MEN'S SOCCER vs. VCU
WHEN: Saturday, Oct. 21 | 7 p.m.
WHERE: Fairfax, Va. | George Mason Stadium
RECORDS: Mason (4-5-3, 2-3-1 A-10); VCU (3-5-5, 3-1-2 A-10)
SERIES RECORD: VCU leads, 18-10-11
LAST MEETING: The Rams defeated the Patriots, 3-1, on Oct. 22, 2022 at George Mason Stadium
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 $5 per ticket and group tickets must be purchased in advance. Those interested in a group outing are encouraged to fill out a Group Information Request form and will be contacted by a George Mason Ticket Representative!
WATCH ($): ESPN+
LIVE STATS: Click here
FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason men's soccer team plays its final home match of the regular season on Saturday, hosting VCU on senior day with the opening kick scheduled for 7 p.m. at George Mason Stadium in Fairfax, Va.
Graduate students
Jake Langley and
Luis Maestre, along with seniors
Zach Golden,
Ishmail Kamara,
Noah McGrath and
Cameron Revels will be recognized prior to the match.
The Patriots are unbeaten in their last four matches (3-0-1) and have outscored their opponents by a combined 13-3.
Mason (4-5-1, 2-3-1 A-10) and VCU (3-5-5, 3-1-2 A-10) have met 39 times, with the Rams holding an 18-10-11 advantage in the all-time series.
The Patriots are set to face one of their most-common opponents. The Patriots are 3-10-5 in 18 games played in Fairfax against the Rams and 7-8-6 in 21 games played in Richmond.
In the last meeting between the two clubs, VCU defeated Mason, 3-1, last season on Oct. 22, 2022 at Sports Backers Stadium in Richmond. The Rams outshot the Patriots, 13-10, including a 5-1 advantage in shots on goal. VCU finished with five corner kicks and Mason had two corner kicks in the match.
Last time out, the Patriots scored four goals in the first half and three more in the second half in a 7-0 victory over Radford on Tuesday at Cupp Stadium in Radford, Va.
The Patriots outshot the Highlanders, 16-9, including an 11-2 advantage in shots on goal. Mason had five corner kicks and Radford finished with two corner kicks in the match.
Eight different players found the scoresheet for the Patriots.
Sophomore midfielder
Nicholas Prioli and Maestre each scored two goals and added a pair of assists. Freshmen
Davis Crittenden James Eliuda (first collegiate goal) and
Abdul Kamara each found the back of the net.
Sophomore midfielder
Asparuh Slavov and freshman midfielder
Brent Fields each registered two assists in the match.
It was the 22nd time in program history that the Patriots have scored seven or more goals in a match. Mason tallied at least seven goals in a road match for the first time in 36 years, when Mason won at East Carolina, 7-1, on Sept. 12, 1987.
The 7-0 win at Radford on Tuesday was just the fourth time in school history that the Patriots have scored seven or more goals in a match on the road (8-0 win at VMI Sept. 7, 1983 / 7-1 win at Georgetown Oct. 16, 1985 / 7-1 win @ ECU Sept. 12, 1987).
Mason junior goalkeeper
Jaume Salvado (4-5-3, 2-3-1 A-10) made two saves in the match to notch his fourth shutout of the season. His four clean sheets are third-most in the Atlantic 10 Conference.
Maestre leads the team in assists (9) and points (15) in 12 starts. His nine assists lead the Atlantic 10 and he is fifth in the league with 15 points. Maestre is also tied for second on the club in goals (3) and third on the team in both shots (11) and shots on goal (7).
Junior forward
Souley Diouf is tied for first on the team in goals (4) and is tied for second in points (10) in 12 games with 11 starts. He is second in shots (18) and shots on goal (8).
Prioli is tied for the club lead in goals (4) and is tied for second in points (10) in 11 games with four starts. He has scored on four of his six shots on goal this season.
Slavov is tied for second on the team in goals (3) and is third in points (9) in 10 starts. He paces the Patriots in shots (19) and shots on goal (11).
Freshman forward
Davis Crittenden (9 games), freshman forward
Kelly Janssen (9 games/4 starts), freshman forward
Abdul Kamara (6 games) and senior midfielder
Henry Wachsman (12 starts) have each scored two goals this season.
Salvado (4-5-3, 2-3-1 A-10, 1.33 GAA, 1080 MIN, 4 SO) has started every match for the Patriots with 32 saves and 16 goals against.
ABOUT THE PATRIOTS
The Patriots have 12 returners and 17 newcomers on the roster heading into the 2023 season under second-year head coach
Rich Costanzo (Maryland, '08).
Assistant coaches
Noel Orozco (St. Bonaventure, '17) and
Michael Callahan (North Carolina, '08) also enter their second year with the Patriots.
Returning from last year's squad is graduate student goalkeeper
Jake Langley (Villanova, Pa.). Returning seniors include forward
Ishmail Kamara (Woodbridge, Va.), defender
Noah McGrath (Melbourne, Australia) and midfielders
Cameron Revels (Clover, S.C.) and
Henry Wachsman (Barrington, Ill.)
Returning juniors are defender
Ahmed Mohamed (Cairo, Egypt) and midfielder
Zach Golden (Marlboro, N.J.).
