MEN'S SOCCER at Dayton
WHEN: Saturday, Oct. 1, 2022 | 7 p.m.
WHERE: Baujon Field | Dayton, Ohio
RECORDS: Mason (2-6-0, 1-1-0 A-10); Dayton (7-0-1, 1-0-1 A-10)
SERIES RECORD: Mason leads, 3-1-2
LAST MEETING:  The Patriots defeated the Flyers in double overtime, 3-2, on Oct. 5, 2019 at George Mason Stadium.
WATCH ($): ESPN+
LIVE STATS: Click here FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason men's soccer travels to take on No. 19 Dayton in an Atlantic 10 Conference matchup on Saturday, with the opening kick scheduled for 7 p.m. at Baujon Field in Dayton, Ohio.

The match is the last of a season-high four straight road matches for the Patriots.
 
Last time out, the Patriots (2-6-0, 1-1-0 A-10) were blanked at William & Mary, 3-0, on Tuesday at Martin Family Stadium in Williamsburg, Va.  The Tribe netted the eventual game-winner in the seventh minute of play and added a pair of goals in the second half.

The Tribe outshot the Patriots, 16-6, including an 8-2 advantage in shots on goal.  Mason graduate student forward Noah Raphael led the team with five shots and recorded both shots on goal for the Patriots in the match.  Mason senior goalkeeper Jake Langley (2-6-0, 1-1-0 A-10) made four saves, while sophomore goalkeeper Matthew Bauer played the final nine minutes of the match in his collegiate debut. 

The Patriots have been shutout in each of their last two games.

Raphael leads the club in goals (2) and points (4) in eight games played with two starts.  Graduate student forward Ariel Aguas leads the team in shots (13) and shots on goal (6) and has scored one goal with one assist for three points in eight starts.

Junior midfielders Louis Lehr and Henry Wachsman, sophomore defender Ahmed Mohamed, sophomore forward Balint Kocso and freshman midfielder Zach Eichelberger have each netted one goal on the season.

Langley (2-6-0, 1-1-0 A-10 2.41 GAA, 710 MIN) has started every match for the Patriots with 28 saves and 19 goals against.

Mason is meeting Dayton for just the seventh time in program history.  The Patriots are 3-1-2 all-time against the Flyers. 

The Patriots have played just two games at Dayton.  The Patriots and Flyers played to a 1-1 double overtime draw on Oct. 10, 2014 and Dayton's lone win in the all-time series was a 5-2 victory on Nov. 1, 2017 at Baujon Field.

In the last meeting between the two clubs, the Patriots overcame a 2-0 deficit in the second half to defeat the Flyers in double overtime, 3-2, on Oct. 5, 2019 at George Mason Stadium.  The Patriots scored goals in the 64th, 78th and 107th minutes of play.

Mason outshot Dayton, 17-12, including a 10-7 edge in shots on goal.  Mason had 11 corner kicks, while Dayton had six corner kicks in the match.

ABOUT THE PATRIOTS
 
The Patriots have 20 returners and 13 newcomers on the roster heading into the season under first-year head coach Rich Costanzo (Maryland, '08).

Assistant coaches Noel Orozco (St. Bonaventure, '17) and Michael Callahan (North Carolina, '08) each enter their first year with the Patriots.

Returning seniors from last year's squad are forward Kent Harrison (Newcastle, Australia), midfielder Cameron Revels (Clover, S.C.) and defender Jonathan Fawole (Columbia, Md.).  Returning juniors are forwards Nicolas Alt (Basel, Switzerland) and Ishmail Kamara (Woodbridge, Va.), midfielders Louis Lehr (Dielheim, Germany) and Henry Wachsman (Barrington, Ill.), along with defender Noah McGrath (Melbourne, Australia).

Mason has 11 sophomores on the roster with forwards Balint Kocso (Munich, Germany), Michael Medina (Central Islip, N.Y.), midfielders Jose Alvarado (Alexandria, Va.), and Darri Palsson (Kópavogur, Iceland), defenders Valentin Brandis (Hamburg, Germany), Marcel Cole (Mosley, Va.), Linus Dahl (Königstein im Taunus, Germany), Ahmed Mohamed (Cairo, Egypt), Joshua Morrobel (Burke, Va.) and goalkeepers Matthew Bauer (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) and Billy Schutze (Wayne, N.J.).

The Patriots added two graduate students, forward Noah Raphael (Calvert County, Md.) and midfielder Ariel Aguas (Quito, Ecuador), in addition to senior goalkeeper Jake Langley (Villanova, Pa.).

