While the George Washington men's and women's swimming teams prepared for their final meet of the regular season on Saturday and finalized Senior Day ceremony details, the Colonials also worked on a separate initiative outside of the pool - a canned food drive.

GW collected canned food items over the course of Saturday afternoon, prior to and during the Colonials' swimming meet against George Mason at the Charles E. Smith Center Pool. In all, the squad collected 279 cans which will be split and donated to the Foggy Bottom Food Pantry and Catholic Charities.

"We were really excited to work on the canned food drive because it is so important to give back to the D.C. community," said junior Lindsay Moore, who helped spearhead the initiative alongside sophomore Morgan Zebley. "The entire team helped get the word out about the drive and we were elated to discover we collected almost 300 cans. It is a great feeling to be able to say we helped the local community."

"It is great to see the team get involved with community service because they know they are in a position where they can make an impact," head coach Dan Rhinehart said. "It is very important to give back, and participating in community service is a big part of what GW Athletics stands for."

Atlantic 10 Men's Tennis Preseason Poll | 2012-13 Schedule | @GWMensTennis | GW Men's Tennis on Facebook

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - Heading into the 2013 season in search of its third straight conference championship, the George Washington men's tennis team was predicted to finish second in the Atlantic 10 preseason poll as voted on by the league's 14 head coaches.

The Colonials - who swept the conference post-season awards just one year ago - received two first-place votes and were selected to finish behind A-10 newcomer VCU, which is ranked No. 32 in the country by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA). The Rams are coming off of a 2012 Colonial Athletic Conference and their 19^th NCAA Tournament appearance in 21 years. Charlotte was selected to finish behind GW in third and Xavier and Richmond were chosen fourth and fifth, respectively. Temple was chosen to finish sixth and Fordham and Duquesne were tied for seventh. Rounding out the poll were Saint Louis (ninth), Saint Joseph's (10^th), league newcomer Butler (11^th), Dayton (12^th), St. Bonaventure (13^th) and La Salle (14^th).

The two-time defending conference champion, GW enters its 2013 spring campaign after an impressive fall season in which the squad combined for nine upsets over nationally ranked opponents. Under the direction of two-time reigning A-10 Coach of the Year Greg Munoz, the Colonials enter the spring season with two nationally ranked top-100 players, as sophomore Francisco Dias and junior transfer Nikita Fomin debuted at Nos. 76 and 96, respectively, on the first Campbell/ITA Division I Men's National Singles Rankings of the season.

The Colonials lost just two players to graduation last spring and return Dias - the reigning A-10 Performer of the Year and Rookie Performer of the Year - and classmate Mike Kachkar, juniors Viktor Svensson and All-Conference Second Team selection Ulrik Thomsen, and seniors Leonardo Lapentti and All-Conference First Team honoree Alexander van Gils to the lineup. The Buff and Blue also welcome four highly touted newcomers in Fomin, fellow junior transfer Sinan Ipeker, and freshmen Kevin Kovacs and Danil Zelenkov.

GW looks to break into the national rankings this year as their spring slate features seven nationally ranked opponents and three NCAA participants.

The Colonials open their season when No. 70 Cornell comes to the Army Navy Country Club in Arlington, Va., on Saturday, Jan. 26 for a 5:30 p.m. match.

2013 A-10 Men's Tennis Predicted Order of Finish
1. VCU
2. George Washington
3. Charlotte
4. Xavier
5. Richmond
6. Temple
T-7. Fordham
T-7. Duquesne
9. Saint Louis
10. Saint Joseph's
11. Butler
12. Dayton
13. St. Bonaventure
14. La Salle

Atlantic 10 Women's Tennis Preseason Poll | 2012-13 Schedule | @GW_Tennis | GW Women's Tennis on Facebook

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - After reaching the quarterfinals of the A-10 Championship for three straight years, the George Washington women's tennis team was predicted to finish seventh in the Atlantic 10 preseason poll as voted on by the league's 16 head coaches.

