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April 24, 2010

George Mason Advances to EIVA Semifinals by Sweeping Rutgers-Newark

George Mason Advances to EIVA Semifinals by Sweeping Rutgers-Newark

FAIRFAX, Va. (April 24, 2010) – Third-seeded George Mason advanced to the EIVA Semifinals with a 3-0 sweep of the sixth-seeded Rutgers-Newark Scarlet Raiders in the quarterfinals of the EIVA Championship Tournament on Saturday evening at the RAC. The Patriots will make their 10th consecutive appearance in the semifinals of the conference tournament next Thursday at Penn State.

Mason will face the tournament’s second seed, the Princeton Tigers, on Thursday, April 29 at 5:30 p.m. at Rec Hall in University Park, Pa., the home of top-seeded Penn State. Princeton advanced to the semifinal round with a 3-1 win over Sacred Heart on Saturday evening in Princeton, N.J. The winner of Thursday’s semifinal match will advance to the EIVA Championship match on Saturday, May 1 at 7 p.m.

Mason (8-18) had lost its previous two meetings against Rutgers-Newark (13-13) this season, but the Patriots avenged those losses on the strength of an offensive attack that hit .326 as a team in Saturday’s match. The hitting percentage was Mason’s second-best effort of the 2010 season behind its .461 percentage in the season-opening sweep of Lees-McRae. The season-opener was also the last time George Mason swept an opponent this season.

In the opening set, the Patriots took an 8-7 lead following a service error by sophomore Austin Pappas of Rutgers-Newark. After taking the lead, Mason never trailed and went on to take a convincing 30-19 first-set victory.

After taking the first set, the Patriots never allowed Rutgers-Newark to get back into the match. Mason didn’t trail for a single point during the second or third sets. The Patriots won the second set 30-28 and took a 7-1 lead in the third set on their way to a 30-23 win.

Freshman outside hitter Michael Kvidahl led George Mason with 15 kills on 29 attempts for a total of 16.5 points. Sophomore middle blocker Lance Rogers hit .800 with eight kills and a match-high six total blocks. Junior setter Brandon Joyner led all players with 38 assists and nine digs.

Sophomore Marcin Midura led Rutgers-Newark with 11 kills. Eduardo Hernandez added 10 kills for the Scarlet Raiders. Junior setter Jeff Zornig led Rutgers-Newark with 36 assists and six digs.



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Conference News 2005-06 \| 2006-07 \| 2007-08 \| 2008-09 \| 2009-10 \| 2010-11 \| 2011-12 April 24, 2010 George Mason Advances to EIVA Semifinals by Sweeping Rutgers-Newark George Mason Advances to EIVA Semifinals by Sweeping Rutgers-Newark FAIRFAX, Va. (April 24, 2010) – Third-seeded George Mason advanced to the EIVA Semifinals with a 3-0 sweep of the sixth-seeded Rutgers-Newark Scarlet Raiders in the quarterfinals of the EIVA Championship Tournament on Saturday evening at the RAC. The Patriots will make their 10th consecutive appearance in the semifinals of the conference tournament next Thursday at Penn State. Mason will face the tournament’s second seed, the Princeton Tigers, on Thursday, April 29 at 5:30 p.m. at Rec Hall in University Park, Pa., the home of top-seeded Penn State. Princeton advanced to the semifinal round with a 3-1 win over Sacred Heart on Saturday evening in Princeton, N.J. The winner of Thursday’s semifinal match will advance to the EIVA Championship match on Saturday, May 1 at 7 p.m. Mason (8-18) had lost its previous two meetings against Rutgers-Newark (13-13) this season, but the Patriots avenged those losses on the strength of an offensive attack that hit .326 as a team in Saturday’s match. The hitting percentage was Mason’s second-best effort of the 2010 season behind its .461 percentage in the season-opening sweep of Lees-McRae. The season-opener was also the last time George Mason swept an opponent this season. In the opening set, the Patriots took an 8-7 lead following a service error by sophomore Austin Pappas of Rutgers-Newark. After taking the lead, Mason never trailed and went on to take a convincing 30-19 first-set victory. After taking the first set, the Patriots never allowed Rutgers-Newark to get back into the match. Mason didn’t trail for a single point during the second or third sets. The Patriots won the second set 30-28 and took a 7-1 lead in the third set on their way to a 30-23 win. Freshman outside hitter Michael Kvidahl led George Mason with 15 kills on 29 attempts for a total of 16.5 points. Sophomore middle blocker Lance Rogers hit .800 with eight kills and a match-high six total blocks. Junior setter Brandon Joyner led all players with 38 assists and nine digs. Sophomore Marcin Midura led Rutgers-Newark with 11 kills. Eduardo Hernandez added 10 kills for the Scarlet Raiders. Junior setter Jeff Zornig led Rutgers-Newark with 36 assists and six digs.