Men’s basketball
Last season: 17-14, tied for fourth of 14 in the A-10
Where to watch: The Smith Center
Who to look for: Senior Tony Taylor, team MVP, who led the team in scoring, assists and steals this past season. He ranked 12th in the A-10 in scoring and third in assists, earning Second Team All-Atlantic 10 honors.
The scoop: It was an offseason of upheaval for the Colonials, who saw ten-year head coach Karl Hobbs and his staff depart, replaced by America East Coach of the Year Mike Lonergan. GW looks to improve upon its best season in the past four years.
Women’s basketball
Last season: 8-21, 11th of 14 in the A-10 Conference
Where to watch: The Smith Center
Who to look for: Seniors Tara Booker and Tiana Myers, and junior Danni Jackson, who were the team leaders in field goals and scoring average last season.
The scoop: GW struggled with injuries for the second year in a row, sidelining as many as five players at one time and forcing the remaining members of the roster to play through injuries.
Men’s soccer
Last season: 3-15-0, 13th of 14 in the A-10 Conference
Where to watch:
The Mount Vernon Campus
Who to look for:
Junior Seth Rudolph, who led GW and finished second in the A-10 in scoring last season.
The scoop:
The Colonials graduated just three seniors and are looking to use the consistency in their roster to build upon last year’s disappointing season.
Women’s soccer
Last season: 9-9-0, 11th of 14 in A-10 Conference
Where to watch: The Mount Vernon Campus
Who to look for: Sophomore Alex Neal, who was named to the A-10 All-Rookie team and was second on the Colonials in scoring.
The scoop: GW will have a fairly young team this year and will be looking for upperclassmen to step into leadership roles after graduating nine seniors in 2011.
Baseball
Last season: 19-36, 11th of 13 in the A-10
Where to watch: Barcroft Park in Arlington, Va.
Who to look for: Senior Stephen Oswald, who finished second on the team with a .297 batting average, four home runs and 33 RBIs.
The scoop: The Colonials struggled at points last season, and will look to fill the gaps left by a large senior class, including outfielder Brendon Kelliher, who ranked second in the A-10 in home runs, and pitcher Bobby Lucas, Jr., who was drafted by the Washington Nationals.
Men’s tennis
Last season: 15-9, Atlantic 10 Champions
Where to watch: The Mount Vernon Campus
Who to look for: Junior Alexander van Gils and sophomore Viktor Svensson, both All-Conference Second Team selections.
The scoop: GW was undefeated in the A-10 this year, winning the league championship after entering the tournament seeded first. The Colonials made the program’s first-ever trip to the NCAA Championship, falling in the first round to Duke. The team’s success earned head coach Greg Munoz 2011 A-10 Coach of the Year honors.
Volleyball
Last season: 17-15, seventh of ten in the A-10 Conference
Where to watch: The Smith Center
Who to look for: Junior Lauren Whyte, a member of the 2010 A-10 All-Conference Second Team, who led the league in points and kills this season.
The scoop: The Colonials will take the court under new leadership after Amanda Ault and Ryan Freeburg were hired as the program’s head and assistant coaches, respectively, in the spring.
Softball
Last season: 16-27-1, ninth of 11 in the A-10
Where to watch: The Mount Vernon Campus
Who to look for: Sophomore Chelsea Lenhart, who was named to the 2011 A-10 All-Rookie team and led GW with a .316 batting average.
The scoop: After struggling through one of the worst seasons in program history in 2009-10, GW began to rebuild under new leadership in 2010-11 under head coach Stacey Schramm.
Women’s lacrosse
Last season: 6-11, fifth of eight in the A-10
Where to watch:
The Mount Vernon Campus
Who to look for: Senior Hilary Quinn, a standout on defense for the Colonials, who was named to the All-Conference Second Team last season.
The scoop: The Colonials were kept from the league championship bracket for the second year in a row, struggling against conference opponents and ending the season with a 3-4 record in the A-10.
Gymnastics
Last season: Eighth place of eight at EAGL Championships
Where to watch: The Smith Center
Who to look for: Sophomore Betsy Zander, the team’s outstanding rookie and first-team All-EAGL selection in the all-around.
The scoop: Five members advanced to the regional round of last season’s NCAA Championship, and will return four of the five next year.
Men’s water polo
Last season: 9-20, sixth of 10 in the CWPA Southern Division
Where to watch: The Smith Center
Who to look for: Sophomore Daniel Tyner, a CWPA All-Southern Division Second Team selection, who led GW with 92 points.
The scoop: The team looks to build on last year with its veteran
experience, returning 11 of their 12 letterwinners from last season.
Women’s tennis
Last season: 12-7, fourth of 14 in A-10 Tournament
Where to watch: The Mount Vernon Campus
Who to watch: Junior Mimi Hamling, who led the Colonials with a 5-1 singles record and 4-2 doubles record against A-10 opponents this season.
