MEN'S SOCCER vs. Radford
WHEN: Saturday, Sept. 10, 2022 | 7 p.m.
WHERE: Fairfax, Va. | George Mason Stadium
RECORDS: Mason (0-3-0); Radford (0-2-1)
SERIES RECORD: Mason leads, 6-1-0
LAST MEETING:  The Patriots defeated the Highlanders, 3-2, on Oct. 2, 2021 at George Mason Stadium.
WATCH ($): ESPN+
LIVE STATS: Click here
TICKET INFORMATION: Men's Soccer will require tickets for admission. Tickets are $10 and will be available for purchase online in advance of the game. Groups of 10 or more can receive a discounted rate of $5 per ticket and group tickets must be purchased in advance. Those interested in a group outing are encouraged to fill out a Group Information Request form and will be contacted by a George Mason Ticket Representative! FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason men's soccer team plays the middle game of its three-game homestand hosting Radford on Saturday, with the opening kickoff scheduled for 7 p.m. at George Mason Stadium.
 
Last time out, the Patriots (0-3-0) fell to Penn State, 3-1, in the home opener on Monday.  The Nittany Lions scored the first two goals of the match in the first 10 minutes of play.  Graduate student forward Noah Raphael scored his first goal as a Patriot in the 79th minute, while senior goalkeeper Jake Langley (0-3-0) made five saves in the match.
 
Mason senior forward Kent Harrison and junior midfielder Louis Lehr each registered two shots.  Senior defender Jonathan Fawole, sophomore forward Balint Kocso, freshman defender Will Carson and Lehr each played 90 minutes.
 
The Patriots and Highlanders have met seven times, with Mason holding a 6-1-0 advantage in the all-time series. 
 
The Patriots and Highlanders are facing each other for the second straight season.  Before last season, the two clubs hadn't met in 17 years going back to 2004.
 
Mason is 6-1-0 all-time against Radford, with all seven games played at George Mason Stadium.  The Patriots claimed each of the first five meetings by shutout and outscoring the Highlanders by a combined 17-0.
 
The Patriots have posted wins over the Highlanders by scores of 1-0 (Sept. 25, 1981), 3-0 (Sept. 24, 1982), 6-0 (Sept. 23, 1983), 3-0 (Sept. 21, 1984), 4-0 (Sept. 20, 1985) and 3-2 (Oct. 2, 2021). 
 
Radford recorded its lone victory over Mason by a 2-1 score on Oct. 17, 2004.
 
In last season's matchup, the Patriots scored a pair of goals in the final 15 minutes of play to defeat the Highlanders, 3-2, on Oct. 2, 2021 in Fairfax. 
 
Miles Montgomery (83'), Kocso (75') and Lehr (26') each found the back of the net for Mason, while Darri Palsson picked up his first collegiate assist on the Patriots first goal of the match.
 
The Patriots outshot the Highlanders, 17-8, including a 9-4 advantage in shots on goal.  Mason finished with 11 corner kicks, while Radford had six corner kicks in the game.  Linus Dahl led the Patriots with three shots on goal and recorded an assist.
 
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.
 
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 will then play 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), welcome Radford (Sept.10) and play their first conference match of the season against St. Bonaventure (Sept. 17).
 
Mason plays seven games in September, with four on the road and three at home. 

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

The Patriots make the trek to take on Wake Forest (Sept. 20), play their first A-10 road game against Davidson (Sept. 24), visit William & Mary (Sept. 27) 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.

SCOUTING RADFORD

The Highlanders finished the 2021 season with a 5-11-0 overall record, including a mark of 3-5-0 against Big South Conference opponents.  Radford went 2-5-0 at home and 3-6-0 on the road last season.

The Highlanders lost three of their top scorers from last season.  Yoshiya Okawa led the club in goals (6), points (13), shots (27) and shots on goal (15).  Juan Benavides led the team in assists (3) and was second in goals (4), points (11) and shots (20).  Ryan Machado-Jones was third on the team in goals (3) and shots (16), and second in assists (2) and shots on goal (10). 
 
Goalkeeper Joseba Incera returns for his senior year.  He started 12 matches in 2021 and finished the season with a 4-7-0 record, posting a 2.54 goals against average with 71 saves and 31 goals against.
 
Radford was scheduled to play its home opener against N.C. State on Monday, but the game was postponed due to inclement weather.

Radford is 0-2-1 to start the 2022 campaign with every game on the road.  The Highlanders fell to Liberty 3-0 (Aug. 25 in Lynchburg, Va.), lost to Mount St. Mary's 4-1 (Aug. 30 in Emmitsburg, Md.) and played to a 0-0 draw against Virginia Tech (Sept. 2 in Blacksburg, Va.)
 
Sophomore forward Collin Hawes has accounted for the Highlanders lone goal of the season.  Incera (0-1-1, 2.00 GAA, 180 MIN) has started two of the first three games.  He has made 8 saves and allowed four goals.

CORNER KICK
 
Mason and Radford have met seven times, with the Patriots leading the all-time series, 6-1-0, with every match played in Fairfax.  The Patriots have never played a game in Radford, Va.
 
The Patriots and Highlanders were common opponents in the early 1980's, with the two schools facing each other five straight years from 1981 through 1985.  Mason won all five of those games by shutout with the Patriots outscoring the Highlanders by a combined 17-0.
 
The Patriots have posted wins over the Highlanders by scores of 1-0 (Sept. 25, 1981), 3-0 (Sept. 24, 1982), 6-0 (Sept. 23, 1983), 3-0 (Sept. 21, 1984), 4-0 (Sept. 20, 1985) and 3-2 (Oct. 2, 2021).