Mason has four returning sophomores on the roster with defenders
Eric Allen (Columbia, Md.),
Will Carson (Wheeling, W. Va.) and
Joshua Morrobel (Burke, Va.) and midfielder
Nicholas Prioli (Houston, Texas). Goalkeeper
Jack Desroches (Virginia Beach, Va.) returns for his redshirt-freshman campaign.
The Patriots added eight transfers during the offseason including graduate student midfielder
Luis Maestre (Elche, Spain). Three juniors made their way to Mason, with forward
Souley Diouf (Thies, Senegal), defender Javi Sanchez (Elche, Spain) and goalkeeper
Jaume Salvado (Barcelona, Spain) set for their first year with the Green and Gold.
The Patriots have four sophomore transfers with defender
Levi Stephens (Akron, Ohio), forward
Gabriel Silveira (Concordia, Brazil) and midfielders
Erick Kilosho (Roanoke, Va.) and
Asparuh Slavov (Easton, Pa.).
Eight freshmen enter their first year with the Patriots. Defenders
David Garcia (Woodbridge, Va.) and
Kelly Janssen (Sebastopol, Calif.), midfielders
James Eliuda (Juba, South Sudan),
Brent Fields (Alexandria, Va.) and
Anton Siren (Berlin, Germany), forwards
Abdul Kamara (Woodbridge, Va.) and
Davis Crittenden (Newport News, Va.) along with goalkeeper
Blake Moness (Toronto, Ontario, Canada).
PATRIOTS SCHEDULE
The Patriots are scheduled to play 15 regular season games, a slate that includes eight matches against Atlantic 10 opponents and six games at George Mason Stadium.
Head coach
Rich Costanzo begins his second season after being named the Patriots' 11th men's soccer coach in program history last year.
The Green and Gold kicked off the regular season at home against UMBC on Aug. 24 (4-3 Retrievers) and played the first road match against Virginia on Aug. 31 (1-0 Cavaliers). Charlottesville.
Mason returned home to take on Old Dominion on Sept. 24 (2-2 draw). The Patriots traveled to battle Bucknell on Sept. 8 (0-0 draw) in Lewisburg, Pa.
The Patriots downed Navy, 4-0, for their first victory of the season on Sept. 11 at George Mason Stadium.
Mason dropped its Atlantic 10 Conference opener to Davidson on Sept. 16 (2-0 Wildcats) and fell at St. Bonaventure on Sept. 23 in the first A-10 road match of the season (2-0 Bonnies).
Mason will then alternate road and home games over a six-match span from Sept. 30 through Oct. 21.
The Patriots wrapped up the month of September on the road against La Salle on Sept. 30 (2-1 Explorers) in Philadelphia, Pa.
The Patriots posted their first conference victory of the season at home against Rhode Island on Oct. 4 (4-2 Patriots).
The match against the Rams was the first of seven that the Patriots are playing in October, with three at home and four on the road in the month.
Mason made the trek to Pittsburgh, Pa. to face Duquesne and blanked the Dukes on Oct. 7 (1-0 Patriots).
The Patriots returned home for a clash against Dayton and played to a 1-1 draw (Oct. 14).
The Patriots defeated Radford, 7-0, in a midweek, non-conference match at Radford (Oct. 17).
Mason returns to league play at home against in-state rival VCU (Oct. 21).
The Patriots will play their final two matches of the regular season on the road against Delaware (Oct. 24) and George Washington (Oct. 28).
Prior to the start of the regular season, Mason played two exhibition games. The Patriots traveled to Loyola on Aug. 12 (3-1 Greyhounds) and hosted Mount St. Mary's on Aug. 19 (3-0 Patriots).
Campus sites will host the Atlantic 10 tournament, with the first round scheduled for Nov. 5 and the final slated for Nov. 13.
SCOUTING VCU
VCU has a record 3-5-5 including a mark of 3-1-2 against Atlantic 10 opponents. The Rams have a mark of 0-3-3 at home and 3-2-2 on the road.
Last time out, VCU scored three goals in the second half and defeated Rhode Island, 3-1, last Saturday at the URI Soccer Complex in Kingston, R.I.
Rhode Island outshot VCU, 16-12, while both clubs recorded seven shots on goal in the match.
VCU has won all three of its road matches in league play with victories at Massachusetts (1-0, Sept. 23), Loyola Chicago (2-1, Sept. 30) and Rhode Island (3-1, Oct. 14).
Junior midfielders Damian Gallegos (13 games/6 starts) and William Hitchcock (13 starts) along with sophomore forward Papa Toure (12 games/8 starts) have each scored two goals this season.
Junior defender Andrey Salmeron leads the team in shots (27) and is second in shots on goal (8) in 13 starts.
Junior goalkeeper John Ermini (3-5-5, 1147 minutes, 1.41 GAA, 2 SO) has started all 13 matches for the Rams this season. He has made 41 saves and allowed 18 goals against.
CORNER KICK
The Patriots have faced the Rams 39 times, sixth-most against any opponent in program history behind William & Mary (48), George Washington (48), Albany (46), James Madison (42) and Old Dominion (41).
The 11 draws against VCU are the most that the Patriots have recorded against any opponent.
