• Mason swept Erskine in its opening match of the Uvaldo Acosta Invitational on Friday night.
• The Patriots start the season 3-0 for the first time since 2008.
• Junior Hayden Wagner posted a season-high 16 kills on a .323 clip while junior Bryce Gatling tabbed a career-high seven blocks.

STATS FOR SATURDAY MATCHES to access live stats, use password: media2019

FINAL: Mason 3, Erskine 0 (PDF Box Score)
Wagner – 16 kills; Velez – 35 assists; Calaman – 6 digs
 
FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason men's volleyball team earned its second sweep of the season with a 3-0 victory over Erskine on Friday night. The Patriots are off to its best start since 2008 for a record of 3-0.

Mason returns to action tomorrow night at 7:30 p.m. when they face No. 3 UC Irvine to round out the Uvaldo Acosta Invitational.

"Although we got the victory tonight, I do not think we played our best volleyball," said head coach Jay Hosack. "I thought we let some things slip, and that can't happen against good teams. A victory is a victory, but we have some improving to do. We will get there, it is only January."

The Patriots opened the match attacking on all cylinders. Mason tabbed its highest hitting percentage (.435) of the match in the first with junior Hayden Wagner collecting five kills on nine swings. Redshirt sophomore Luis Velez dished out 11 of his 35 assists in the opening set of play to lift Mason's offense over Erskine. The Green & Gold won the first in dominating fashion, 25-17.

Junior Bryce Gatling stepped up for the Patriots in the second set, notching four of his career-high seven blocks. The middle blocker also tabbed two kills and a service ace in the set. Wagner, again, found success with his swing, hitting at a .556 clip. Mason's four service aces in the set proved to be the deciding factor as Mason went on to claim the second, 25-19.

The third and final set saw a battle between the two teams. Although Erskine outhit Mason .348 to .333, the Patriots found other ways to earn the sweep. Mason held the advantage in service aces (3) and blocks (3) to take the final set, 25-20.
 
NOTABLE STATS

• Mason hit .435 in the first set with only two attacking errors on 23 attempts.
• Junior Sam Greenslade, who led the country in aces per set after the first week of competition, continued to dominate behind the service line, tallying four service aces.
• For the third straight match, redshirt senior Langston Payne hit over .400. The middle blocker hit .455 with seven kills and two blocks.

UP NEXT
The Uvaldo Acosta Invitational continues tomorrow with two matches. The Princeton Tigers take on the Erskine Flying Fleet at 5 p.m., followed by the marquee matchup between Mason and No. 3 UC Irvine at 7:30 p.m. at the RAC.