GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY VS. BARTON COLLEGE
WHEN: Friday, Feb. 9, 2018 at 7 p.m.
WHERE: RAC Gym (1,550)
RECORDS: Mason (3-6), Barton (5-5)
SERIES RECORD: Mason leads 2-0
LAST MEETING: Mason def. Barton 3-2 [25-12, 25-21, 21-25, 21-25, 17-15] on Mar. 24, 2017 (Fairfax, Va.)

GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY VS. No. 1 LONG BEACH STATE
WHEN: Saturday, Feb. 10, 2018 at 7 p.m.
WHERE: RAC Gym (1,550)
RECORDS: TBD
SERIES RECORD: LBSU leads 5-1
LAST MEETING: LBSU def. Mason 3-0 [12-25, 15-25, 21-25] on Mar. 10, 2017 (Long Beach, Calif.)

PROMOTION
All fans who attended the Mason men's basketball game vs. GW receive free admission to Mason Volleyball's match vs. No. 1 Long Beach State. Those planning on entering the RAC free of charge Saturday night must present their basketball ticket stub.

HOMECOMING
This weekend marks the 2018 Men's Volleyball homecoming weekend. At the end of the Long Beach State match, there will be an on court presentation of the Mason Volleyball Alumni in attendance. Any questions regarding ceremony participation can be directed to Luke Johns at ljohns54@gmu.edu.

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FAIRFAX, Va. - George Mason closes out the first portion of non-conference play with matches against two 2017 NCAA Tournament teams: the Barton College Bulldogs and the No. 1 ranked Long Beach State 49ers. Mason saw both opponents in 2017, making this year the second year in a row Mason has played the Bulldogs and the 49ers in the same season.

Against Barton, the Patriots look to improve to 3-0 against CVAC teams this season as well as 16-0 all-time since the conference's inaugural 2010 season. Mason previously defeated Limestone 3-0 in the 2018 opener and Mount Olive 3-1 on Jan. 19. This year's matchup against the 49ers is the third time every they'll face each other in the month of February, and the first time ever they'll play in Fairfax. Saturday marks the first time Mason will play the No. 1 team in the nation since Jan. 10, 2017 at Ohio State, and it is the highest Long Beach State has ranked in a matchup against the Patriots. 

PATRIOT POINTS

• The Patriots are coming off a 3-0 setback to No. 5 Ohio State. So far this season, Mason is 1-3 after a loss.

• Sophomore Hayden Wagner led the Patriots with nine kills and senior Brian Negron tallied his 3,000th career assist on Saturday. The Ohio State match marked the third contest this season Wagner has led the Patriots in kills. He also remains at the top of the EIVA leaderboard in kills per set (3.33).

• Wagner's night against Ohio State was the best of his career from a defensive standpoint. The York, Pa. native posted six total blocks and five digs, giving him new career highs in the aforementioned categories. Wagner also picked up a solo block to tie his career high, the fourth time in his collegiate career he's done that.

• Since moving back to setter for the Loyola-Chicago match, Negron is averaging an even 10 assists per set. Last year against Barton, Negron notched 36 assists and two service aces. 

• The weekend marks the final two matches of the first portion of non-conference play. Following the LBSU match, Mason will play six EIVA matches before the big California road trip.

• Mason has its first opportunity against the AVCA No. 1 ranked team this season when they face Long Beach State. All-time, the Green and Gold is 3-12 against AVCA No. 1 teams, with the last victory coming on Mar. 7, 2008 vs. Penn State.

• Saturday against the 49ers will be the third time this year the Patriots will face a reigning conference Player of the Week. The previous opponents with that title were Garrett Zolg of Loyola-Chicago (MIVA Defensive Player of the Week - Jan. 9), Matt Walsh of Ball State (MIVA Offensive Player of the Week - Jan. 23) and T.J. DeFalco of Long Beach State (Big West Defensive Player of the Week - Feb. 5). Walsh was also the reigning AVCA National Player of the Week when Mason defeated Ball State.