The Patriots have 11 freshman on the roster with midfielders Zach Eichelberger (Baltimore, Md.), Zach Golden and Nicholas Prioli (Houston, Texas), defenders Eric Allen (Columbia, Md.), Jaden Berman (Winchester, Va.), Will Carson (Wheeling, W.Va.), Chase Hutson (Fairfax, Va.), Nathan Montini (Braselton, Ga.), Kunandy Ouattara (Alexandria, Va.) and Christian Xantus (Woodbridge, Va.) and goalkeeper Jack Desroches (Virginia Beach, Va.).

The Green and Gold kicked off the season at Old Dominion on Aug. 26 (1-0, Old Dominion) and American on Sept. 2 (2-1, American) in the first two games of seven non-conference matches.

Mason then played three straight games at George Mason Stadium, the longest homestand of the season.  The Patriots hosted Penn State on Sept. 5 in the home opener (3-1, Nittany Lions), Radford on Sept. 10 (3-1, Patriots) and played their first conference match of the season against St. Bonaventure on Sept. 17 (2-1, Patriots).

Mason played seven games in September, with four on the road and three at home. 

The Patriots played a season-high four straight matches on the road from Sept. 20 through Oct. 1, alternating non-conference and league games. 

The Patriots made the trek to take on top-ranked Wake Forest on Sept. 20 (6-1, Demon Deacons), played their first A-10 road game against Davidson on Sept. 24 (2-0, Wildcats), visited William & Mary on Sept. 27 (3-0, Tribe) and travel to Dayton (Oct. 1).

The match against the Flyers is the first of seven that the Patriots will play in October, with four at home and three on the road.

Mason returns to Fairfax to continue league play against La Salle (Oct. 5) and Duquesne (Oct. 8).  After an A-10 road matchup at Rhode Island (Oct. 15), the Patriots are back home for a non-conference game against UNCW (Oct. 18).  Rhode Island finished second in the A-10 last season with a 5-2-1 record and went 10-5-2 overall.

The Patriots travel to face in-state rival VCU (Oct. 22) and conclude the regular season at home against the George Washington Colonials (Oct. 29) in a Revolutionary Rivalry contest.

This season, the Patriots are scheduled to play 15 regular season games, a slate that includes two matches against NCAA Tournament teams.  Mason will play seven home games, three against non-conference opponents and four against Atlantic 10 rivals.

SCOUTING DAYTON

No. 19 Dayton enters the match with a 7-0-1 overall record, including a mark of 1-0-1 against Atlantic 10 Conference opponents.  The Flyers are 3-0-1 at home, 2-0-0 on the road and 2-0-0 in games played at a neutral site.

The Flyers are one of only nine unbeaten teams in the top-25 rankings, along with Wake Forest, Washington, Duke, Kentucky, Stanford, Portland, Xavier and Duquesne.

Last time out, Dayton scored a pair of goals in a span of 31 seconds in the first half on the way to a 2-1 victory over West Virginia on Tuesday at Baujon Field.  Senior forward Forster Ajago scored his fifth goal of the season in the 14th minute and freshman midfielder Basit Umar netted his first collegiate goal, the eventual game-winner in the 15th minute for the Flyers.

Dayton is the highest-scoring team in the A-10.  The Flyers have scored 25 goals and surrendered only five through the first eight games.  Dayton has had 11 players tally at least one goal so far this season.

Ajago leads the club and is tied for second in the conference in goals (5), points (12) and game winners (2) in eight starts.  Andy Sanchez is tied for second on the team in goals (4) and he is second in points (11) and shots on goal (11) in eight starts.

Senior forward Manny Day is tied for second on the team in goals (4) and tied for third in points (9) in eight games.  Sophomore midfielder Michael Adedokun has netted two goals and paces the Flyers in assists (5), and he is tied for third in points (9) in six games with four starts.

Junior goalkeeper Dario Caetano (7-0-1, 1-0-1 A-10, 1.50 GG, 720 MIN) is tied for second in the league with four shutouts in eight starts.  He has made 18 saves and allowed five goals against.

CORNER KICK
 
Mason and Dayton met for the first time 32 years ago.  The Patriots claimed a 3-1 victory over the Flyers on Sept. 28, 1990 at George Mason Stadium.

The two clubs have met once in the Atlantic 10 Tournament, with the Patriots downing the seventh-seeded Flyers, 1-0, in double overtime on Nov. 9, 2018 at Hermann Stadium in St. Louis, Mo.  Mason midfielder Grant Robinson scored the golden goal in the 102nd minute to lift the Patriots to the A-10 championship game.