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Mitchell Richtmyre/Fourth Estate

Mason wins 2-0 against La Salle to keep their championship hopes alive

BY CHRISTIAN SEGOVIA, ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

On Nov. 8th, Mason’s Men Soccer advanced to the Atlantic 10 semifinals after winning 2-0 against La Salle. Mason is the first team in Division I to hit 13 wins this season.

In the first 10 minutes, Mason dominated the game with strong ball movement on the field to find any chance of scoring. In the 15th minute, La Salle almost scored a goal, but it was called off due to a foul inside the box.

Whenever Mason lost the ball, the Patriots added pressure to La Salle and regained possession quickly. With this style of play, La Salle struggled to create chances. 

In the 33rd minute, Mason freshman forward Martim Sereno, on the right side of the field, found Mason graduate student defender Jordi Navio Sanchez running inside the box. Sanchez passed the ball to sophomore midfielder Javier Montava, who ran from the outside box to the inside box, then kicked the ball to the bottom left corner, putting Mason up 1-0.

Things started to get chippy in the second half for the teams, as both sides started to receive yellow cards. In the 59th minute, Mason sophomore forward Quentin Clain started a breakaway for Mason’s attack but it ended shortly because of La Salle midfielder Nevin Baer’s tackle, costing him a yellow card.

La Salle committed 12 fouls while Mason committed six fouls. La Salle received 6 yellow cards and one red card while Mason received 2 yellow cards.

In the 73rd minute, the Explorers gave the ball away to Mason sophomore forward Kelly Janssen. Janssen took the ball down the left, passed two of La Salle’s defenders, and got the ball over La Salle’s goalkeeper. Janssen kicked the ball down the middle, putting Mason up 2-0.

Mason had eight shots on target in the game, including Montava’s second goal of the season and a third goal for Janssen.

Graduate goalkeeper Jaume Salvado received his sixth clean sheet of the season after Mason’s defense conceded no goals.

Mason looks to add to its 8-1 record at home as they face Saint Louis at George Mason Stadium on Nov. 13 in the A-10 semifinals. Student tickets are available through Mason360.

Viviana Smith/Fourth Estate

BY NATHAN FERRARO, STAFF WRITER

You don’t have to visit another country to experience culture shock. For me, it was moving from a small town in Western Pennsylvania to just outside Washington, D.C. In particular, public transportation has required me to adjust to a new way of living and working. 

One of the perks of attending Mason is the accessibility of public transportation: two free bus routes, six shuttle routes, six metro lines, and three train systems are readily available, affordable and easy to use. 

I come from an area where the only mode of public transportation is the school bus system—much less any type of passenger rail system.

When you’re used to traveling everywhere by car — determining when you leave, arrive and how fast you get there — it’s hard to adjust to the somewhat unpredictable ebb and flow of public transportation.

The many benefits of public transit are hard to ignore. However, there are some drawbacks, many of which center around timeliness. 

The hardest aspect of getting used to public transportation has been the wait time. Tracking a bus live on TransLoc doesn’t always ensure it will arrive when it says it will. When the bus is in high demand, it means more stops and longer wait times. Despite this, it’s hard to be mad at a free ride.

One of the greatest benefits of public transportation is the environmental impact. 

“Transportation is a key element of smart growth and can be leveraged to increase access to opportunity, reduce pollution, improve community health outcomes and help the nation reach its climate goals,” according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). 

When more people use public transportation, traffic levels decrease and there is less negative impact on the environment. 

Imagine how much more traffic there would be if every single person who takes the Metro into D.C. drove by themselves to the city. It’s bad enough as it is. 

If there’s one thing the collective United States is known for lacking, it’s a robust public transportation system. Especially compared to Europe, the U.S. is seen as a hyper-individualistic, gas-guzzling overlord. 

However, many metropolitan areas are increasingly providing support for public transportation. 

D.C. is ranked fifth in the nation as one of the best cities for public transportation; along with Arlington, Virginia, ranking tenth. 

The reason for America’s car-dependent infrastructure and culture goes back several decades ago, to the early 1900s. That car-centered culture has carried on to the 2000s and beyond. 

While countries in Asia and Europe are implementing ultra-modern hyper trains, the U.S. still lags behind, opting instead for paving sidewalks that end in the middle of nowhere and planning neighborhoods that make owning a car the way of life. 

The future of public transportation in the U.S. is uncertain. However, more city centers are eliminating car-dependent traffic structures and implementing bus lanes and green spaces. 

The results of the 2024 presidential election are also sure to set the stage for the coming years of public transportation development. 

 The incoming conservative administration will most likely not prioritize public transit, opting instead to promote the natural gas, fossil fuel and automobile industries.