May 23, 2010

Box Score

Towson, Md. - Ryan Soares broke one CAA record and two school records on Sunday as the George Mason baseball team finished the 2010 regular season at Towson, beating the Tigers 17-9. Soares, who entered the game tied for the CAA single-season record for doubles and the Mason school record for career doubles hit two more two-baggers on Sunday to push his season total to 29 and his career total to 60. He was 5 for 6 on the day with five RBI and a pair of home runs as well to finish the season batting .438, breaking Kevin Burke's single-season record of .420 set in 1985.

Three of the four Mason senior position players homered as Soares, Mark Hill and Josh Steinberg all went yard. Aaron Tenney, the other position player, singled and scored. Soares was just a triple shy of the cycle. He entered the week leading the nation in doubles per game and was 12th in RBI per game. Shane Davis and Brig Tison also homered for Mason which had a season-high six homers in the game.

Mason (28-22, 11-13) scored four in the first and added two in the second but Towson rallied to tie the score at 6-6. The Patriots came back with six unanswered runs to go ahead 12-6, then added five insurance runs in the eighth to hold off Towson's late runs. Kris Mengle (4-3) picked up the win to finish his career at 12-7. Ryan Pfaeffle was fabulous in three relief innings before giving way to senior Darren McLean who picked up his first career save. Soares also finished the season with 13 sacrifice flies, one shy of tying the national single-season record set in 1996.

Mason jumped out early as Soares and Davis hit two-run homers in the first. In the bottom of the inning, Kevin Collins hit a two-run homer and Chris Wychock hit a solo shot to make it 4-3. In the second, Hill hit a two-run homer to make it 6-3 but Towson scored on in the second on an Andrew Parker single, stole base and an Eric Weller single. Two more Tigers scored in the third when Kurt Wertz and Austin Harclerode hit back-to-back solo homers.

In the fourth, Aaron Tenny walked, Ryan Soares doubled and Hill singled to make it 7-6. A wild pitch scored Soares for a two-run lead. In the sixth, Soares doubled, went to third on a balk and scored on a wild pitch to make it 9-6. Mason added three runs in the seventh when Steinberg hit a two-run homer and Tison hit a solo shot for a six-run lead.

The Tigers (19-36, 11-13) trimmed it to 12-7 in the seventh on a Ben Winter homer but the Patriots scored five in the eighth to put the game away. Dan Schafferman walked, Dan Palumbo was hit by a pitch and Josh Turner singled to load the bases. Tison hit a two-run single and Soares followed with a three-run homer to make it 17-7. Towson's final two runs came in the eight when Steve Rice tripled and scored on a ground out. Harclerode's second homer accounted for the game's final run.

Aside from Soares' big day, Hill was 4 for 6 with three RBI to finish the year hitting .414 and his .527 on-base percentage is the second-highest in a single season in school history. Tison was 3 for 6 with three RBI and three runs scored and Dan Palumbo was hit by a pitch for the 17th time this year, the third-most in a single-season in school history. Mason finished the season with 100 hit by pitches as a team, shattering the school record.