FAIRFAX, Va. – The Red Flash men's volleyball team was swept on Friday night by No. 13 George Mason.

After dropping the first set by 18, SFU held leads early in the next two sets, but the Patriots were able to retake leads late in each for the 3-0 win.

Saint Francis 0, No. 13 George Mason 3 (7-25, 21-25, 18-25)
Records: Saint Francis (1-11, 0-5), George Mason (6-1, 3-0)
Location: Recreation Athletic Complex (Fairfax, Va.)

COACH RUMBAUGH'S COMMENTS
"It was an ugly first set with a different lineup. We worked through some issues and were able to make the next two sets competitive. Let's see what we can do tomorrow."

HOW IT HAPPENED
SET ONE

• Mason jumped out to an early 4-0 advantage, eventually extending it to 9-1 before the Red Flash's second point.
• The Patriots forced a Red Flash timeout after reaching a 12-2 lead.
• The 10-point differential held steady for a while, but Mason was able to increase it to 18-5 late, running away with the set, 25-7.

SET TWO

• The Red Flash came out in set two a different team, taking an early 5-1 lead, then tying the amount of points from set one with a 7-3 advantage.
• SFU continued to hold strong, holding the 3-5 point advantage until a 13-7 lead forced a Mason timeout.
• Out of the timeout, Mason rattled off four straight points, and eight of nine to take a 15-14 lead.
• The teams then went back and forth, with the Patriots holding a slight advantage and forcing a Red Flash timeout at 19-16.
• The Patriots came out of the timeout to outscore SFU, 6-5, and take set two, 25-21.

SET THREE

• Set three stayed tied through five, with Mason jumping out 8-5.
• The Red Flash answered with a 5-1 run to take a 10-9 lead.
• Mason then went on a run of their own, scoring three straight and five of six for a 14-11 lead.
• The Patriots held onto the 4-5 point lead through the teens, extending it to seven for the set and match, taking it 25-18.

STATS

• Kills were 38-19 in favor of Mason, along with assists (32-19), blocks (7-4), aces (8-3), and hitting percentage (.326-.012).
• SFU had 18 attack errors to 10 from Mason.
• The Patriots had more service errors than the Red Flash (13-10).

RED FLASH STATISTICAL LEADERS

KILLS – Blake Liprando (6)
ASST. – AJ Schmidt (15)
DIGS – AJ Schmidt (8)
ACES – AJ Schmidt (2)
BLOCKS – Zac Cabral, Thomas Leahey (2 block asst. each)

UP NEXT
Saint Francis will finish the weekend series with George Mason on Saturday. The match is set for 7:00 p.m. and will be aired on ESPN+.

Follow Saint Francis Men's Volleyball on Twitter and Instagram to get up-to-date information and a behind-the-scenes look at the Red Flash.

To learn more about Saint Francis University, visit francis.edu.