Fairfax, Va.- The home dominance continues at the RAC with another sweep by the Patriots against St. Thomas Aquinas. 15 consecutive wins at home and three consecutive sweeps to continue the streak in style.
The Patriots defeated Saint Francis University, NJIT, FDU, University of Mount Olive (2x), Tusculum (x2), Sacred Heart, #15 Princeton, Harvard (x2), Queens University, King University (x2), and finally St. Thomas Aquinas to break the record that has been standing for 18 years.
The return of
Liam French on the court was much anticipated after recovering from the flu. The Spartans came out flying, taking the lead multiple times at the beginning. George Mason asserted more dominance when they went on a four-point run to take the lead of 10-8. St. Thomas Aquinas did not hold back and kept it a one-point game until the Patriots went on another four-point run to maintain a safer lead.
Evan Snodgrass got the final kill to take the first set for the Patriots.
A quick 5-1 lead to start of the second set for George Mason, but once again, the Spartans fought back to make it a one-point game. The visiting team tied the game up at 16-16 but that only woke up the Patriots. A six-point unanswered run including three service aces by
Jackson Herbert caused damage to the Spartan's hopes of taking the set. An attack error closed out the second set, 25-19 in favor for the Patriots.
The third set was another hard-fought battle for the Patriots with the Spartans. Both teams went back and forth achieving the lead but giving it away in the next play. With the score at 19-18 in favor of the Patriots, another inspired run of four consecutive points, including a kill by
Aidan Weltin, gave the Patriots a comfortable lead of 23-18. A service ace by
Aidan Weltin concluded the match and made history by winning 15 consecutive home games, a new program record.
Quotable:
"St. Thomas is a scrappy team and they made us earn every point tonight", said head coach
Jay Hosack. "I am very proud of my team and their resilience against them. On another stat, I am very proud of our team for having the longest home match win streak in program history. That is a pretty cool accolade for them to remember as a group. We only want to honor those who came before us with our performance tonight."
By the Numbers:
