Sports in a Minute: January 26 Recap

By the Broadside Sports staff

MEN’S BASKETBALL
George Mason University (14-4, 7-1) fell for the first time in conference play after a 58-57 loss to the Northeastern University Huskies (12-6, 7-1) last Wednesday. The team suffered a devastating blow when senior guard John Vaughan collapsed on the court during a free throw attempt. Prior to the injury, Vaughan led the team with 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting, five of which came from three-pointers. Mason rallied from a 10-point deficit to take their first and only lead with 56 seconds left in regulation. Forward Manny Adako’s layup helped Northeastern regain the lead with 25 seconds left. Mason’s perfect conference record came to an end after the Patriots were unable to get a last shot off. The team fell to 5-4 on the road. Despite committing 14 turnovers, Northeastern out-shot Mason 54.8-to-47.9 percent from the field. Northeastern, winners of six of the last seven games, was led by guard Matt Janning’s 20 points and snapped Mason’s six-game winning streak.

After falling behind 55-40 early in the second half, Mason’s rally fell short as the Virginia Commonwealth University Rams (15-5, 8-1) pulled away 76-71 in Richmond on Saturday. For the first time in nearly two years, the Patriots (14-5, 7-2) were without Vaughan. VCU guard Eric Maynor led all scorers with 28 points, shooting 9-of-17 from the field with three three-pointers. Maynor’s free throws put the Patriots away as Mason fell for the second consecutive time in conference play after starting 7-0. Sophomore guard Cam Long led Mason with a career-high 24 points, and added five rebounds and four assists. Fellow sophomore guard Isaiah Tate started in place of Vaughan, and scored two three-pointers for a total of seven points. After scoring 10 points in the first half, freshman forward Ryan Pearson cooled down in the second half with only two points, and fouled out late in the game. The Patriots return to Fairfax to defend their perfect home record on Tuesday night against the University of Delaware Blue Hens, and will be without Vaughan again. His return on Saturday against the Old Dominion University Monarchs remains questionable.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Sophomore Brittany Poindexter led all scorers with 19 points, freshman Becky Cox matched her career-high of 12 points, and Mason (2-15, 0-6) out-shot their opponents 43.1-to-40.8 percent, but the James Madison University Dukes (12-5, 5-1) held on in the 70-65 win and completed the season sweep over Mason. Poindexter, Mason’s leading scorer this season, shot 8-of-13 from the field and added four steals on the defensive side. The sophomore guard also turned the ball over five times out of the team’s 15 turnovers. Freshman forward Rachel Robinson scored eight points to go along with her seven rebounds. Mason prevented the game from getting out of hand, especially with the Dukes struggling to find their range from behind the arc on 4-of-26 shooting. Mason’s CAA counterpart was led by guard Dawn Evans’ 18 points and career-high 11 assists. Forward Jalissa Taylor also registered a double-double with 16 points and 11 boards for the Dukes. The Dukes won for the ninth time in their last 10 games as Mason lost their seventh straight and still look for their first conference win of the season.

WRESTLING
Mason dominated Virginia Military Institute 31-12 last Thursday to improve their record to 4-5-1. Sophomore Frankie McLaughlin IV led off with an 18-6 major decision against VMI’s Matthew Brock in the match at 157 pounds. Fellow sophomore Jimmy Kaden defeated Jayme Gordon with a 7-6 decision at 165 pounds. Mason added to their lead with pins from freshman Mendbagana Tovuujav and sophomore Zach Ulm. Ranked eighth nationally, sophomore Cayle Byers defeated his opponent Ronnie Ellsworth 5-2. Mason was able to rebound from losses at 125 pounds and heavyweight with a win from freshman Denny Herndon at 133 pounds. Byers, Herndon, and Tovuujav each improved their dual match records to 9-1. Sophomore Brandon Bucher wrapped up the day with an 18-2 technical fall in 5:20. Bucher earned his first win this season. Mason will challenge University of Virginia in Richmond on Friday at 7 p.m.