HARRISONBURG, Va. – The George Mason baseball team built a four-run lead and then held off James Madison to earn a 7-6 win on Wednesday night at Veterans Memorial Park in Harrisonburg, Va.

Mason (11-18, 2-1 A-10) sent eight batters to the plate and scored four runs against Dukes starter Matt Marsili in the top of the third to take the lead.

With one out, sophomore Brady Acker hit his third home run of the season,  a solo blast to left-center to put Mason in front 1-0.  With two outs, junior Tyler Nelin walked and sophomore Greg Popatak II singled to put runners on the corners.

"We just wanted to come out swinging the bats," Acker said.  "The second time through we really started to get to him and hit the ball hard.  I'm a little more confident and walking more.  Seeing more pitches has helped me be more successful."

Mason junior Trevor Kelly then reached on a fielding error, with Nelin scrambling home from third to make the score 2-0.

Sophomore Tim Quinn collected his second double of the season, finding the gap in left-center to drive in both Popatak and Kelly to double the Mason advantage to 4-0.

"To be able to get on the road and be able to bounce back and win a close game says a lot about the character of these guys," Mason head coach Bill Brown said.  "It's one day at a time for us and I'm proud of the team for bouncing back tonight and getting the win."

Mason starter Brock Hunter made his fifth start of the season and retired nine of the first 11 batters he faced in the game before James Madison (16-11, 2-4 CAA) tied the score in the bottom of the fourth.

The Dukes sent nine batters to the plate and scored four runs on four singles and took advantage of a fielding error to even the score 4-4.

The Patriots reclaimed the lead for good in the fifth with one swing of the bat when Popatak jumped on a 1-0 pitch and crushed a solo home run to give Mason a 5-4 edge.  Popatak also homered in the Patriots 16-5 win at James Madison last season.

"Popatak also plays down here in the summer," Brown said.  "This is like his home away from home.  I just told him, you're smiling and playing with confidence.  All these things we need to carry forward and we certainly can make something out of this season.  That's our focus and our goal."

With two outs in the fifth, sophomore Ryan Tassone kept the inning going with a walk.  That set the stage for sophomore Alejandro Aponte, who singled to center.  It turned out to be more than a single when the ball went past Dukes center fielder Mike Sciorra for an error and all the way to the wall.

With Aponte right on his heels, Tassone raced around from first to score and extend the Mason lead to 6-4.  Aponte never stopped and had his sights on the plate as he rounded third base.  He nearly scored on the play, but with a perfect relay throw, Aponte was tagged out at home.

"After I stepped on first base, I saw that the ball was going back to the wall," Aponte said.  "I kept running and after I got to third Tag Montague told me to keep going.  I thought I had a chance but unfortunately I was out.  After I saw the catcher had the ball I thought about a home plate collision, but I thought the best thing was to try to avoid the catcher."

Aponte has a four-game hitting streak and has at least one hit in seven of his last eight games.

After talking over on the mound for Hunter in the fourth, senior Tyler Kardas retired the first two batters in the bottom of the fifth before hitting a batter and allowing a RBI double as the Dukes made it a one-run game at 6-5.

The Patriots added a much needed run in the sixth.  Junior Frank Sturek was hit by a pitch to start the inning and Acker followed with a walk.  After a sacrifice bunt by sophomore Michael Smith, Nelin was hit by a pitch to load the bases with one out.

Popatak drove in his second run of the game with a ground out, with Sturek coasting home from third to extend the Mason lead to 7-5.

The Dukes scored a run in the bottom of the seventh to make it a one-run game again at 7-6, but James Madison was denied a comeback by senior Ryan Galvin, who pitched the eighth and freshman Jared DiCesare, who entered the game in the ninth.

Mason has won four of the last five and six of the last nine games against James Madison.  The Dukes dropped their sixth straight game overall and have been outscored by a combined score of 42-12.

Hunter allowed four runs, one earned, on five hits in 3.2 innings in the no decision.  Junior Timothy Turner and Kardas each worked 1.2 innings and surrendered one run on one hit.  Galvin tossed a scoreless eighth and DiCesare picked up his second save of the season.

Four different Mason pitchers have at least one save on the season.  Last season, Zach Mort recorded all eight of the Patriots saves during the year.

"It's going to be a bullpen by committee," said Brown.  "It's about matchups and how it works for us.  What I'm excited about with the bullpen is that whatever we ask them to do, they are taking ownership of it and giving us everything they have.  We're competing really well out of the bullpen right now."

Popatak went 3-for-5 with a home run, two RBI and two runs scored.  He has at least one hit in each of his last five games.  Quinn finished 2-for-5 and drove in a pair of runs and now has at least one hit in seven of his last eight starts.  Acker was 1-for-2 with a home run and walked three times.  He has at least one hit in four of his last six games. 

Eight players in the lineup for Mason reached base at least once in the game.  The Patriots have hit 13 home runs in the last 16 games.

The Patriots are on the road this weekend for an Atlantic 10 series against Saint Joseph's at Smithson Field in Philadelphia, Pa.  The first pitch for game one on Friday, April 7 is scheduled for 3 p.m.