FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason baseball team has been picked to finish fourth in the Atlantic 10 Conference this season, the league announced on Thursday.  The preseason poll was conducted by the league's 13 head coaches.

The Patriots received 107 points a year after qualifying for the Atlantic 10 tournament.  Saint Louis has been predicted to finish first in the conference with 157 points, followed by VCU (153 points) and Rhode Island (146 points).  Davidson, the defending A-10 Tournament champion, was picked sixth with 106 points.

Mason finished the 2017 season with a 26-33 overall record including a mark of 13-11 against conference opponents. 

The Patriots return all eight starting position players and 11 pitchers from last year's roster, including three weekend starters.  Mason added depth on the mound, with seven of the eight freshmen on this year's roster a pitcher.

Senior Trevor Kelly was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Conference First Team, classmate Tyler Nelin earned All-Conference Second Team Honors and sophomore Logan Driscoll landed a spot on the A-10 All-Rookie Team after the 2017 campaign. 

Kelly led the A-10 with 56 RBI.  He appeared in 54 games, batted .300 and finished second on the team in hits (60) and home runs (7).  Nelin hit .296 and was the only Mason player to appear in all 59 games last season.  He paced the Patriots in hits (64), home runs (10), doubles (15) and slugging percentage (.514) and ranked among the A-10 leaders in plate appearances (216) and doubles (15).

Driscoll returns for his sophomore season after batting .323 in 43 games played last season.  He ranked third on the team in hits (54), third in RBI (38) and was fourth in home runs (4) and runs scored (34).

Along with Kelly at first base, Mason also returns junior Alejandro Aponte at second base, senior Michael Smith at shortstop and sophomore John Callahan at third base.  Mason will also have a veteran presence in the outfield with redshirt junior Brady Acker in left, graduate student Frank Sturek in center and Nelin in right.

The weekend rotation will include juniors Zach Mort, Bryce Nightengale and Brian Marconi.  Senior Ryan Ricci and sophomore Jared DiCesare along with senior Saul Aguilera, sophomores Matthew Yost and Jakob Ryan and junior Jonathan Ostroff will anchor the Mason bullpen.

Head coach Bill Brown and the Patriots open the season with three games in the Charleston Crab House Challenge at Joseph P. Riley Park in Charleston, S.C.  Mason will face The Citadel Feb. 16 at 4 p.m., Richmond Feb. 17 at 11 a.m. and Louisville Feb. 18 at 11 a.m.

2018 Baseball Predicted Order of Finish
(Number of first place votes in parenthesis)
1.  Saint Louis - 157 (6)
2.  VCU - 153 (3)
3.  Rhode Island - 146 (2)
4.  George Mason - 107
5.  Davidson - 106 (2)
6.  George Washington - 105
7.  Saint Joseph's - 95
8.  Fordham - 92
9.  Richmond - 67
10. St. Bonaventure - 56
11.  Dayton - 46
12.  Massachusetts - 26
13.  La Salle - 20