Game Week Preview
George Mason (3-2) at San Diego State (2-2, 0-0 MPSF)
Sunday, March 8 | 1 p.m. PT | Aztec Lacrosse Field | San Diego, Calif.
Live Stats (GoAztecs.com) | Live Stream (Aztec Lacrosse Youtube)
Aztec Storylines
· The San Diego State lacrosse team continues its three-game homestand when it welcomes the George Mason University Patriots to America's Finest City Sunday, March 8.
· Opening draw for Sunday's game is set for 1 p.m. Live stats will be available on GoAztecs.com and a live stream of the game will be available through the Aztec Lacrosse Youtube page.
· Sunday's game acts as Kids Club Day where all kids club members will receive a signed Aztec Lacrosse poster and will have the opportunity to score a goal on the field after the game. Additionally, the first 300 fans in attendance will receive a free Aztec Lacrosse t-shirt.
· The Aztecs and Patriots meet for the first time in program history on Sunday. George Mason University is a member of the Atlantic-10 Conference which includes George Washington University, University of Richmond, University of Massachusetts, Davidson University, La Salle University, Virginia Commonwealth University, Saint Joseph's University and St. Bonaventure University. SDSU holds a 4-2 record over A-10 schools with undefeated marks over Davidson (1-0), Saint Joseph's (1-0), and St. Bonaventure (2-0).
· SDSU collected their second win of the 2020 season when they bested University of California, Berkeley Friday, Feb. 28 in San Diego. 10 different Aztecs found the back of the net with the scoring attack led by junior Lexi Tan who tallied a hat trick along with two assists for a team-high five-point performance. Seniors Emily Resnick and Morgan Taylor, junior Julia Sheehan and sophomore Cailin Young each scored two goals. Sophomore Arielle Shahrabani led the team in ground balls, totaling six on the day, followed by redshirt senior goalkeeper Katy Sharretts picking up five. Resnick and Taylor each had two caused turnovers, while Brown led all Aztecs with seven draw controls.
· Sharretts had another fantastic week guarding the net for the Aztecs, earning MPSF Defensive Player of the Week for the third consecutive time. She totaled five ground balls to go along with her second consecutive 10-plus save game. The senior led a SDSU defense that outperformed the Golden Bears in saves (10-to-8) and ground balls (30-to-26). Sharretts tops the league in saves (43) and ground balls per game (3.5) while sitting just two saves shy of the program's saves in a career record (currently 405 set by Katrina Reeves from 2014-17).
· Freshman Camdyn O'Donnell captured a balanced stat line, assisting the Aztecs in their second win over a Pac-12 opponent in 2020 when they bested California, Feb. 28 and earning her first career conference weekly honors when she was named Rookie of the Week for the period ending March 1. Her goal and four ground balls were a part of the SDSU offense that outshot the Golden Bears and a defense that stifled Cal to just 21 shots on goal. The Poway, Calif. native added six shots to the Scarlet and Black's offensive attack, as SDSU holds the nation's 27th-best shot total throughout the 2020 season. The first-year collegiate player has the most assists, assists per game and points by a freshman in the conference this season.
· Senior Emily Resnick was a large factor in SDSU's second 2020 win over a Pac-12 opponent when she scored two goals and assisted on two others, totaling a four-point performance in SDSU's 16-11 victory over California, Feb. 28. The midfielder's total stat line included two caused turnovers and two ground balls, continuing her success on defense as she leads the MPSF in 2.25 caused turnovers per game.
· Competition against ranked opponents comes back to SDSU's 2020 slate in March as the Aztecs travel to Ann Arbor, Mich. to battle the No.13-ranked Michigan Wolverines on Sunday, March 22 at Noon ET. Four days following, on Thursday, March 26, SDSU meets another ranked opponent in IWLCA's No. 14 Denver, as the Pioneers travel to San Diego for a noon match-up. In April, the Aztecs head back to the east coast to take on No. 10 University of Maryland, who SDSU will face for the first time in program history in College Park, Md. on Wednesday, April 1, at 7 p.m.
· The 2020 season will be Head Coach Kylee White's ninth season as the shot caller for the Aztecs. Since the inception of the program at San Diego State, White has accumulated a 65-70 overall record, highlighted by three-straight 10-plus win seasons.
· The offseason saw the Aztecs welcome a new face to The Mesa in assistant coach Taylor Gait, a 2016 (bachelor's degree) and 2018 (master's degree) Syracuse graduate. As a senior for the Orange, Gait tallied a career-high 21 points on 18 goals and a personal-best 13 assists, earning All-Northeast Region honors from the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA). Assistant coach Brandi Padilla earned a promotion and will now act as SDSU's associate head coach.
Up Next
SDSU closes out a three-game homestand when it welcomes the University of Cincinnati to Aztec Lacrosse Field Saturday, March 16. The game between the Aztecs and Bearcats is set to begin at 1 p.m. PT.
Opponent Notebook
George Mason
The Patriots are 3-2 on the season, with both losses coming from top-ranked IWLCA teams. George Mason opened the season with a 19-6 setback against then-No. 1 Maryland at home, and fell to No.12-ranked Virginia March 4 on the road by a score of 14-8. Mason is 1-1 on the road so far this season, with a 14-10 victory at Mt. St. Mary's on Feb. 26 and its most recent loss at Virginia. Sophomore Deanna Balsama and junior Abby Folker lead the Patriots in scoring this season. Balsama's 18 points (13 goals and 5 assists) rank first on the team, while Folker has contributed 10 goals and an assist. Balsama leads GMU and third in the A-10 in draw controls (31), while Folker is second on the Patriots with 14 draws. Mason had a 2019 campaign that saw the Patriots match A-10 program records for league wins (7) and league championship seed (No. 2). The Green & Gold posted 11 wins overall last season and went 7-2 in league play, including a regular-season victory over 2019 league champion Richmond. George Mason continues a west-coast road swing when they travel to UC Davis Wed., March 11.