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Entering his 11th season overall in collegiate coaching and his fifth as a head coach, Mark Weader has compiled a 36-32-1 record during the past four seasons at the helm of the Patriot wrestling program. Weader, the top assistant for the George Mason wrestling team from 1999-2005 and a former Patriot star, took over the full-time head coaching duties after serving as the interim head coach during the 2005-06 season. Last season, Weader guided both Cayle Byers (197) and Mendbagana Tovuujav (174) to the CAA Championships at their respective weight classes. It marked the first time the Patriots took home an individual title at the CAA Championships since the 2004 season, when Adrian Austin won the 149-pound bracket, and the first time Mason won multiple championships since 2001, when the Patriots won a total of six weight classes. At the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, Byers came within one win of earning All-America status. Both Byers and Tovuujav finished the season nationally ranked. During the 2007-08 season, Weader guided the Patriots to one of their finest seasons in recent memory. George Mason posted a 13-5 overall record and 5-3 mark in CAA duals, while improving four spots to a fourth-place finish at the CAA Championships. The 13 wins were the most the program had reached since the 1991-92 season when the Patriots won their first of five CAA team titles. Two of Weader's pupils, freshman Cayle Byers and senior Randy Oates, both qualified for the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships, while three freshmen - Brandon Bucher (149), Byers (197), who finished the season nationally ranked in both polls, and Frankie McLaughlin IV (157) - were all named to the CAA All-Rookie Team. In addition to their success on the mat, the Patriots were also recognized for their hard work in the classroom, earning 2007-08 NWCA Division I All-Academic Wrestling Team honors. In his first season as a head coach in 2005-06, Weader led the Patriots to their second consecutive season with a record above .500. Under Weader's guidance, redshirt freshman Tyler Tisdell finished as the runner-up at 165 pounds at the CAA Championships and advanced to the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships in Oklahoma City, Okla. He followed up that season by guiding the Patriots to a 9-10 overall record and 5-4 mark in the CAA in 2006-07. As an assistant to former head coach Brian Shaffer for six seasons, Weader helped develop 12 NCAA qualifiers, including 2001 CAA Wrestler of the Year Donnie DeFilippis, and helped coach five CAA individual champions from 2000-2005. He was also on the staff of Mason's 2001 CAA championship squad. Weader, 33, completed his George Mason career in 1998-99 as he compiled a 17-11 overall record, won the Colonial Athletic Association championship at 157 pounds and advanced for the first time to the NCAA Championships. The tri-captain placed second twice at 142 pounds at the CAA Championships, and he won the Virginia Division I Intercollegiate Championship in 1998. A four-year starter for the Patriots after transferring from Clemson University, Weader finished his career with an overall record of 75-40, ranking in the top-20 all-time in victories at Mason. A native of Danville, Pa., and a 1994 graduate of Danville High School, Weader twice qualified for the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) Championships and placed fourth as a senior. He compiled an impressive 103-31-2 record in his prep career. He graduated from George Mason in May of 1999 with a B.S. degree in communication. Weader and his wife, the former Shannon Jones, married on May 14, 2005. Jones played soccer for George Mason's women's team from 1996-98. The couple resides in Fairfax, Va. with their two sons, Benjamin and Tyler. Weader's Wrestling Career Stats at George Mason 1998-99: 17-11 157 pounds 1997-98: 18-9 142 pounds 1996-97: 14-7 142/150 pounds 1995-96: 23-11 142 pounds |
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