Oct. 29, 2008

Box Score

FAIRFAX, Va. - The George Mason men's soccer team scored in the first minute of action on Wednesday evening at George Mason Stadium on its way to a 2-0 shutout victory over third-place Drexel. The win snaps the Dragons conference-best seven-match unbeaten streak and improves the Patriots' record to 8-6-2 overall and 4-4-1 in conference matches heading into Saturday's home finale against UNC Wilmington.

Drexel, which had not lost a match since Sept. 27, drops to 6-5-5 overall and 4-2-3 in the CAA following the loss. George Mason was aggressive on offense all night, taking 15 total shots, and put the Dragons in an early hole when freshman forward Axel Levry scored 34 seconds after the start of the match. On the opening possession, senior forward Kwame Adjeman-Pamboe dribbled the ball up the right sideline, beating his defender, before finding Levry open in front of the goal. Levry gathered the pass and blasted the ball into the upper-left corner of the net to give Mason the early lead.

The Patriots added to their lead in the 32nd minute when Adjeman-Pamboe found freshman midfielder Ryan Gracia open for the score. Adjeman-Pamboe got tangled up with a Drexel defender on the left side of the field, causing both to fall to the ground. However, no foul was called on the play by the officiating crew of Garrett Tucker, Matthew Lombardi and Jim Gammie. Adjeman-Pamboe rose to his feet first, gained possession of the ball and made a move toward the goal before finding Gracia waiting in front of the goal. Gracia took the pass and booted the ball past Drexel goalkeeper Cory Robertson to give Mason a 2-0 lead.

The lead was more than enough for a Patriot defensive unit that limited the Dragons to a total of eight shots on the night, four in each half. Junior goalkeeper Sean Kelley had four saves in 90 minutes in his second consecutive start in goal.

George Mason had another opportunity to score nullified when Robertson tackled senior forward Lucas Pardew in the box in the 87th minute. Robertson looked to be clearly beaten on the play and was given a red card, resulting in his ejection from the match. On the ensuing penalty kick, Pardew was unable to get the ball past Alex Reber, who ranged to his right to make a great diving stop after taking over for Robertson.

The Patriots will continue their push toward a CAA Championship berth on Saturday at 7 p.m. when they host first-place UNC Wilmington at George Mason Stadium in the final home match of the 2008 season. The Seahawks improved to 10-7-0 overall and 7-2-0 in the CAA with a 2-0 win over James Madison on Wednesday.