FAIRFAX, Va. – Perhaps fittingly, a game whose start time was delayed 18 hours needed extra time to reach a conclusion.

George Mason forward Tunde Akinlosotu made sure it was a happy ending for the Patriots.

The junior scored his second goal of the match in the 105th minute, assuring Mason of its first victory of the season – a wild 5-4 double-overtime triumph over Gardner-Webb on Saturday afternoon.

With rain falling on and off at a soggy George Mason Stadium, Akinlosotu and sophomore transfer Colin Brezniak each recorded two goals and an assist in a game that was postponed from Friday night due to lightning. In addition, junior transfer Daniel Damiani scored his first career goal while also assisting on Akinlosotu's game-winner and senior goalkeeper Clark Gronek collected his first career win, making his collegiate debut in his fourth year in a Patriot uniform. 

After the teams combined for eight goals in regulation, neither found the back of the net in the first overtime. The Patriots (1-2) came out aggressive in the second extra period, though, manufacturing three corner kicks in the first four minutes.

The third corner by Grant Robinson was picked off by Gardner-Webb goalkeeper Daniel Husa. Husa then heaved a throw toward one of his Runnin' Bulldogs teammates. But Damiani got to the ball first, knocking it down and creating a turnover. 

He passed it off to Akinlosotu, who dribbled to his right and then uncorked a shot about 25 yards away from the right side high to toward the left side of the goal. Husa made an admirable attempt, leaping and getting his right hand on the ball. But it wasn't enough as the ball bounced up and across the goal line to clinch the Mason victory.

The Patriots jumped out to a two-goal lead less than 30 minutes in. Damiani, a Virginia Tech transfer from Alexandria, scored his first career goal in the 22nd minute. He tapped in a point-blank shot after junior college transfer Pablo Pertusa got the rebound off a Brezniak shot and crept a short pass to Damiani across the box.

Brezniak then notched his first goal as a Patriot in the 28th minute. He received a pass from Akinlosotu in the box and buried a wide-open shot from just a few yards away into the right corner. 

The Runnin' Bulldogs (0-4-1), however, quickly showed they weren't going away quietly. After a Mason foul in the box, Gardner-Webb scored its first goal on a penalty kick in the 35th minute. Then, 11 seconds before halftime, Petter Johansen tied the game up. He corralled a Patriots turnover and fired a rocket from 20 yards away and into the top right corner of the goal, well out of the reach of Gronek.

Less than a minute into the second half, the Runnin' Bulldogs grabbed their first lead of the day on another hot shot into the right corner, this time 25 yards out from Alain Delgado.

Mason responded quickly, though, knotting the game back up four minutes later. Akinlosotu, a native of Bowie, Md., scored his first goal of the season on an assist from Robinson. 

Brezniak made a heads up play to give the Patriots back the lead in the 67th minute. Pertusa quickly scorched a pass down the sideline after a restart following a Gardner-Webb foul.Runnin' Bulldogs goalkeeper Grant Glorioso came to the top edge of the box to retrieve the ball but he mishandled due to pressure from Brezniak. The 5-foot-10 forward from Hanover, Pa., wrestled the ball away and booted a shot from the far right side and into the net for a 4-3 lead.

Gardner-Webb stayed persistent and tied the game up – the third tie of the day – in the 79 th minute on a goal by Jack Hoey into the right corner. That set the stage for overtime and Akinlosotu's heroics.

The Patriots won the shooting battle, 21-19, and placed 12 shots on goal. They also registered seven corner kicks, increasingly putting the pressure on Gardner-Webb's two goalies, who combined for seven saves. Gronek made one save in his first collegiate game. But the 6-foot-2 keeper from Shaker Heights, Ohio, made his presence most of the day, punching out several corner kicks and crosses.

Mason had originally been scheduled to host Mount St. Mary's on Sunday but the game has been postponed and will be rescheduled at a later date. The Patriots now have eight days off before their next game against No. 19 Coastal Carolina next Sunday, Sept. 16 in Conway, S.C.