BASEBALL vs. William & Mary
WHEN: Friday, March 18 (3 p.m.) |Saturday, March 19 (12:15 p.m.) | Sunday, March 20 (1 p.m.)
WHERE: (Friday) Plumeri Park | Williamsburg, Va.; (Saturday/Sunday) Spuhler Field | Fairfax, Va.
RECORDS: George Mason (7-9, 0-0 A-10); William & Mary (5-9, 0-0 CAA)
ALL-TIME SERIES: Mason leads, 63-38.
LAST MEETING: The Tribe defeated the Patriots, 4-1, on March 6, 2021 at Spuhler Field.
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FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason baseball team takes on William & Mary for three games this weekend beginning Friday, with the first pitch scheduled for 3 p.m. at Plumeri Park in Williamsburg, Va.
The Patriots will host the Tribe on Saturday (12:15 p.m.) and Sunday (1 p.m.) at Spuhler Field.
On Saturday, George Mason Athletics will honor the life of former Patriots pitcher
Sang Ho Baek, who passed away in June at the age of 20, with a dedication ceremony. A white dogwood tree chosen by the family will be planted near Spuhler Field with a plaque that will memorialize Baek as a member of the Mason baseball team forever.
A native of Salisbury, Md., Baek appeared in seven games with the Patriots last season and made his collegiate debut against UMBC at Spuhler Field on March 12, 2021.
Last time out, the Patriots (7-9) fell to Georgetown, 5-4 on Wednesday at Spuhler Field. Sophomore center fielder
Jordan Smith went 2-for-4 with a RBI and scored a run, freshman catcher designated hitter
Tyler Cotten was 2-for-4 and drove in a run, and freshman shortstop
Carsen Pracht finished 2-for-5 and knocked in a run.
The Patriots are 4-4 at home, 2-5 on the road and 1-0 in games played at a neutral site this season. Mason is 4-4 over its last eight games.
In the last meeting between Mason and William & Mary, the Tribe built a 3-0 lead on the way to a 4-1 win over the Patriots on March 6, 2021 at Spuhler Field.
Former CAA rivals, William & Mary has won each of the last four single-game matchups against Mason since the Patriots joined the Atlantic 10 in 2014. The Tribe has won seven of the last 10 meetings overall, and seven of the last 10 games played in Williamsburg.
Junior INF/OF
South Trimble has a .377 average (23-for-61) with three doubles, eight RBI and 14 runs scored in 16 starts. He leads the team in hits (23), stolen bases (14) and runs scored (14).
Freshman INF/OF
Brett Ahalt is batting .354 (17-for-48) with two doubles, one home run, eight RBI and six runs scored in 15 games played. He is third on the team in hits (17) and tied for third in RBI (8).
Junior second baseman
Brett Stallings is batting .345 (19-for-55) with two doubles, 10 RBI and 11 runs scored in 16 starts on the right side of the infield. He is second on the club in hits (19) and RBI (10), and third in stolen bases (8).
Freshman catcher
Connor Dykstra is hitting .306 (11-for-36) with two home runs, eight RBI and 13 runs scored in 15 games played with 14 starts. He leads the team in hit by pitch (8) and on-base percentage (.519), and is second on the club in runs scored (13).
The Patriots have a team batting average of .267 through 16 games.
On the mound, senior
Jared Lyons (2-1, 3.81) leads the club in innings pitched (28.1) and is second in strikeouts (27) in four starts. Graduate student
Danny Hosley (2-1, 3.00) leads the club in strikeouts (30) and is second in innings pitched (24.0) in four starts.
Senior
Matthew Henson (1-0, 4.63) leads the team in appearances (9), while classmate
Mason Posey (0-1, 8.79) is second in appearances (7) with two starts. Posey leads the team in saves (3).
ABOUT THE PATRIOTS
Mason has 10 returners and 25 newcomers on the roster heading into the season under
Bill Brown, who enters his 41st year as the head coach of the Patriots.
The Mason senior class includes pitchers
Matthew Henson,
Jared Lyons,
Hugh O'Hara and
Mason Posey, along with infielders
Daniel Brooks and
Scott Morgan.
The junior class includes outfielder
Craig Miles, Jr., infielder
Brett Stallings, and infielder/outfielder
South Trimble. Sophomore outfielder
Jordan Smith returns for his second season with the Green and Gold.
