With the end of the school year quickly approaching, many athletes are preparing for the playoffs including senior Tommy Weber with his return to the State tennis tournament. This year marks the Mustangs’ fourth consecutive attempt at the team State title after winning the previous three years. As the team captain, Weber not only competes for the singles title, but wishes the best for his teammates and supports the other tennis players that will be competing in States.

“I want to win the singles title as well as everyone pulling together for a team win. We only have one team loss so it is possible,” said Weber.

The competition is at its toughest when it comes to the State tournament, Weber and the rest of the Mustang tennis team must face the best teams in the state in order to win the title and claim the “four-peat” as Weber called it.

Personally, Weber has acknowledged his improvement from last year and hopes that he will be able to lock down the win for the solo state title.  This will be Weber’s final chance to claim a State Singles Championship because the past two years Mason alum Kan Tagami claimed the singles title.

The State tournament will be held at Radford University June 6-8^th.

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As spring sports begin to come to an end, the baseball team finished up with a strong ending to an overall solid season. The team demonstrated that it was capable of handling teams with more experience than the up-and-coming underclassmen talent on the Mason baseball team. The Mustangs finished with an 11-11 record. Although the team did not have a winning record, they proved that they were capable of playing to the level of larger schools finishing 5-1 with out-of-district games.

The season came to an end after the baseball team upset the number two seeded Central Woodstock for an impressive win. This was followed by a tough loss against Strasburg High School at William Monroe for the District Tournament Semi-finals, bringing the Mustangs’ season to an abrupt end.

The Mustangs lost nine seniors with the ending of the season; however, the team looks forward to future seasons with a lot of up-and-coming young talent from several sophomores and freshman who saw a lot of playing time in the 2013 season.

“The end of the season is tough for everyone, especially us seniors, but it was a great run and I look forward to seeing how this team does next year,” said senior Ethan Anderson.

It is tough for any team to say goodbye to its seniors, but looking to the future, the Mason baseball organization will continue to improve and see success in the Bull Run District and other play.

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Every year, Mason must say goodbye to a class of students as the seniors head off to bigger and better things. Many students leave behind a legacy at Mason that will long be remembered, from academics to the athletic fields. Mason athletes are among some of the best in the state and next year, several alums will be continuing their legacies, as they will play sports in college.

Stephanie Cheney has been playing basketball her whole life and after competing for the Lady Mustangs in all five years she attended Mason, she will be playing basketball for the University of Pennsylvania.

Lucas Cherry began swimming at an early age and has set many records for the Mason swim team. He will continue to live in the water next year at Susquehanna University.

Jesse Schaffer is a state title winning cross-country runner and he has competed for Mason since his eighth grade year. He will be running for the Hobart College cross-country team in the fall.

Quinn Sheehy began attending Mason during her sophomore year and has been playing softball for Mason ever since. She has been a great addition to the Mustang sports family and after graduating, she will be playing for Pomona College in California.

Last but not least, Henry Darmstadter, affectionately known as “Henry the Kicker,” will be doing exactly as his nickname suggests. Henry will become a Georgetown University Hoya and will be a kicker for the Division I football team.

All student athletes have been a great addition to the Mustang community and we wish them well as they head off to compete at the collegiate level.

On Tuesday night, the boys soccer team beat Central Woodstock 7-0 in the Bull Run District semifinals.  They utterly dominated Central in every aspect of the game.  The Mustangs out-possessed them and out-shouted them.  The Mustangs were tight on defense, only letting the Falcons get two shots.

“We played fantastic last night,” said Kurt Ellis.  “We hardly let them get into our half and we pressured them extremely quickly and stole the ball many times.”

The boy’s next match is this Thursday at 7 p.m. against Clarke County.  It will be for the Bull Run District finals.

Nestled in a valley between Massanutten Mountain and the Blue Ridge, East Rockingham HS was a beautiful setting for the Region B Track and Field Championship Meet. 24 schools competed all afternoon and into the evening. The George Mason athletes did well, recording many PRs, and placing in the top third overall for the meet: the Girls tied for 6th, and the Boys place 8th. We will be bringing 17 total athletes to states including competitors and alternates.

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