Berger's Career Day Lifts Patriots Past Colonials

By Connect Mason Reporter Will Scullion

George Mason junior attacker Brittany Berger's six goals helped propel the 15th-ranked Patriots women’s lacrosse team to a 19-11 victory over the visiting George Washington Colonials (0-4) on Wednesday night at George Mason Stadium.

“I thought it was a great effort,” said George Mason coach Amy Bokker. “George Washington is a tough team. They’ve had a lot of tight games against some top programs.”

The six goals for Berger were a career high, topping her previous career high of three.

“I just had good visibility before the game,” Berger said. “I felt like my intensity was there, my teammates were pumping me up. They helped me out by giving me my left side, so I could finish hard.”

The Patriots (3-1) received major contributions from senior attacker Laura King, who scored four goals, and senior midfielder Megan Bartlett and sophomore attacker Megan Udovich who had three goals a piece.

Mason did start slow, but they picked up the pace scoring 11 of their 19 goals in the second half.

“We really stepped it up in the midfield with the pressure,” Bokker said. “The middle of the game got really exciting. We were glad to be scoring some goals and going hard to the net.”

The Patriots also played a strong game on defense, causing 12 turnovers. Comparatively, the Colonials only caused three turnovers.

George Washington did surge late, scoring five goals in the final three minutes of the game. At this point, many of the Mason starters were on the bench, including starting goalkeeper, Sara Longobucco, who only gave up six goals in her 55 minutes of action.

For the Colonials, attacker Laura Wunk and defender Kat Honeyford led the scoring with three goals each.

The cold weather may have affected the 67 fans in attendance but it had little effect on the players.

“We’ve practiced in this weather,” Bokker said. “Once the adrenaline gets going, it’s not a big deal.”

The next game for the Patriots comes against the Iona College Gaels (0-4), a team the Patriots have never played.

“I just keep telling them not to settle,” Bokker said. “They need to keep the intensity high, keep raising the bar and keep moving forward.”