• Mason's 2019 season came to a close on Thursday night, falling to Penn State in the EIVA Semifinals.
• Hayden Wagner tallied a team-high 16 kills while senior Kyle Barnes added 12 kills.
• The Patriots finish the 2019 season with an overall record of 17-9 and conference mark of 10-4.

 
FINAL: Mason 2, Penn State 3 (PDF Box Score)
Wagner – 16 kills; Velez – 42 assists; Calaman and Velez – 5 digs
 
PRINCETON, N.J. – The 2019 season came to an end on Thursday night as George Mason men's volleyball fell to Penn State in five sets. Mason finishes the season with an overall record of 17-9 while the Nittany Lions improve to 15-14 to advance to the EIVA Finals on Saturday night.

"Congratulations to Penn State," said head coach Jay Hosack. "They played a phenomenal match and we just came up short. I want to take a moment to acknowledge and thank all my seniors for their four or five years of hard work they gave to this program. Could not be more proud of how they handled themselves and their composure throughout the course of the season.

"I know the younger guys are going to feel this if they are true competitors. This will just be more motivation for us next year to come out stronger and faster."

Mason made history when it swept Penn State in both regular season contests earlier this season; however, in true rivalry fashion, the Nittany Lions would not be swept a third time. PSU used short bursts of scoring runs to claim an early 11-7 advantage in the first. Out of the timeout, Penn State rattled off four straight points to extend its lead to seven, 15-8. Slowly, but surely, the Patriots inched away at Penn State's lead. A late 4-1 scoring run allowed Mason to cut the lead to three, 20-17. Later in the set, Luis Velez won a battle at the net to tie the score, 22 all – forcing Penn State to call timeout. Out of the break, Penn State scored the final three points to claim set one, 25-22.

Back-to-back kills by Kyle Barnes pushed Mason out to an early 4-2 lead in the second set. The Nittany Lions responded with four straight points to jump ahead, 8-5. After back-to-back kills by Wagner evened the frame at 9 all, the set settled into a back-and-forth battle. No team would lead by as many as two until Mason went on a late 3-0 scoring run to lead, 21-18. Barnes' fifth kill of the set gave Mason the win, 25-23.

With the match tied at one apiece, Mason found itself down 8-2 in the early stages of the third set. The Patriots' offensive struggled, allowing Penn State to claim the third set, 25-16. Mason hit .000 (6-6-20) in the set compared to the Nittany Lions' clip of .320.

Down 2-1 in match, Mason needed a strong fourth game to keep its season alive. Despite a back-and-forth start to the set, the Patriots used a 5-1 scoring run to open their lead to 15-9. Mason led by as many as eight to take the fourth stanza with ease, 25-18. Getting back into its offensive flow, Mason hit .409 in the set, putting down 11 kills on 22 attempts. Barnes tallied four of his 12 kills in the fourth set of play.

Heading into only its third fifth set of the season, the Patriots looked to earn its first five-set win of the year. To start the final set of play, Penn State put down two kills and an ace to lead 4-1. After Mason cut the lead to one, the Nittany Lions responded with a 5-1 scoring run, for a score of 9-4. The deficit proved too large to overcome as Penn State took the final set, 15-9.

Seniors Barnes, Langston Payne, Travis O'Gorman, Justin Coleman, Will Calaman and Aaron Cymbor played their final match for the Green & Gold. Barnes finished with 12 kills (.346 pct) and four digs, Payne tallied four kills and two blocks, Calaman collected five digs on defense and Coleman provided a boost to Mason's serving in the match. The seniors' legacy will be felt and seen for many years to come as the group brought home the EIVA Championship title back in 2016. 

NOTABLE STATS

• Serving played a large role in the match with a combined 14 service aces and 35 service errors. Mason registered five aces compared to its 14 service errors.  
• Penn State held the advantage in digs, 37-23.
• Wagner finished his junior campaign with his 23rd double-digit kill performance, putting down 16 kills on a .343 clip.