The George Mason High School team is open to students in grades 9-12.

The first practice for the high school and middle school squads will be Friday September 30, 6:00-8:00pm at Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Arlington.   To register, please contact  info@masonhockey.org.

The GMHS Hockey Club is a non-profit organization funded by players, parents and patrons.  Please visit www.masonhockey.org for additional information.

Members of the George Mason High School club ice hockey team recently presented Mustang Athletic Director Tom Horn with a team jersey before a game against Yorktown High School.

In photo from left are Adam Fendley, Hunter Olson, Hans Olson, Coach Horn, Connor Rhodes, Eddy Marshall, Jack Stricker, Marsden Davis, Andrew Williamson, and Stan Fendley, coach of the hockey team.

The team also presented Marshall with a trophy in appreciation of his play as goalie and leadership as the team’s only senior.

The Mustang hockey team was founded in 2010 and plays other club teams in the Northern Virginia Scholastic Hockey League.

Following the presentation to Horn and Marshall, the Mustangs took the ice to beat Yorktown 7-2.  The team is undefeated in spring league play with a record of 5-0-1.

The George Mason High School club ice hockey team has been invited to participate in the first spring high school hockey league ever hosted by the Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Arlington. 

The league will be a 4-team affair including George Mason, West Potomac, Washington-Lee/TC Williams, and Yorktown.   Each team will play each opponent three times, with the champion named on the basis of the round robin record.    

The Mustangs will take on Yorktown this Thursday, March 24 at 6:30pm in the first game for both squads.  

The season will run through early June, with all games played at the Kettler Capitals facility atop the Ballston Mall.  

The Mason squad’s schedule can be viewed here, with additional information on the club available at www.MasonHockey.org. 

Mustang hockey players include, from left, Jack Stricker, Andrew Williamson, Connor Rhodes, Eddy Marshall, Adam Fendley, Hunter Olson, Hans Olson and Marsden Davis.

Mary Ellen Henderson students Tyler Taylor, in the red jersey, Sam Allan, in blue, and Ben Kravinsky, in green, have participated in team practices.

The George Mason/Oakton club ice hockey team ignored an early one-goal deficit tonight to overpower Osbourn Park 4-1 in the team’s season finale at Lumberyard Ice Rink in Haymarket.

Osbourn Park took the lead three minutes into the contest, slipping the puck past Mason goalie Eddy Marshall after a multi-shot scrum in front of the net.   

The Mason/Oakton squad took the challenge, however, picking up the pace and tying the score shortly before the first intermission on a shot by Oakton’s Alex Lambrides, assisted by Mason junior Hans Olson. 

OP came out skating hard in the second period and enjoyed a number of odd-man rushes, only to have Marshall shut them down with repeated acrobatic saves in goal. 

Mid-way through period, the momentum shifted to Mason/Oakton as first-line forwards Olson, Lambrides and Luke Votaw put on an offensive clinic, driving repeatedly into Osbourn Park territory and chipping passes across the goal crease.   Their defensemen, led by Adam Fendley, Chris Peterkin, Brett Barlow, Tim Nguyen, and Evan Bazzini repeatedly held the blue line and delivered the puck back to the forwards for second and third shots.  OP goalie Kyle McDermott was up to the challenge most of the way, but finally succumbed on a play in which all five Mason/Oakton players touched the puck before Votaw buried it to make the score 2-1.

With five minutes remaining in the second period, Mason freshman Fendley started the play that led to his team’s third goal, breaking the puck out of his own end and passing to a speeding Olson across the rink.  Olson pushed the puck into OP territory on the left, passed cross-ice to Votaw, who one-touched the puck  back to Olson driving in front of the net.  Olson deked left and then fired the puck between McDermott’s pads for the score.  

The third period was a penalty-ridden defensive battle, with both teams throwing hard checks and diving for the puck.  Shots came from every angle, only to be denied by excellent goaltending on each end. 

With four minutes remaining, however, Mason freshman Connor Rhodes, camping out in front of the OP goal, found the put-back he had been looking for.  As teammate Evan Bazzini blasted a slapshot from the blue-line, Rhodes muscled his way around the opposing defenseman, picked up the rebound on the other side, and tapped it past an outstretched McDermott for the final score of 4-1.     

In the battle of the goalies, Marshall stopped 27 of 28 shots, while McDermott stopped 26 of 30. 

