George Mason (0-0, 0-0 A-10) vs. William & Mary (0-0, 0-0 CAA)
WHEN: Friday, 6 p.m.
WHERE: The St. James; Springfield, Va.
LAST MEETING: Mason defeated the Tribe, 20-11, on Feb. 15, 2020
LIVE STATS: LINK
LIVE VIDEO: ESPN+
 
FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason women's lacrosse team opens the 2024 season on Friday with a neutral site matchup against William & Mary.
 
The Patriots and the Tribe will meet at the St. James in Springfield, Va. for the 28^th time in program history and for the first time since 2020 when Mason picked up a 20-11 victory at home. All-time, William & Mary hold an 18-9 advantage, but Mason has won three of the last four.
 
Last season, Mason went 2-13 with both wins coming in Atlantic 10 play. William & Mary had a solid season, finishing 3-4 against CAA opponents and 8-8 overall, the program's highest win total and most conference victories since 2011.
 
PATRIOT POINTS

• Mason returns a majority of its' scoring from last season, losing just one goal-scorer to graduation
• Headlining the offensive returners is Shannon Tuozzo, who led Mason in goals (41), assists (7), points (48) and draw controls (65). Tuozzo scored multiple goals in nine out of 15 games and set the school record for single-game goals with nine against La Salle on March 18, 2023
• Kate Elam (24), Morgan Gunn (18) and Chloe Reed (17) also tallied double-figure goals last season and return for the Patriots
• Defensively, Ciara Curtis returns after leading field players with 21 ground balls and Melanie Hutchinson is back from her senior year after leading Mason with 16 caused turnovers
• Starting goalkeeper and All-Academic selection Meghan Deehan is back for the Patriots, posting 125 saves and a .363 save percentage in 2023. She also led the team with 27 ground balls

 
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
The Tribe will be led by Preseason All-CAA selection Caroline Hertzberg, who returns for her senior season after leading the team in caused turnovers (17) and ground balls (34), and was second on the squad in draw controls (42). Her 2.13 ground balls per game ranked fifth in the CAA.
 
On offensively, William & Mary return its' second and third top-scorers in Sam Van Gieson, Justyce Barber and Serena Jacobs. Van Gieson posted 24 points (19g, 5a) and Barber posted a similar stat line with 23 points (18g, 5a). Jacobs dished out a team-high nine assists to go with 14 goals.
 
UP NEXT
Mason will open its' home slate on Sunday, Feb. 11 when it welcomes Radford to George Mason Stadium. Opening draw is set for 1 p.m.