• Entering Thursday, the Patriots sit at second in the EIVA in assists per set (11.06) and hitting percentage (.235). They also rank third in the conference for kills per set (11.84).

• RS-Freshman Jack Reese continues his dominance at the net, leading the team with 38 total blocks at an average of 1.19 per set. Both figures set him at second in the EIVA. Reese remains the only player on the Patriots with a block in every match this season.

• While the trio of Patriots who crack the top-15 in NCAA individual statistical categories remain the same from last week, the spots in the rankings have not. Reese's 1.19 blocks per set is 6th, Johnny Gomez's 2.58 digs per set is 7th and Christian Malias' 4.17 points per set is now 15th.

• Awards/Honors Archive: Johnny Gomez - Preseason Off The Block/SpringBak Inc. Top Player from Florida; Hayden Wagner - EIVA Offensive Player of the Week (Jan. 22); Johnny Gomez - EIVA Defensive Player of the Week (Jan. 22); Jack Reese - EIVA Defensive Player of the Week (Jan. 29).

HISTORY VS. BARTON
In the brief series history against the Bulldogs, Mason checks in with a perfect 2-0 record with the most recent meeting being last year's 3-2 dogfight that saw the Patriots narrowly win the fifth set 17-15. In the Patriots five-set win, Kyle Barnes recorded his first career double-double (13 kills, 10 digs), an accomplishment that would result in Mason's lone double-double that season. The Patriots compiled 60 kills as a team in last year's matchup, their second highest single-match total of the season. The Bulldogs had their fair share of individual success last year as well, led by Angelos and Vasilis Mandilaris who each tallied 15 kills in last year's match.

A LOOK AT THE BULLDOGS (5-5, 4-0 CVAC)
The defending CVAC champions are off to a perfect start in conference play and have invaluable experience under their belt with some of their early-season matchups against ranked opponents. Winners of their last five matches, the Bulldogs are led by Angelos Mandilaris' 3.41 kills per set - a mark that is good for 16th in the NCAA. The libero position was up for grabs for Barton at the beginning of the season, and to this point freshman Wilfredo Rivera has gotten the bulk of the workload - checking in at 1.88 digs per set. He's had plenty of help, as Barton has three players with at least 40 digs this season (Rivera - 64; Aleksa Brkovic - 42; Vasilis Mandilaris - 40). As a result the Bulldogs have held opponents to a .225 hit percentage - a mark good for 16th in the nation. 

HISTORY VS. LONG BEACH STATE 
Representing the first Big West opponent for the Patriots this season, Long Beach State will play Mason on the road for the first time, with the previous six matchups either played in Long Beach or a neutral site. After winning the first meeting 3-1 back in 1984, George Mason has dropped the last five. On Mar. 14, 1995, the Patriots registered 103 team assists that stands today as the fifth highest total in program history. 99 of those assists came from Eric Olson, which ranks as the fourth highest individual total in program history. Since the AVCA Coaches' Poll inception in 1986, Long Beach State has been ranked in the top-15 in all five matchups against George Mason, while the Patriots were ranked No. 14 in the 1995 matchup and No. 15 in the 2013 matchup.

A LOOK AT THE 49ERS (10-0, 0-0 BIG WEST)
Long Beach State, predicted to win the Big West conference, enters the week 10-0 and collected all but two number one votes in the latest coaches poll. Under 2017 AVCA Coach of the Year Alan Knipe, the 49ers return 11 players from last year's Final Four team, including 2017 AVCA Player of the Year T.J. DeFalco. The junior outside hitter is the reining Big West Defensive Player of the Week and enters Thursday second on the team with a 3.06 kills per set average. Running the 49er offense is junior setter Josh Tuaniga. The 2017 AVCA All-American is seventh in the country in assist per set, and has helped guide Long Beach State to an NCAA leading .415 hit percentage. Through ten matches, the 49ers have only dropped one set - the second frame in their 3-1 win over NJIT on Jan. 5.