FAIRFAX, Va. - The George Mason men's soccer team released its schedule for
the upcoming 2012 season, as announced by Head Coach Greg Andrulis.
The Patriots will face a strong slate of opponents in 2012 as sixteen of their
19 opponents had RPI's in the top 150 in 2011. Five of those teams advanced to
the NCAA Tournament and two ranked in the Top 25 of the final NSCAA standings.
Mason will play 12 of its 19 contests at home this season, taking to the
pitch at George Mason Stadium in 12 of its first 16 contests before taking to
the road for its final three matches of the season. The team will also play for
a national audience on September 28 as it faces CAA rival Old Dominion in a
match that will be broadcast live on Fox Soccer TV.
"Our 2012 schedule is once again a
mix of top 20 programs, local rivals and CAA conference matches," said Andrulis.
"We are pleased to be playing on National TV September against Old Dominion in
a game that will provide our program with great exposure nationally. And as
always, the CAA will again provide tremendous competition with any number of
teams capable of being exceptional in 2012."
West Virginia University will travel to Fairfax for an exhibition match on
August 15, a season after they advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
Opening regular season action, Mason hosts Long Island University on Sunday,
August 26 at 7:00 pm before competing in the D.C. College Cup at American
University, facing George Washington on August 30 at 2:30 pm and American on
September 1 at 3:00 pm.
The Patriots then return home for a five-game homestand, taking on St.
Peter's (Sept. 7), St. Francis (Sept. 9), UMBC (Sept. 15) and Navy (Sept. 18)
before opening their CAA season against UNC-Wilmington on September 22 at 7:00
pm.
Mason will play under the lights for its televised game on September 28 as
its travels to Old Dominion for a 7:00 pm affair that will be broadcast on Fox
Soccer TV. The team then returns home for four games, facing Hofstra (Oct. 3),
Longwood (Oct. 6), Drexel (Oct. 10) and William & Mary (Oct. 13) before
traveling to Towson for a 3:00 pm affair on October 17.
The home schedule concludes on October 20 as James Madison travel to
Fairfax. The Dukes finished last season ranked 20th in the NSCAA
pole and advanced to the third round of the NCAA Tournament.
Mason wraps up regular season action with a three game road swing, kicking
off by facing defending CAA champion Delaware on October 24. The Patriots will
put on the miles over its final two games of the season, as it heads to Boston
to play Northeastern on October 27 before going to Atlanta to take on Georgia
State on October 31 at 7:00 pm.
The CAA Tournament begins on November 8 and runs through the 11 and will be
hosted on the campus of the highest seed.
Last season the Patriots missed out on CAA postseason play after finishing
conference action with a record of 4-6-1 and an overall mark of 7-8-3.
