day at 27 points with 1:57 left on the clock while shooting 71 percent in the second half.  The 24-point margin of victory was the biggest of Coach Mike Lonergan's tenure at GW.
-The Colonials' defense held the Hofstra Pride to just 31.7 percent shooting for the game.

Women's Basketball

-The Colonials struggled at Virginia Tech on Sunday suffering a 50-31 loss at the Hokies' Cassell Coliseum.

-Sophomore Chakecia Miller led GW with seven points while senior Megan Nipe contributed six points and a team-high five rebounds.

-The Colonials shot just 24.4 percent from the floor while the Hokies sunk 40.4 percent of their shots.

The Colonials head into Thanksgiving week after a slew of strong performances over the weekend: 

Men's Squash

-GW split a weekend doubleheader with a loss to No. 15 Bates before stunning No. 9 Penn at the Matthew J. Grossman Squash Courts at Lerner Health & Wellness Center to improve the squad's record to 4-1.

-Freshmen Ahmed Abdel-Latif, James Reiss, Reid Breck and senior Omar Sobhy earned GW's wins in the 5-4 loss to Bates on Saturday.  

-The Colonials overcame a 4-3 deficit to defeat No. 9 Penn with victories by Breck, Abdel-Latif, Sobhy, Reiss and senior Islam El-Fiky.

-Reiss went the distance in his No. 4 match to clinch the upset.  

Women's Squash

-The Colonials upset No. 12 Bates but fell to No. 5 Penn to split a pair of matches on Saturday at the Matthew J. Grossman Squash Courts at Lerner Health & Wellness Center.

-Key victories by junior Maya Nair, freshman Sarah Allen and sophomore Adriana Calderon at matches 7-9 put GW in good position to upset the No. 12 ranked Bates.

-Freshman Alexa Tzarnas' five-set win at No. 5 put the Colonials just one win away from taking the match.

-A victory by freshman Anna Gabriela Porras at No. 1 solidified the Colonial's clinch.

-GW dropped the nightcap, 9-0, to No. 5 ranked Penn and is now 2-1 on the young season. 

Cross Country

-The GW women finished eighth out of 19 teams at the East Coast Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championship on Saturday in Van Cortland Park in the Bronx to end the fall season. 

-Senior Heather Stevens crossed the finish line first for the Colonials with a time of 18:43 on the 5,000-meter course, earning her an impressive 8th place out of 177 runners. 

-Seniors Juliana Stern and Julia Weir put forth top-50 efforts with 21st (19:11) and 26th (19:18) place finishes, respectively.

-GW's men finished out their fall season with a 10th-place finish out of 16 teams at the IC4A Championships, also held in Van Cortland Park in the Bronx.

-Freshman Ryan Tucker was GW's top finisher, taking 26th place with a time of 26:58 out of 151 runners.

-Sophomore John-Louis Pane and freshman Kyle Ames also finished in the top-50 for the Colonials with 30th (27:08) and 40th (27:15) place performances, respectively.

Women's Swimming

-The Colonials finished third in a field of 10 at the three-day Patriot Invitational at George Mason's Jim McKay Natatorium over the weekend.  

-Junior Caroline Myers and freshman Madison Reinker took second and third in the 500-yard freestyle, respectively,on Day 1 with times of 5:00.57 and 5:02.1.

-The Colonials' team of juniors Lindsay Moore, Sloan Saunders and sophomores Janica Lee and Morgan Zebley took third in the 400-yard medley relay with a season-best time of 3:52:21.  

-The 200-yard freestyle relay team of juniors Sydney Saunders, Sloan Saunders, and Lee and Zebley took second with a time of 1:36.68. 

-Juniors Sydney Saunders, Melissa Fernandez, Sloan Saunders and freshman Kally Vanderbilt clinched a second-place performance with a time of 3:39.49 in the 400-yard freestyle relay. 

-Myers earned second on the final day of competition with a time of 17:06.53 in the 1,650-yard freestyle.  

