BASEBALL vs. Longwood / at Virginia
WHEN: Tuesday, April 26 (3 p.m.) | Wednesday, April 27 (6 p.m.)
WHERE: Spuhler Field in Fairfax, Va. | Disharoon Park in Charlottesville, Va.
RECORDS: George Mason (14-24, 6-6 A-10); Longwood (19-22, 9-6 Big South); Virginia (31-10, 13-8 ACC)
ALL-TIME SERIES: Mason leads Longwood, 12-8; Virginia leads Mason, 22-12.
LAST MEETING: Longwood defeated Mason, 9-8, on April 12 in Farmville, Va.; Virginia defeated Mason, 10-3, on April 21, 2010 in Charlottesville, Va.
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FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason baseball team continues a busy stretch with a pair of midweek, non-conference games this week. 
 
The Patriots host Longwood on Tuesday for the final game of a season-high eight game homestand, with the first pitch scheduled for 3 p.m. at Spuhler Field.  Mason will travel to take on No. 11 Virginia on Wednesday, with the first pitch slated for 6 p.m. at Disharoon Park in Charlottesville, Va.
 
Last time out, the Patriots (14-24, 6-6 A-10) posted season-highs in hits and runs in their 15-1 victory over Fordham on Sunday.
 
The Patriots took two-of-three in the series to improve to 6-6 in Atlantic 10 play.
 
Senior third baseman Daniel Brooks belted a grand slam, graduate student shortstop Danny Hosley smashed a three-run home run, senior designated hitter Scott Morgan hammered a two-run blast and freshman catcher Connor Dykstra hit a solo home run.
 
The Patriots have hit 13 round-trippers in their last 15 games after hitting just eight in their first 23 games of the season.

The Patriots are 9-12 at home, 4-12 on the road and 1-0 in games played at a neutral site this season.
 
Mason fell at Longwood on April 12, with the Lancers posting a 9-8 walk-off win at Buddy Bolding Stadium.  The Patriots scored four runs in the top of the first inning and built a 6-2 advantage in the third.  The Lancers scored six unanswered, including five runs in the fifth to take the lead before Mason tied the game with two runs in the eighth.
 
Freshman outfielder Brett Ahalt went 3-for-5 with two RBI and three runs scored, junior first baseman South Trimble was 2-for-4 with two RBI and one run scored, and graduate student third baseman Danny Hosley finished 3-for-5 with a RBI and run scored.
 
Mason is facing Virginia for the first time in 12 years.  In the last meeting, the Patriots fell, 10-3, to the second-ranked Cavaliers on April 21, 2010.
 
The Cavaliers have won five straight in the all-time series.  The Patriots last defeated Virginia, 4-3, on April 22, 2003 in Charlottesville, Va. 
 
Trimble has a .396 average (38-for-96) with six doubles, two triples, 14 RBI and 27 runs scored in 25 starts.  He leads the club in average (.396), stolen bases (20) and attempts (23).  He is tied for first in runs scored (27), and is second in hits (38).      
 
Ahalt is batting .370 (37-for-100) with six doubles, one triple, two home runs, 23 RBI and 23 runs scored in 29 games played with 27 starts.  He is third on the team in hits (37), third in RBI (23) and fourth in runs scored (23).  
 
Sophomore center fielder Jordan Smith is hitting .330 (29-for-88) with four doubles, one triple, one home runs, 12 RBI and 14 scored in 22 starts.  He is second on the club in stolen bases (13). 
 
Junior second baseman Brett Stallings is batting .318 (47-for-148) with six doubles, one home run, 29 RBI and 26 runs scored in 38 starts on the right side of the infield.  He leads the club in hits (47) and RBI (29), is second in runs scored (26) and tied for third in stolen bases (12).
 
Freshman catcher Connor Dykstra is hitting .311 (32-for-103) with seven doubles, five home runs, 24 RBI and 27 runs scored in 34 games played with 33 starts.  He leads the team in home runs (5) and hit by pitch (14), is tied for first in runs scored (27) and he is second on the club in RBI (24).
 
The Patriots have a team batting average of .278 through 38 games.
 
On the mound, freshman Chad Gartland (1-1, 2.54) leads the club in ERA (2.54), is second in saves (2), third in strikeouts (42), tied for third in starts (5) and is fourth in innings pitched (39.0).  Senior Jared Lyons (4-5, 6.44) leads the club in starts (10), innings pitched (57.1) and strikeouts (49).
 
Graduate student Danny Hosley (3-3, 3.79) is second on the team in wins (3) and strikeouts (48), third in innings pitched (40.1) and ERA (3.79) in nine appearances with five starts. 
 
Sophomore Ryan Peterson (2-1, 4.66) is second on the club in innings pitched (46.1) in 11 appearances with six starts.
 