A-10 newcomer VCU was selected to finish atop the conference after claiming two Colonial Athletic Conference Championships in the past three seasons and making their 13^th NCAA appearance last spring. Four-time defending champion Richmond was predicted to finish second, followed by Massachusetts in third and Temple in fourth. Charlotte was selected to finish fifth and Xavier was picked sixth, followed by GW in seventh, Saint Louis in eighth and Fordham in ninth. Duquesne (10^th), Rhode Island (11^th), A-10 newcomer Butler (12^th), Saint Joseph's (13^th), Dayton (14^th) St. Bonaventure (15) and La Salle (16^th) round out the preseason poll.

In last year's A-10 Championship, GW dropped the quarterfinal round match to eventual champion Richmond. The Colonials and the Spiders are not unfamiliar opponents in the league tournament as GW fell to Richmond in both the 2010 title match and the 2011 quarterfinals.

The Buff and Blue lost three players to graduation last spring and return four letterwinners from the 2011-12 squad in two-time All-Conference Second Team selection junior Leah Pascarella, classmate Isabella Escobar and seniors Mimi Hamling and Dorota Lysienia. The Colonials welcome four freshmen to the lineup in Christina Carpenter, Egle Jakuciunaite, Lana Robins and Stephanie Wei.

GW kicks off its 2013 spring campaign on the road with a 1 p.m. match at Old Dominion on Saturday, Jan. 26.

2013 A-10 Women's Tennis Predicted Order of Finish
1. VCU
2. Richmond
3. Massachusetts
4. Temple
5. Charlotte
6. Xavier
7. George Washington
8. Saint Louis
9. Fordham
10. Duquesne
11. Rhode Island
12. Butler
13. Saint Joseph's
14. Dayton
15. St. Bonaventure
16. La Salle

Atlantic 10 Golf Preseason Poll | 2012-13 Schedule | @GW_Golf

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - After claiming its first-ever Atlantic 10 Championship in 2012, the George Washington golf team was predicted to finish sixth in the Atlantic 10 preseason poll as voted on by the league's 13 head coaches.

Charlotte - whose six-year string of A-10 titles was snapped by the Colonials by two shots last spring - was selected to claim the crown with eight first-place votes. Xavier, which tied for second with Charlotte at the conference championship last season, was picked to finish second and Richmond was chosen to finish third. A-10 newcomer VCU was chosen to finish fourth and Dayton earned the fifth spot. Following the Colonials in the poll were Temple (seventh), Rhode Island (eighth), St. Bonaventure (ninth) and conference newcomer Butler (10^th). Fordham (11^th), La Salle (12^th) and Saint Joseph's (13^th) rounded out the poll.

GW took home its first-ever A-10 title last season under the direction of reigning A-10 Coach of the Year Terry Shaffer ('79) with a new 36-hole program record score of 8-under par 568. After winning the championship, GW earned the automatic bid to the NCAA Greensboro Regional, making its first trip to the NCAA Tournament East Regional since 2006 when the Colonials received an at-large bid.

GW graduated Andres Pumariega - who was named to the A-10 All-Conference Team following a second-place individual finish at last season's conference championship - along with Taylor Fuqua, Martin Liu and Brandon Rukin. The Buff and Blue return six players to this year's roster including sophomore Jack Persons, who helped GW claim the 2012 conference title as a freshman.

The 2013 Atlantic 10 Golf Championship will be held at Heron Bay Golf Club in Coral Springs, Fla., from April 26-28.

GW opens its spring slate at the Harmony Preserve Intercollegiate in Orlando, Fla., from March 4-6.

