FAIRFAX, Va. ? After scoring five runs in the first four innings, the Saint Joseph's Hawks (31-11, 16-5) hung on to defeat the George Mason baseball team (27-18, 13-7) 5-3 on Friday afternoon in the inaugural meeting between the two program.
Saint Joseph's scored two runs on four hits in each of the first two innings for an early 4-0 lead before Mason scored three in the bottom of the second to cut the deficit to one. A costly error in the fourth enlarged the Hawks' lead to 5-3 where it would stay for the remainder of the game.
Anthony Montefusco (7-3) allowed the first four runs to score and tied a season-high in allowing 11 hits while striking out six batters in, all coming in the first three innings in four innings pitched, his shortest outing of the season. Daniel Thorpe made the start for Saint Joseph's and allowed three runs on seven hits with two walks and six strikeouts as he kept his record perfect, extending it to 9-0 this season.
The Hawks strung together three consecutive hits in the first inning, bringing home runs on Tommy Cunningham's doubled that dropped in front of a diving Luke Willis and Mike Muha's RBI single up the middle. Cunningham led the Hawks with three hits in the contest. Saint Joseph's put together another string of hits in the top of the second with four consecutive singles to extend their lead to 4-0.
Mason narrowed the gap in the bottom half of the frame with three runs on three hits. Josh Leemhuis led off with a ground-rule double into the right field corner which was followed up by Tucker Tobin's first single of the game to turn the score to 4-1.
With one out in the inning Chris Cook was hit by his 27th pitch of the season to reach first base, setting a new single-season program record. Mick Foley walked to load the bases and gave Willis his sacrifice fly opportunity for a 4-2 ballgame. Brandon Gum had the first of his two hits afterwards for the third run of the inning. Cook and Willis also added hits for the Patriots in the ballgame.
Jake Kalish replaced Montefusco after the fourth inning and pitched five innings of no-hit baseball, retiring the only batter he allowed to reach base, on a walk, with a double play in the next at along with two strikeouts. The duo of Lansing Veeder and Steven Schuler pitched three and one-thirds innings of perfect relief as Schuler recorded his sixth save of the season retiring the side in the ninth.
Game two of three is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 10 which is also Youth Baseball Day at Spuhler Field. Full details can be found here.?