The Patriots added 25 new players, with 18 freshman, three sophomores and four graduate students.
Rookie pitchers joining the Patriots are
Jackson Baird (RHP),
Diego Barrett (RHP),
Dylan Crowley (LHP),
Konner Eaton (LHP),
Chad Gartland, (RHP),
Jalen Grant (LHP),
Danny Hosley (INF/RHP),
Thomas Little (LHP),
Christian Mracna (RHP),
Andrew Schaeb (LHP),
Ben Shields (LHP) and
Britt Yount (RHP).
New position players include
Brett Ahalt (INF/OF),
Tyler Cotten (C/INF),
Connor Dykstra (C),
Yogie Hartigan (OF),
Alex Knapp (UTL),
Carsen Pracht (INF) and
Logan Scully (C).
The Patriots bring on sophomores
Christian Mracna (RHP),
Ryan Peterson (LHP), and
Stephen Restuccio (RHP).
The Patriots also added four graduate student transfers,
Danny Hosley (INF/RHP),
Chris Ruckdeschel (RHP),
Ben Shields (LHP) and
Kamron Smith (OF/INF).
Mason is scheduled to play 56 games, including 24 against Atlantic 10 Conference rivals, and four opponents that made a NCAA Regional appearance last season.
The Patriots played seven games on the road in February, and will play 18 games in March, 19 games in April and 12 contests in May.
Mason went 10-13 at home in 2021, including a mark of 7-9 against A-10 opponents.
The Patriots play 11 of their first 13 games in March at Spuhler Field.
The Patriots are scheduled to play 11 games at home and seven on the road in April. In the final month of the regular season, Mason will play eight of 12 games on the road in May.
The Patriots will play four home-and-home series during the 2022 season, taking on James Madison, Longwood, Maryland and William & Mary for single games at home and on the road.
Mason plays eight league series, four at home and four on the road.
Home series against A-10 foes include three-game weekend sets against VCU (April 1-3), Saint Louis (April 15-17), Fordham (April 22-24) and George Washington (May 13-15).
The Patriots will visit Saint Joseph's (April 8-10), Massachusetts (April 29-May 1), Richmond (May 6-8) and Davidson (May 19-21).
SCOUTING WILLIAM & MARY
William & Mary has an overall record of 5-9 on the season, including a mark of 5-2 at home and 0-7 on the road.
William & Mary has dropped its last six games. In their last home game, the Tribe fell to Georgetown (Mar. 8), 5-4 in 10 innings at Plumeri Park.
The Tribe is back home after going winless in five straight games on the road. William & Mary was swept in a three-game series at Georgia Southern (Mar. 12-13) in Statesboro, Ga., and then was swept in a doubleheader at Davidson (Mar. 15).
The Tribe has played six games this season against Atlantic 10 opponents. William & Mary swept three games from Rhode Island by final score of 10-3, 15-8, and 10-5 at Plumeri Park to open the season (Feb. 18-19). The Tribe fell to Richmond (Feb. 22) on the road, 14-11, and dropped a doubleheader at Davidson (Mar. 15) by final scores of 11-4 and 3-1.
Junior outfielder Joe Delossantos is batting .300 (12-for-40) with one home run, six RBI and six runs scored in 13 games. Graduate student outfielder David Hogarth is batting .283 (15-for-53) with eight RBI and eight runs scored.
Senior utility player Matt Thomas has a .275 average with five home runs, 12 RBI and 15 runs scored. His five round trippers lead the CAA.
William & Mary has a team batting average of .248 though 12 games.
On the mound, senior Zach Tsakounis (1-0, 3.00) and freshman Carter Lovasz (1-0, 3.00) share the team lead for innings pitched (15.0). Sophomore Adam Fisher (0-1, 3.38) and junior Matt Howat (0-0, 6.75) are tied for the team lead in appearances (6).
The Tribe has a team ERA of 6.06 heading into Friday's game.
PROBABLE STARTERS
Friday
Mason: RHP
Jared Lyons (2-1, 3.81)
William & Mary: TBD
Saturday
Mason: TBD
William & Mary: TBD
Sunday
Mason: TBD
William & Mary: TBD
STRIKE ZONE
Mason has an all-time record of 63-36 against William & Mary. The 63 victories are the most against any opponent in program history.
The Patriots have 53 wins against James Madison, 50 victories against VCU, 49 against Towson and 44 against UNC Wilmington.
