BRONX, N.Y. – Four of the six goals scored at Jack Coffey Field were from outside the penalty box, as the George Mason women's soccer team (0-9-0, 0-1-0) lost to Fordham (3-4-1, 1-0-0) in Thursday's away match by the score of 2-4.

The Patriots not only scored their first goal of the season, but they also recorded their first multi-goal game since the final game of the 2022 season.

HOW THEY SCORED
GEORGE MASON
33' | Milan Pierre-Jerome (1), unassisted
55' | Rachel Eberly (1), assisted by Jazmine Bennett (1)
FORDHAM
56' | Abby Doyle (1), unassisted
68' | Lena Johnsen (2), assisted by Julia Holton (1)
74' | Riley Carroll (3), assisted by Lena Johnsen (2)
76' | Marie Degroote (1), assisted by Sari Frankl (3) 

The Patriots had a prime opportunity to cash in their first goal of the season in the 28^th minute, when a Fordham defender committed a foul on forward Ashley Shimberg inside the penalty box. Shimberg took the ensuing penalty shot, but goalkeeper Kyla King made a diving save to her left. The ball bounced back to Shimberg who then took a second shot, but the ball hit the left post and bounced out.

It would only be five more minutes until the Patriots would finally find the back of the net. In the 33^rd minute, Milan Pierre-Jerome intercepted an errant Fordham pass. After one touch, the senior wound up for a booming kick from over 40 yards out. Fordham's goalkeeper initially deflected it, but she did not push it out of the goal frame, causing the ball to bounce over the goal line. This was Pierre-Jerome's first goal as a Patriot.

The Patriots would take a 1-0 lead into the half.

Mason extended their lead in the 55^th minute with another long shot goal, this time by sophomore Rachel Eberly. Assisted by Jazmine Bennett, Eberly took two small touches and let the ball fly from over 30 yards out. The ball sailed over the outstretched arms of the diving Fordham keeper and hit the back of the net before it hit the ground. This was Eberly's second career goal and first goal since Aug. 25, 2022.

The Patriots held a 2-0 lead for only one minute. Fordham would go on to score four unanswered goals in the span of 20 minutes.

In the 56^th minute, off of a Ram corner kick, the ball bounced around in the box, where Abby Doyle settled it with her chest and kicked the ball off the volley. The ball went to the bottom left corner of the goal, where the diving Ginny Fronk could not get to in time.

The Rams equalized the match 12 minutes later, this time with a long shot of their own. Off of a throw in from the left side, Lena Johnsen evaded the first Mason defender by dribbling right. She then used her right foot to boot the ball over 25 yards to the center of the goal, where the ball just snuck under the crossbar and over the jumping Fronk.

Fordham scored two more goals in quick succession in the 74^th and 76^th minutes. Lena Johnsen lifted the ball from midfield to the left side of the field, where Riley Carroll perfectly timed her run and slipped behind the Patriot defense. She settled the ball in stride, took a few dribbles and slotted the ball just inside the far post to give the Rams their first lead of the night.

The final goal was scored by Marie Degroote, who received a pass from Sari Frankl from just outside of the left side of the 18-yard box. She took one dribble and let the ball fly from the corner of the penalty box. The ball traveled from the left corner of the penalty box to the top right corner of the goal, giving the Rams their final score of the night.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Mason scored their first goal of the season in the 33^rd minute. This snaps a record 753-minute goal-less drought.
• This is the first time the Patriots have scored two goals in a game since Sept. 19, 2021, when they won 2-1 over Saint Joseph's. The Patriots scored three goals in a game twice last season: once in their 3-1 win over Howard on Aug. 25, 2022, and again on Oct. 23, 2022, in their 3-3 draw at Virginia Commonwealth.
• The Patriots put up a season record 10 shots on the night with five on goal, upping their total shots on the year to 30 and their shots on goal to 16. 

UP NEXT
The Patriots will return to Fairfax and host their first A-10 game of the season this Sunday, Sept. 17, where they will face Virginia Commonwealth. Sunday's game will also feature Pups on the Pitch, where fans will be able to receive a free dog toy. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m. and can be watched on ESPN+.