The win came despite the absence of talented Mason freshmen Hunter Olson, the team scoring leader before a wrist injury ended his season, and Jack Stricker, who is preparing for a regional wrestling tournament. 

After starting 0-5, the Mason/Oakton team won three of its last five games to end 3-7 on the season.  It was the first year in which George Mason High School was represented in ice hockey. 

The team will begin a spring season in March.

The George Mason/Oakton ice hockey team overcame a two-goal first-period deficit to gain a 6-2 victory over Flint Hill Saturday night at Ashburn Ice House. 

Although the Mason/Oakton squad outshot Flint Hill 11-9 in the first period, Flint Hill scored twice on breakaways to lead the contest 2-0 at the first intermission. 

But the second period saw a momentum shift which lasted throughout the game, as Mason goalie Eddy Marshall stopped multiple point-blank shots and his teammates began finding the back of the net at the opposite end. 

Oakton sophomore John Zalubski scored midway through the second period to cut Flint Hill’s lead to one, followed by a tying goal by Oakton sophomore Matt Stalzer to end the period. 

George Mason’s skaters dominated the game in the third period, with each gaining scoresheet points for goals or assists.  Early in the period, Mason junior Hans Olson scored his team’s third goal on a shot above the goalie’s shoulder, and one minute later picked up an assist on a pass to Mason freshman Jack Stricker, who buried the puck to make it 4-2.   

The assault continued on the next shift, when Mason freshman Adam Fendley stole the puck at Flint Hill’s blue line and passed to Zalubski in front of the goal, where Zalubski picked up his second goal of the game with Fendley getting the assist.  The score with eight minutes left was 5-2 for Mason/Oakton. 

The final score came on assists from Mason skaters Olson and Connor Rhodes.  Rhodes started the play from the right corner with a pass to Olson in the high slot, who in turned delivered it to Oakton sophomore Chris Peterkin in front of the net.  Peterkin tapped the puck past the Flint Hill goalie to make it 6-2.     

Flint Hill tried desperately to get back in the game late in the third period, peppering Marshall with shots from every angle, but the Mason senior stopped every effort and his defenders efficiently cleared all rebounds.  For the night, Marshall stopped 29 of 31 shots, while his teammates fired 35 shots against Flint Hill.  

The win marked the second victory of the season for Mason/Oakton, which improved to 2-6 and has won two of its last three games. 

The Mason/Oakton squad plays Woodson Saturday February 5 at 9:20pm at Ashburn Ice House, followed by the final game of the season Wednesday February 9 at 4pm against Osbourn Park at the Lumberyard Rink in Haymarket.

George Mason High School has never been represented in high school ice hockey – until now.

At 6:45pm Friday at the Kettler Capitals Iceplex at Ballston, six Mason students will take the ice with their partner school, Oakton High, to take on a squad from TC Williams/Washington & Lee.   The teams are part of the Northern Virginia Scholastic Hockey League, a growing conference of hockey clubs playing under the auspices of USA Hockey.

It almost didn’t happen.  A few weeks ago it appeared the Mason players would lose their opportunity to compete this year when a partnership with Hylton High fell apart.  With only four days before the team registration deadline, Mason had too few players to compete.

An emergency message to other NVSHL teams, however, saved the day.  Oakton High, one of the most established teams in the league, agreed to absorb the Mason athletes.  Now, Oakton’s junior varsity team is officially “Oakton/George Mason” on the NVSHL web site.

From left, Hans Olson, Adam Fendley, Eddy Marshall, Hunter Olson and Connor Rhodes model the Oakton jerseys they will wear as part of a joint team with Oakton High School.

Because ice hockey is a relatively new sport in Virginia, the NVSHL allows two schools to partner to form a team.

“We lucked out,” said junior Hans Olson.  “If not for the Oakton guys taking us in, we’d be sitting it out this year.”

One thing the team lacked, however, was a goalie – the one position a hockey team can’t do without.

Enter Mason senior Eddy Marshall, a roller-hockey goalie who wanted to give ice hockey a try.  Marshall had skated, but had never been between the pipes on ice.  With borrowed goalie gear, he began attending pick-up sessions at area rinks, taking slap shots and learning to react to “dekes”.  Soon the coaches agreed Marshall was the guy for the job, and he will be in goal when the Oakton/Mason team takes the ice at Kettler Friday.

