LYNCHBURG, Va. — George Mason lost to Liberty 4-3 on Sunday at Osborne Stadium. The Patriots built a 2-0 halftime lead, but Liberty scored four times in the second half while the Green & Gold added one goal after the break. The Patriots finished with 10 shots and five shots on goal, while Liberty totaled 19 shots, 11 on goal, and the Patriots recorded seven saves.
Mia Casciani put the Patriots in front at :44, finishing off an assist from
Gianna Chrapek for a 1-0 lead. Liberty pushed back with early corner kicks and Haley Noblit shots at 5:12 and 5:48, both saved by
Libby Davy, before
Mia Arevalo-Delcid converted a penalty kick at 10:42 to make it 2-0. Davy added saves on Halle Engle attempts at 15:09 and 16:30 as Liberty continued to create chances, while the Green & Gold later put shots on frame through
Carly Passaro and
Abigail Merchant. The closing stretch featured five fouls from 33:16 through 42:22, and the Patriots kept the 2-0 advantage through halftime.
Casciani scored 21 seconds into the second half to extend the Patriots' lead to 3-0, marking her first collegiate career brace. However, Liberty cut into it when Avenley Monteith scored off Carly Keene's assist at 46:46. Davy saved a Monteith shot in the 50th minute, and Isabella Wedemeyer scored moments later with Monteith assisting to make it 3-2. Liberty tied the match at 3-3 on Haley Noblit's goal at 57:23, then went ahead when Keelyn Eslinger scored from Margaret Garner's assist at 69:06. The Patriots had later shots from
Molly Starner and Merchant, while Davy added saves in the 64th and 81st minutes, but Liberty held the 4-3 advantage through full time.
Davy made four saves in the first half as Liberty generated several looks, and the Patriots went into halftime ahead 2-0.
The Patriots had three shots after halftime and Davy made three saves, but the match ended in a 4-3 Liberty win.
Casciani scored twice on two shots on goal and finished with four points. She leads the Patriots in goals this season with four. Arevalo-Delcid converted her lone penalty-kick attempt and put her only shot on goal. Chrapek recorded an assist for the Patriots and leads the team in assists with two this season. Davy made seven saves over 90 minutes in goal.
The Patriots are 3-2-1 overall. Liberty is 5-2-1 overall.
Up next, the Patriots travel to Farmville, Virginia, to face Longwood on Thursday, Sept. 10, at 6 p.m.