Men's Swimming

-GW took home sixth out of eight teams in the weekend's Patriot Invitational at George Mason's Jim McKay Natatorium.

-Senior Phillip Graeter earned third place in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 1:53.78.

-Graeter, senior Niklas Glenesk and freshmen Oliver Keegan and Jordan Sharples posted a time of 6:54.40 in the 800-yard freestyle relay to earn third place. 

-Sharples took home third in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:41.17, a season-best time. 

-Sophomore Garrett Cottingham and Keegan brought home a pair of third-place finishes in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:97.46) and 200-yard butterfly (1:51.90), respectively.

Men's Basketball

-GW picked up its first win of the season by defeating Boston University, 72-59, at Case Gym in Boston on Saturday.

-Freshman Joe McDonald led all scorers with 21 points, including a perfect 8-for-8 performance at the free throw line. 

-Senior Isaiah Armwood added a career-high eight blocks while snatching a game-high 12 rebounds and scoring six points for the Colonials.  

-GW shot 52.2 percent (24-46) from the floor while its defense held BU to just 32.4 percent (22-68). 

Women's Basketball

-The Colonials improved their record to 2-1 with a 58-51 victory over William & Mary on Sunday afternoon at the Charles E. Smith Center.

-Graduate student Tara Booker led GW with a game-high 20 points while shooting 7-for-14, including 3-for-6 from behind the arc. 

-Senior Megan Nipe was the only other Colonial to score in double figures, posting 12 points on the day. 

-Graduate student Brooke Wilson recovered a game-high eight rebounds, as GW outrebounded William & Mary, 47-41.  

Some walked for personal reasons.  Others walked to support a teammate.

George Washington's softball team walked together to become one of Autism Speak's top three donors for the organization's Walk Now event on Nov. 3, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.  The Colonials raised $1,645 in donations for the Autism Speaks Walk that boasted over 9,000 participants.

Autism Speaks is a non-profit organization that works to increase awareness as well as raise funds for research and serve as a support service for individuals touched by autism.  Autism Speaks holds "Walk Now" events across the country throughout the year in an effort to engage supporters, inform the population about autism, and bring together individuals touched by the cause in addition to raising funds.

The softball team's participation in the walk was spearheaded by sophomore catcher Samantha Dos Santos.  The criminal justice major encouraged her teammates to show support and join a cause that touches her family.  With a cousin who has autism and a family member who has created a non-profit organization - Puzzle Peace Now, which supports the costs of raising children with special needs - Dos Santos felt strongly about participating in the walk as a team.

"With my personal experience with autism, I feel that there is little societal awareness about the impact it has. Every 20 minutes a child is diagnosed with autism, and it will affect both the child and his or her family for the rest of their lives," said Dos Santos.

Head coach Stacey Schramm was recently notified by Autism Speaks that her squad was one of the top three fundraising teams in this year's D.C. walk.  While the coaching staff and administration were impressed by the team's efforts, no one was prouder than Dos Santos.

"I am so thrilled to be a part of GW softball, and so proud of my team for rallying behind the cause and raising an incredible $1,645," she said. "With every dollar raised more research can be conducted and programs are funded so a child has the opportunity to feel more comfortable in his or her own skin. Overall, the Autism Walk was a wonderful experience and we, as a team, feel extremely honored to be recognized by this amazing organization for our efforts."

Basketball season kicked off as fall sports continued to close out their seasons in the weekend's action: 

 

Women's Basketball

-GW opened the season with a big 80-47 victory over UT Arlington on Friday at the Charles E. Smith Center.

-An impressive second half saw the Colonials outscore the Mavericks 53-23 in first-year head coach Jonathan Tsipis' debut.

-Senior Danni Jackson led the charge with 13 points while seniors Megan Nipe and Shi-Heria Shipp and sophomore Chakecia Miller also posted double-digit performances.

-Graduate student Sara Mostafa pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds, as GW dominated UTA on the glass, 54-35.

-Sophomore Maria Saia and freshmen Anjaleace White, Alexis Chandler, Aaliyah Brown and DaLacy Anderson all contributed to the win in their first collegiate appearances.

 

Men's Basketball

-The Colonials suffered a close 80-73 loss to Youngstown State on Saturday in their season opener at the Charles E. Smith Center.

-Senior Isaiah Armwood opened the season with an alley-opp dunk off of the opening tip and had another two-point slam to tie the game at 71-71 with 58 seconds left en route to a team-high 18 points in his GW debut.

-Freshman Patricio Garino also posted a notable debut with 13 points, seven rebounds, two assists and two steals. Garino's 13 points are the most by a GW freshman in a debut since Tamal Forchion scored 14 points against Marshall in Nov. 2001. 

 

Volleyball

-The Colonials came up just short of an Atlantic 10 berth as a 3-1 loss to A-10 foe Duquesne closed out GW's season on Saturday.

-Senior Lauren Whyte recorded her 40th career double-double with 19 kills and 18 digs to bring her career kills to 1,625, second all-time at GW.

-Sophomore Kelsey Newman led the match with 19 kills while also contributing 18 digs and three aces.

-Senior Candace Silva-Martin added 21 digs to bring her A-10 all-time leading total to 2,126.

 

Squash

-GW's men's team recorded two 9-0 shutouts over No. 25 Hobart and Kenyon College at the Navy Round Robin on Sunday to continue an undefeated 3-0 start to the season.

-All of GW's men won their matches in straight sets over Kenyon opponents, while eight of nine matches against No. 25 Hobart were won in straight sets by Colonials.

-GW's women scrimmaged the Naval Academy's male junior varsity team and fell by a narrow 5-4 margin.

-Junior Adriana Calderon, and freshmen Emely Levyn and Alexa Tzarnas all won in straight sets. Junior Elizabeth Tapley added a 3-1 decision.

-Both the men's and women's squads are ranked No. 16 and will host fellow ranked opponents of Bates College and Penn on Sunday at Lerner Health & Wellness Center.

 

 

Men's Swimming

-GW fell to Towson, 162-117, on Saturday afternoon at the Tiger's Burdick Pool.

-Senior Phillip Graeter took home first place finishes in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 52.68, the 200-yard backstroke in 1:54.72, and the 400-yard individual medley in 4:08.37 to round out a strong performance.

-Sophomore Garret Cottingham won the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 59.81 as well as the 200-yard breaststroke with a 2:10.77 time.

-Senior Luke Quimby placed first in the 50-yard freestyle, finishing in 21.26 seconds as well as the 100-yard freestyle in 41.11 seconds. Quimby also helped the 400-yard freestyle relay team to a .02 victory with a time of 3.11.64.

 

Women's Swimming

-The Colonials dropped their first road dual meet of the season in a 211-82 loss to Towson on Saturday.

-Junior Caroline Myers led the Colonials with two first-place finishes. Myers touched the wall first in the 1,000-yard freestyle with a time of 10:18.16 and won the 400-yard individual medley in a time of 4:37.99.

-Sophomore Janica Lee took first place in the 200-yard breaststroke with a time of 2:25.39 and posted a 1:08.04 for a second-place finish in the 100 yard breaststroke.

 

Sailing

-GW posted four race victories in its final two regattas of its first semester as a varsity sport.

-Senior Skye Kussmann and freshman Hannah McNomee won a pair of races at the Brennan Russell Memorial Regatta in Newport News, Va., over the weekend en route to a third place B Division finish.

-Freshmen Jay Spector and Madeline Taggart also took home a first-place finish at the Brennan Russell Regatta as part of their second-place showing in A Division.

-Freshman Maria Sinagra and sophomore Matthew Ricci put forth a race winning effort in the Atlantic Coast Tournament in St. Mary's City, Md., and finished 12th on the weekend in the B Division.