The scoop: GW earned its second straight season with double-digit victories and had three team members named to A-10 Women’s Tennis All-Conference teams.
Womens’s squash
Last season: 13-7, ranked
15th nationally in the
College Squash Association
Where to watch: The Lerner Health and Wellness Center
Who to look for: Sophomore Jackie Shea, team MVP, who led GW with 13 individual victories.
The scoop: GW earned the program’s highest ever end-of-season ranking, and will return Shea and sophomore Kelly Barnes.
Swimming
Last season: Eighth place of ten at the A-10 Championships
Where to watch:
The Smith Center
Who to look for: Sophomore Caroline Myers, team MVP, who broke four GW program records at the A-10 Championships.
The scoop: The women’s swimming team improved upon last year’s last-place finish in the A-10 by two slots, breaking a program record in the 400-yard freestyle relay.
Women’s water polo
Last season: 7-10, eighth of 11 at the CWPA Eastern Championship
Where to watch: The Smith Center
Who to look for: Senior Allison Peotter, who already tops GW’s career lists in assists, steals and swim-offs won, and is on pace to become the program’s leader in goals and points in 2012.
The scoop: GW earned an eighth place finish for the fifth time at the Eastern Championship and Peotter was named to the CWPA All-Southern Division First Team for the third straight season.
Men’s cross country
Last season: Eleventh of 14 at the Atlantic 10 Championships
Where to watch: Bull Run Park in Centreville, Va.
Who to look for: Junior David McCutcheon, who was the top Colonial performer in three of his four races this season, including Top 20 finishes at the Mount St. Mary’s Duals and the Paul Short Invitational.
The scoop: The team is coming off a frustrating season hampered by injuries to their roster, but were boosted at the A-10 tournament by McCutcheon, who finished 27th out of 144 runners in the 8K cours.
Women’s cross country
Last season: Eleventh of 14 at the Atlantic 10 Championships
Where to watch: Bull Run Park in Centreville, Va.
Who to look for: Junior Julia Weir, who became the fifth GW female in the past five years to break the 18-minute mark in the 5000 meter race when she ran it in 17:48:31 at the Larry Ellis Invitational.
The scoop: The Colonials graduated standout senior Megan Hogan, who concluded her career at GW with an eighth-place overall finish at the 2010 NCAA Championships to earn All-America honors for the second straight year. She repeated as Atlantic 10 individual champion with a league-record 5-kilometer course time of 16:56, which was the first sub-17 minute time in A-10 Championship history.
Golf
Last season: Sixth of 11 at the Atlantic 10 Men’s Golf Championship
Where to watch: The team plays at various courses throughout the season, including hosting the GW Invitational in Bethany Beach, Del.
Who to look for: Senior Andres Pumariega, who became the first GW golfer in program history to win three straight events and led the team with a 75.1 stroke average.
The scoop: The Colonials will look to improve upon last season, counting on the experience they boast on their roster after graduating just one senior, Brendan Barrack.
Men’s rowing
Last season: Finished the season by placing first of six in the Varsity 4 Petite Final at the IRA National Championships
Where to watch: Potomac River Thompson Boat Center
Who to look for: Along with the women’s rowing program, a recruiting class of 15 student-athletes from eight states will join the Colonials in the fall, the largest-ever class for the program.
The scoop: The Colonials graduated their team MVP, Craig Helmstetter, who rowed from the No. 6 seat in the Varsity 8 boat. Helmstetter walked onto the team as a freshman with no prior rowing experience, but was a member of the varsity boat all four years.
Women’s rowing
Last season: Sixth of nine at the Atlantic 10 Women’s Rowing Championships
Where to watch: Potomac River Thompson Boat Center
Who to look for: Junior Anna Kaminski, who was named to the Atlantic-10 All-Championship First Team last season.
The scoop: The Colonials won the Varsity 4 and Varsity 8 Petit Finals at the A-10 championship, earning 24 points to take sixth place overall.
Men’s swimming
Last season: Fourth of seven at 2011 Atlantic 10 Men’s & Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships
Where to watch: The Smith Center
Who to look for: Junior Phillip Graeter, who had had four different Top 3 finishes at the A-10 championship, including swimming the lead leg of the first-place 400-yard freestyle relay team. Phillip also took second in the 200-yard backstroke and the 400-yard IM, as well as third in the 200-yard IM.
The scoop: The Colonials took first-place in the 400-yard freestyle relay at the A-10 championship, ultimately earning 223.5 points as a team, matching the highest finish since the 2004-05 Championships.
Men’s squash
Last season: 17-8, ranked 18th nationally in the College Squash Association
Where to watch: The Lerner Health and Wellness Center
Who to look for: Junior Omar Sobhy, who was the squash program’s first-ever individual national champion this season.
The scoop: The Colonials will look to further their program’s success after concluding their season with the highest ever end of season ranking, and will return Sobhy, their Malloy Cup Champion.