2013 A-10 Golf Predicted Order of Finish (2012 Finish)

1. Charlotte (T-2nd)
2. Xavier (T-2nd)
3. Richmond (4th)
4. VCU (4th in CAA)
5. Dayton (6th)
6. George Washington (1st)
7. Temple (10th)
8. Rhode Island (5th)
9. St. Bonaventure (11th)
10. Butler (6th in Horizon League)
11. Fordham (8th)
12. La Salle (7th)
13. Saint Joseph's (9th)

College Sports Madness Atlantic 10 Preseason All-Conference Teams

Senior pitcher Kenny O'Brien and junior utility player Owen Beightol have each been named to the College Sports Madness Atlantic 10 Preseason All-Conference Second Team.

O'Brien, an Atlantic 10 Academic All-Conference selection last season, led the Colonials and ranked fourth in the A-10 with a 2.76 earned run average. He also led the team with five wins, 52 strikeouts and six saves in 58.2 innings of relief work. A southpaw from Yonkers, N.Y., O'Brien retired 21 batters on a called third strike.

Beightol led the Colonials in batting average (.309), slugging percentage (.459), runs (30), home runs (5) and multiple-hit games (16) while finishing second in total bases during a strong sophomore campaign. The Richmond, Va., native hit safely in 17 of his final 19 games and appeared in 52 games with 49 starts. He also had three hitting streaks of at least seven games.

The George Washington baseball team will begin outdoor practice at the full-renovated Barcroft Park on Friday, January 25. The Colonials open the 2013 season, and the first season under new head coach Gregg Ritchie ('86), on February 15 at Davidson. 

While the majority of George Washington students were ringing in the New Year and enjoying the final weeks of winter break, the Colonials' men's and women's swimming teams traveled to Dorado Beach, Puerto Rico, for their annual January training trip.

Though one might think Puerto Rico means a week of fun in the sun, the Colonials used the seven days to focus on intensive training both in and out of the water. The GW swimming teams met at an off-site pool every morning from Jan. 1-8 for their in-water workouts, then met back up later in the afternoon for their dry-land sessions.

"This is our fifth year in Puerto Rico because warm weather is most consistent for training," said 15^th-year head coach Dan Rhinehart. "This is a week of very intensive training and our workouts are a lot more difficult than what they are used to. We are in the water every morning and either running, lifting weights or doing ab work every afternoon."

With the Colonials' last competition taking place exactly one month before the trip, they look at the week as a chance to regroup and refocus heading into 2013.

"Our winter training trip is crucial to our season because we are able to focus solely on swimming without outside distractions," said junior Jake Mortensen. "It is important that we don't relax too much over winter break because we don't want to lose all of the hard work we put in during the fall."

"The trip is a nice break up from the one-month lull between meets," said Coach Rhinehart. "This is the time where we go to work and make our big push to get ready for the Atlantic 10 Championships in February."

Following the Rhode Island Invitational last weekend, GW will compete in two more dual meets before heading to the A-10 Championships from Feb. 19-23 in Geneva, OH.

George Washington volleyball head coach Amanda Ault has announced that transfer Jordan Timmer, a setter from Central Michigan, will be joining the Colonials in time for the 2013 spring semester.

Timmer appeared in 16 matches for the Chippewas as a freshman this past season, averaging 4.45 assists per set in addition to a .269 hitting percentage and 28 digs.

"We are extremely excited to have Jordan join us for the spring semester," said head coach Amanda Ault. "I was fortunate enough to watch Jordan develop as a player throughout her club seasons.  She understands the commitment that is needed from the setting position and has great court awareness.  She is a fiery player and her athleticism helps her control the game."

A 2011 PrepVolleyball.com Senior Ace (Top 250 recruit) and an Andi Collins Award Finalist, awarded to the nation's top prep-setter, Timmer finished her scholastic career at Lowell High School with 4,385 assists, 416 aces and 1,016 kills. She was a three-time Most Valuable Player selection, three-time team captain and three-time selection to the First Team All-Conference, All-Region and All-State teams.

"It will be great to have her here this spring so she can begin bonding with our hitters and learning the system," said Coach Ault.