BASEBALL vs. Fordham
WHEN: Friday, May 3 (1 p.m.) | Saturday, May 4 (2 p.m.) | Sunday, May 5 (1 p.m.)
WHERE: Spuhler Field| Fairfax, Va.
RECORDS: Mason (18-26, 4-11 A-10), Fordham (27-20, 8-7 A-10)
ALL-TIME SERIES: Mason leads, 9-6.
LAST MEETING: The Patriots defeated the Rams, 4-0, on May 24, 2018 in the second game of the Atlantic 10 Championships at Barcroft Park in Arlington, Va.
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LIVE STATS
FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason baseball team hosts Fordham for a pivotal three-game, Atlantic 10 series beginning Friday with the first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. at Spuhler Field in Fairfax, Va.
Last time out, Mason (18-26, 4-11 A-10) scored 10 unanswered runs and held on for a 14-13 win over Mount St. Mary's on Wednesday at Spuhler Field.
Sophomore second baseman
Daniel Brooks went 4-for-4 with his first home run of the season and three RBI, while senior shortstop
Alejandro Aponte was 2-for-5 with a pair of doubles and four RBI.
Freshman right-hander
Patrick Halligan tossed six scoreless innings to earn his fourth win of the season.
Mason junior catcher
Logan Driscoll leads the team in average (.345), doubles (11), triples (2) home runs (8), RBI (31), and runs scored (33) in 39 games played. He is tied for first in hits (49) and is second on the Patriots in walks (29).
Senior outfielder
Brady Acker is second on the club in average (.304), doubles (9) and home runs (6) in 30 games played. He is third on the team in walks (28).
Sophomore outfielder
Cam Reckling is third on the team in average (.288) and leads to club in runs scored (34) in 42 games played. He is tied for first in hits (49) with Driscoll.
Aponte is batting .281 and is second on the team in hits (43) and runs scored (29) in 44 games played. He is fourth on the team in RBI (20).
The Patriots have a team batting average of .250 and a team ERA of 6.97 through 44 games this season.
The Patriots have three conference series remaining. After the three-game set against Fordham, Mason travels to Saint Louis (May 10-12) before hosting VCU (May 16-18).
SCOUTING REPORT
Fordham has an overall record of 27-20, including a mark of 8-7 against Atlantic 10 opponents. The Rams are 14-4 at home and 13-15 on the road this season.
Last time out, Fordham defeated Albany, 7-5, in 10 innings on Tuesday at Varsity Field in Albany, N.Y. Freshman Jason Coules drove in the winning runs with a two-run double in the top of the tenth for the Rams. He had a season-high four RBI in the game.
In A-10 play, the Rams have won two-of-three series at home and lost both series on the road.
Fordham took two-of-three games from St. Bonaventure (March 22-24) and Saint Joseph's (April 6-7) at Houlihan Park in Bronx, N.Y. The Rams dropped two-of-three against Saint Louis (April 18-19) at home.
On the road, Fordham dropped two-of-three at Rhode Island (March 29-31) and at VCU (April 12-14).
Junior outfielder Jake Baker was named Atlantic 10 Co-Player of the Week. He batted .667 (8-for-12) with seven RBI, four runs scored and two stolen bases.
Sophomore infielder Jake MacKenzie leads the team in average (.339), hits (64), triples (6) and runs scored (39) in 47 games played. He is tied for the team lead in doubles (12) and home runs (3), while his 24 RBI are third-most on the club. MacKenzie is fourth in the nation in stolen bases (35) and seventh in triples (6).
Junior infielder Matt Tarabek is batting .271 and is second on the squad in hits (46) and RBI (25) in 47 games played. He is tied for first in doubles (12) and is third in runs scored (27).
Fordham ranks first in the nation in stolen bases per game (2.96) and total steals (139). The Rams lead the A-10 and are 11th nationally in team ERA (3.25), 14th in the nation in hits allowed per nine innings (7.45) and 14th in strikeouts per nine innings (10.0).
The Rams have a team batting average of .249 and a team ERA of 3.25 through 47 games this season.
STRIKE ZONE
The second-seeded Patriots defeated third-seeded Fordham, 4-0, on May 24, 2018 in the Atlantic 10 Championships at Barcroft Park in Arlington, Va.
With the win, Mason advanced to the semifinals of the A-10 Baseball Championships for the second time in program history.
Greg Popatak II went 3-for-4 with two doubles and three RBI in the game.
Bryce Nightengale scattered five singles over 6.2 innings to earn the win and
Ryan Ricci gave up just one hit over 2.1 innings to pick up the save.
PROBABLE STARTERS
Friday
Mason: Sr. LHP
Brian Marconi (3-6, 4.91)
Fordham: So. LHP Matt Mikulski (5-5, 3.97)
Saturday
Mason: Jr. RHP
Jared DiCesare (3-5, 4.71)
Fordham: So. RHP John Stankiewicz (6-2, 1.20)
Sunday
Mason: Fr. RHP
Jared Lyons (0-2, 8.61)
Fordham: Sr. RHP Anthony DiMeglio (3-3, 2.90)
