BASEBALL (18-32, 7-14 A-10) vs. TOWSON (19-32, 9-12 CAA)
WHEN: 3 p.m. Tuesday, May 16
WHERE: John B. Schuerholz Baseball Complex
LAST MEETING: Mason defeated Towson 10-3 Apr. 6 at Spuhler Field.
LIVE STATS: GoMason.com
Towson, Md. - The George Mason baseball team travels to Towson to wrap up the season series with the Tigers in a non-conference matchup Tuesday afternoon, with the first pitch scheduled for 3 p.m.
Mason (18-32, 7-14 A-10) won two of three in an Atlantic 10 series against La Salle over the weekend. Junior Tyler Zombro tossed eight scoreless innings in a 2-0 win Friday and junior Tyler Kardas allowed just two hits in 4.1 innings in relief to earn the win in the Patriots 9-7 victory Sunday at Spuhler Field. Freshman Zach Mort picked up a save in both wins in the series and now has seven on the season. He has earned a save in each of the last five wins for the Patriots.
In the first meeting between the two teams this season, Mason scored seven runs in the fifth inning on the way to a 10-3 victory over Towson Apr. 6. Five different players drove in at least one run and seven different players scored a run for the Patriots in the win. Sophomore Tyler Nelin went 4-for-5 with a RBI and scored three runs, senior Kent Blackstone was 4-for-5 with a pair of doubles and four RBIs and freshman Bailey Klein finished 3-for-4, drove in two runs and scored twice.
The Patriots and Tigers met twice last season, with the Tigers claiming a 12-4 victory Apr. 15, 2015 at Spuhler Field. The game at Towson Apr. 8, 2015 ended in a 13-13 tie due to darkness. Mason tied the score with a two-out, two-run homer in the ninth in a game that featured 31 hits between the two teams. It was the first tie for Mason since an 8-8 deadlock against Richmond in 2011.
The Tigers have won 11 of the last 16 meetings in the series against the Patriots (11-4-1).
Sophomore Garett Driscoll is batting .279 with four home runs and 21 RBIs in 38 games. Freshman Greg Popatak II is hitting .267 with two homers and 14 RBIs in 43 games and freshman Ryan Tassone has a .259 average and has driven in 13 runs in 36 games.
The Patriots have hit 17 home runs this season. Nelin and Driscoll are tied for the team lead with four round trippers each.
SCOUTING REPORT
Towson (19-32, 9-12 CAA) dropped two of three games to Delaware over the weekend. After winning game one of the series 10-9, the Tigers lost the final two games 9-6 and 6-1.
This season, the Tigers are 12-9 at home and 5-23 on the road. Towson has lost four of its last six games overall, allowing at least six runs in all four losses.
Towson is hitting .267 as a team. Junior Brady Policelli leads the team in average (.387), home runs (9) and RBIs (45) in 51 games played and has stolen 20 bases. Freshman Richie Palacios is hitting .341 with five home runs and 32 RBIs. He's tied for the team lead in hits with 72 in 50 games and has stolen 32 bases.
The Tigers are active on the base paths with a total of 86 stolen bases on the season. Towson needs three more stolen bases to tie the program record of 89.