The other players on the squad are freshmen Adam Fendley, Hunter Olson, Connor Rhodes and Jack Stricker.

Jack Stricker shoots cross ice at Kettler Capitals Iceplex. Stricker is one of the team's most versatile members, playing forward, defense and back-up goalie.

Although the 2010-11 season is just beginning, the Mason players are looking forward to forming their own program in the future.

“The Oakton team has been great to us, but we don’t even know if they will need a partner in the future, so we want to be ready to form a Mason team next year,” said Hunter Olson.  “We need some new guys to start skating over the next few months so they’ll be ready.”

“It’s a blast,” said Rhodes, who also plays football for George Mason.  “Everybody should play hockey.”

“Try it one time and you’ll never stop,” agreed Stricker, who splits hockey season with wrestling.

To provide information about the team, the players started a Mason Hockey web site and Facebook page.  The boys even designed club t-shirts and are making them available to other students through the web site.

Steve Olson, father of Hans and Hunter, recommended that those interested in playing on a future Mason hockey team start on a “House” team at Kettler, which has a new season beginning in January.   “House leagues are less competitive, so new players can focus on skating and stick skills without worrying about things like checking.  It’s great fun, and great exercise.”

Mason players scrimmage at Kettler Capitals Iceplex. Although the team plays at facilities all over Northern Virginia, the Mason athletes frequently are found at the Ballston facility due to its close proximity.

And for those who just want to enjoy ice skating, the Mason hockey players will come out to join their fellow students for public skating at Kettler.  The first Mason Hockey “Skate Night” will be Saturday at 5:45pm — the day after the team’s inaugural game.

“Come to the game Friday night, and then come skate on Saturday,” Fendley told fellow students.  “You’ll love it.”

The Northern Virginia Scholastic Hockey League has released the game schedule for the Oakton/George Mason junior varsity ice hockey team.  The first game will be Friday December 3 at 6:45pm against Washington & Lee/TC Williams at Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Arlington.

This year represents the first time a Falls Church City team will compete in the NVSHL.  In October, representatives of the George Mason athletes and those from Oakton High School agreed to combine their players at the JV level for the 2010-11 season. 

Mason players include Senior Eddy Marshall (Goalie), Junior Hans Olson (Forward), and Freshmen Hunter Olson (Forward), Connor Rhodes (Forward), Jack Stricker (Forward-Defense), and Adam Fendley (Defense). 

The team’s complete game schedule for the 2010-11 season follows:

Friday, December 3, 6:45 pm, vs Washington Lee / TC Williams, at Kettler Capitals Iceplex  

Friday, December 10, 9:20 pm, vs Freedom / Dominion, at Ashburn Ice House

Saturday, December 11, 9:20 pm, vs Yorktown, at Ashburn Ice House

Friday, December 17, 9:40 pm, vs North Stafford / Colonial Forge, at Skatequest Reston

Saturday, December 18, 6:30 pm, vs Osbourn, at Cabin John Ice Arena

Saturday, January 08, 9:20 pm, vs Briar Woods / West Potomac, at Ashburn Ice House

Friday, January 21, 4:00 pm, vs South Lakes, at Lumberyard Ice Rink (Haymarket)

Saturday, January 29, 10:20 pm, vs Flint Hill, at Ashburn Ice House

Saturday, February 5, 9:20 pm, vs Woodson, at Ashburn Ice House

Wednesday, February 9, 4:00 pm, vs Osbourn Park, at Lumberyard Ice Rink

Hockey players from George Mason High School will join those from Oakton High this winter on a Junior Varsity team in the Northern Virginia Scholastic Hockey League.  The Mason athletes intend to develop a Mason-centric team within the next three years.

Most area kids play at Ballston, Reston, or Mt. Vernon with a few venturing to Ashburn or Cabin John.  Fort DuPont Ice Arena in the District hosts a terrific skills clinic for beginners on Saturdays.  

With a short season and no playoffs, most players consider Spring hockey the time to try new things and develop new skills.  Skill levels vary widely, with travel players joining up with beginners.  

If you’ve never watched a youth hockey game, come on out and see them play.  Even in the warm weather, it’s a great sport.    

Falls Church hockey players Adam Fendley, Connor Rhodes and Aaron Lagunoff after a game at Kettler Capitals Iceplex