-Seniors Ian Conners and Rebecca Engel finished second in their first race on the weekend as the duo took 13th in the Atlantic Coast Tournament's A Division.

 

Cross Country

-GW's women finished 21st out of 31 teams at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional on Friday.

-Seniors Heather Stevens and Juliana Stern set personal records with times of 22:07 and 22:48, respectively, in the 6,000-meter race.

-The men posted their best-ever finish at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional with a 20th-place finish out of 25 teams.

-Freshman Ryan Tucker led the way for the Colonials with a 32:40 finish of the 10,000-meter course.

-Classmate Kyle Ames was GW's next best finisher with a time of 33:31.

-Both the men and women will finish up their seasons next weekend at the IC4A/ECAC Championship at Van Cortland Park in New York City.

While many George Washington students will cast their ballots and keep a close eye on the 2012 Presidential election, one GW student-athlete will be voting as well - for himself - and hoping that many others do the same - 13,000 to be exact.  GW sailing junior William Broman is on the ballot back in his hometown of Grosse Pointe, Mich., as a School Board hopeful. 

A 2010 graduate of Grosse Pointe North High School - part of the Grosse Pointe school system - Broman believes he knows first-hand what improvements need to be made in the schools. 

Broman has used his time at GW as a tool to build a strong campaign.  Involvement in College Republicans and an environment of political expertise has allowed the young candidate to create a strong and well-advised platform. 

"You wouldn't think that a school board race would get very political, but there are a lot of people that play the political game with education and it just doesn't work out," said Broman.  "It really helps me to have the expertise of a lot of different people at GW that I've met in DC or through College Republicans."

Broman is running against two incumbent members who are hoping to beat out the GW junior for two Board positions.  Despite concerns of extended absence from home as a GW student-athlete, Broman is fully committed to successfully carry out Board duties if elected.  Broman intends to travel home, as well as utilize video conferencing technology, to fully embrace a role as a Board member.  Fittingly, Broman is pushing for incorporation of technology in the classroom and an emphasis on STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education.

Rather than spend Election Day on campus, Broman opted to return home to vote and greet Grosse Pointe residents as they head to the polls, reminding them that the School Board is also on the ballot.  Along with participating in a Presidential election for the first time, the 20-year-old biomedical engineering major says it's the experience of voting for himself that has made this Election Day memorable thus far.  

"I got to mark my own name on the ballot this morning," said Broman.  "It was pretty surreal."

Broman hopes to capture 13,000 votes - roughly one third of the most recent Board election turnout in 2008 - when polls close Tuesday night.

On Election Day 2012, a President and a Colonial share the same ballot.

Men's swimming senior Stephan Franke was named GW's Community Service Athlete of the Month for October earlier this week.

The Community Service Athlete of the Month award, a distinction which started this year, goes to the student-athlete who leads by example and who most impacts the GW and Washington community through service.

"Stephan is a leader and he has done a great job of keeping the team involved in service efforts," said head coach Dan Rhinehart. "It is very important to give back, and participating in community service is a big part of what GW Athletics stands for."

A co-captain of the men's swimming team, Franke has led the Colonials' in several community service efforts so far this year and the team now leads the Department of Athletics in per capita community service hours completed.

"The Community Service Athlete of the Month award is an individual honor, but this truly is an award that goes to our entire team," Franke said. "Our team has worked diligently to form a relationship with the Washington, D.C., community and we have had a great time doing so."

Franke has been instrumental in organizing the squad's service projects, which include volunteering at Taste of DC, Walk to Defeat ALS, Trick or Treat for Service, and Students Against Sexual Assault. In addition to his efforts with his teammates, Franke also volunteers as a mentor at Francis Stevens Middle School as part of GW's partnership with College for Every Student.

"As a team our goal is to give back to the local community as much as possible," said Franke. "We have a great group of senior leaders who actively contribute and lead by example, and we are all enjoying the process."