Senior Matthew Henson (1-1, 7.23) leads the team in appearances (20), while classmate Mason Posey (2-2, 6.75) is second in appearances (17) with three 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, played 18 games in March, will play 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 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 LONGWOOD
 
Longwood has an overall record of 19-22 on the season, including a mark of 9-6 in Big South Conference play.  The Lancers are 11-4 at home, 8-15 on the road and 0-3 in games played at a neutral site.
 
Last time out, Longwood dropped two-of-three at Campbell (April 22-24) in Buies Creek, N.C.  The Lancers dropped the first two games, 9-2 and 13-3, before posting a 10-5 win in the finale.
 
The Lancers won their first three games of the season, beginning with a three-game sweep against Maryland-Eastern Shore (Feb. 18-20) in Farmville, Va. by final scores of 11-1, 11-7 and 15-9.
 
Longwood then lost 10 straight games from Feb. 22 through March 8, a stretch that included three-game sweeps by Elon (Feb. 25-17) in Burlington, N.C. and Purdue (March 4-6) in Holly Springs, N.C.
 
The Lancers are 1-3 this season against Atlantic 10 Conference opponents.  VCU has defeated Longwood twice, with an 8-3 win on Feb. 22 at Buddy Bolding Stadium and a 6-5 victory on March 22 at The Diamond.  Richmond earned a 9-2 home win over Longwood on April 5.
 
Sophomore infielder Eliot Dix is batting .360 (31-for-86) with five doubles, one home run, 18 RBI and 22 runs scored in 25 starts.  Senior outfielder Jack Schnell is hitting .339 (37-for-109) with 12 doubles, one triple, three home runs, 23 RBI and 16 runs scored in 33 starts.
 
The Lancers have a team batting average of .274 through 33 games.
 
On the mound, sophomore Andrew Potojecki (6-1, 3.00) leads the team in wins (6), ERA (3.00), innings pitched (48.0) and strikeouts (32) in eight starts.  Freshman Kevin Warunek (3-0, 3.35) is second on the club in wins (3), ERA (3.35) and innings pitched (40.1).
 
Sophomore Logan Berrier (0-3, 3.42) leads the Lancers in appearances (13) and is third in innings pitched (23.2).  Sophomore Michael Tolson (0-1, 4.80) leads the club in saves (3) and is tied for third in appearances (11).
 
The Lancers have a team ERA of 5.57 through 33 games.
 
SCOUTING VIRGINIA

Virginia has an overall record of 31-10, including a mark of 13-8 in ACC play.  The Cavaliers are 23-2 at home, 6-8 on the road and 2-0 in games played at a neutral site.
 
Last time out, Virginia swept three games from North Carolina last weekend at Disharoon Park in Charlottesville, Va.  The Cavaliers won by final scores of 4-2, 11-7 (11 Innings) and 10-3.
 
Virginia has lost only twice at home this season.  Then No. 22 Georgia Tech defeated the Cavaliers, 6-4, on April 1 and Old Dominion downed Virginia, 9-2, on April 12.
 
The Cavaliers are 2-1 against Atlantic 10 teams this season.  Virginia beat George Washington, 10-2, on March 8 and Richmond, 8-2, on March 29.  VCU topped the Cavaliers, 9-7, in 10 innings on April 19 at The Diamond in Richmond, Va.
 
Sophomore infielder Jake Gelof is batting .378 (56-for-148) with 13 doubles, two triples, 15 home runs, 62 RBI and 48 runs scored in 41 starts.  Freshman infielder Casey Saucke is hitting .355 (44-for-124) with six doubles, three triples, five home runs, 29 RBI and 33 RBI in 36 games with 33 starts.
 
Graduate student INF/OF Alex Tappen has a .350 average (55-for-157) with 12 doubles, one triple, 10 home runs, 55 RBI and 37 runs scored in 41 starts.  Freshman infielder Griff O'Ferrall is batting .335 (52-for-155) with five doubles, one triple, two home runs, 32 RBI and 47 runs scored in 41 starts.
 
The Cavaliers have a team batting average of .320 through 41 games.
 
On the mound, graduate student Brian Gursky (6-0, 2.47) leads the team in wins (6), ERA (2.47) and is second in both innings pitched (47.1) and strikeouts (57) in nine starts.   Junior Nate Savino (4-3, 3.76) leads the club in starts (10), innings pitched (55.0) and strikeouts (59).
 
The Cavaliers have a team ERA of 3.38 through 41 games.
 
STRIKE ZONE
 
Mason hosted Virginia for the first time on April 4, 1985.  The Patriots defeated the Cavaliers, 5-4, in 10 innings in Fairfax, Va.