BASEBALL at East Carolina
WHEN: Friday, March 24 (6 p.m.) - Saturday, March 25 (4 p.m.) - Sunday, March 26 (1 p.m.)
WHERE: Lewis Field at Clark-LeClair Stadium | Greenville, N.C.
RECORDS: George Mason (11-9, 0-0 Atlantic 10); #10 East Carolina (16-5, 0-0 American Athletic Conference)
ALL-TIME SERIES: East Carolina leads, 44-30
LAST MEETING: East Carolina won both games of a two-game series, 8-1 and 6-0, March 8-9, 2016 in Greenville, N.C.
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FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason baseball team opens a three-game series against No. 10 East Carolina on Friday with the first pitch scheduled for 6 p.m. at Clark-LeClair Stadium in Greenville, N.C.

Last time out, the Patriots fell to William & Mary, 16-10, on Tuesday afternoon at Spuhler Field in Fairfax, Va.  Mason had its seven-game winning streak snapped in the final contest of its season-high, 13-game homestand.

Freshman outfielder James Quinn-Irons leads the Patriots with a .411 average (30-for-73) in 19 starts.  He also leads the club in hits (30), home runs (4) and runs scored (24) and is second in RBI (20).  Senior infielder South Trimble is hitting .351 (26-for-74) in 20 starts.  He leads the team in stolen bases (16), is tied for first in doubles (5) and second in hits (26), runs scored (22) and hit by pitch (11).

Sophomore catcher Connor Dykstra is batting .302 (16-for-53) with one home run, nine RBI and 12 runs scored in 19 starts behind the plate.  He leads the team in hit by pitch (14) and is sixth in hits (16).  Junior outfielder Jordan Smith has a .295 average with one home run, 13 RBI and 19 runs scored in 19 starts in center.  He is second on the club in stolen bases (13), third in both hits (23 and runs scored (19) and fourth in RBI (13).

The Patriots have a team batting average of .294 through 20 games.

On the mound, graduate student Ben Shields (4-0, 2.42) has started five games.  He leads the club in strikeouts (35) and is second in innings pitched (26.0).  Sophomore Chad Gartland (2-0, 1.93) is first on the team in innings pitched (28.0) and is second in strikeouts (22) in five appearances with four starts.

Sophomore Konner Eaton (1-0, 1.13) has started four games including each of the last three Sunday games.  Junior Christian Mracna (0-0, 2.00) shares the team lead in appearances (8) and has notched two saves.

The Patriots have a team ERA of 4.41 through 20 games.

ABOUT THE PATRIOTS
 
Mason has 16 returners and added 23 newcomers on the roster heading into the season under Shawn Camp, who enters his first year as the head coach of the Patriots, won his first game as a head coach on Feb. 17 with an 8-2 victory at Florida International.
 
Returning for the Patriots are graduate student pitchers Hugh O'Hara, Mason Posey and Ben Shields.  The Mason senior class includes outfielder Craig Miles, Jr., pitcher Ryan Peterson, infielder Brett Stallings and infielder/outfielder South Trimble.
The junior class includes pitcher Christian Mracna and outfielder Jordan Smith.  Sophomores returning for their second year with the Green and Gold are pitchers Jalen Grant, Chad Gartland and Britt Yount, catcher Connor Dykstra, infielder Carsen Pracht and outfielder Alex Knapp.  Redshirt freshman pitcher Konner Earton also enters his second year.
 
The Patriots added 23 new players, with 18 freshman, three sophomores and four graduate students entering their first year at George Mason.
 
Rookie pitchers joining the Patriots are Ryan Edmonds (RHP), Chris Fidanza (RHP), Tyler Herkey (LHP), Connor Knox (RHP), Logan Rumberg (RHP), Michael Salina (RHP), Kyle Smith (RHP) and Owen Stewart (RHP).  New position players include freshmen Evan Blanchard (INF), A.J. Martin (INF), Brady Powell (INF), Bennett Shealor (C) and James Quinn-Irons (OF).
 
The Patriots brought on a total of nine transfers.  Juniors Nick Martins (RHP), Kyle Menaker (RHP) Mark Trotta (INF) and Derek Wood (OF), along with sophomores Brandon Parks (OF), Dylan Winebrenner (C) and Reece Woody (OF).
 
The Patriots also added three graduate student transfers, Ryan Archibald (INF), Robbie Dudzinski (RHP) and Nolan Lamere (RHP).

GEORGE MASON 2023 SCHEDULE

The Patriots are scheduled to play a 56-game slate that includes 24 contests against Atlantic 10 Conference rivals, 28 games at Spuhler Field and matchups against two opponents that made a NCAA Regional appearance last season.

The Patriots begin the season with eight straight games on the road from Feb. 17 through Feb. 28.  George Mason played its first series of the 2023 campaign with three games against Florida International University in Miami, Fla. (Feb. 17-19).  The Patriots won the first game, 8-2 and the series finale, 5-2, while the Panthers claimed the middle game of the series, 3-2.

Mason fell to James Madison, 10-2, in Harrisonburg, Va. (Feb. 21).  At the Swig and Swine College Classic in Charleston, S.C. (Feb. 24-26) the Patriots lost to Rutgers, 5-4 in 10 innings and fell to Canisius, 6-4.  The Patriots wrapped up the road stretch against William & Mary in Williamsburg, Va. (Feb. 28) with the Tribe scoring a pair of runs in the bottom of the ninth for a 4-3 victory.

The eight road games to start the season are the most since the Patriots played the first eight away from home in 2017.

In March, Mason is scheduled to play 14 games at home and 13 games on the road.  To begin the month, the Patriots will play a season-high 14 straight games at Spuhler Field, with three weekend series and three midweek contests.

Mason began the homestand against Niagara with a four-game series (March 4-5).  The Patriots won both games of their Saturday doubleheader, 15-2 and 6-3.  The Purple Eagles won both games of the Sunday doubleheader, 8-4 and 7-2.  Mason fell to Georgetown, 18-13, in a lone midweek game (March 7).  

The Patriots swept their three-game series against St. Peter's.  Mason took both games of a doubleheader, 15-6 and 9-1 (March 11) and won the finale, 12-4 (March 12).  Mason then swept three games from Cornell.  The Patriots took both games of a doubleheader, 10-5 and 4-3 (March 18), and then won the final game, 15-4 (March 19) to extend their winning streak to seven games.

The Patriots dropped their midweek matchup against William & Mary, 16-10 (March 21).

The Patriots went 13-12 at home in 2022, including a mark of 8-4 against A-10 opponents.

Mason is scheduled to play a season-high nine straight games on the road from March 24 through April 5.  The Patriots begin the stretch when they travel to take on East Carolina in a three-game series in Greenville, N.C. (March 24-26). 

After a midweek game against Longwood in Farmville, Va. (March 29), the Patriots play their first league series of the season against Rhode Island in Kingston, R.I. (March 31-April 2). 

Mason plays its only set of back-to-back midweek games during the season against Georgetown in Washington, D.C. (April 4) and Towson in Towson, Md. (April 5).

The Patriots are scheduled to play 11 games at home and seven on the road in April.

The Patriots play 11 of 14 games at Spuhler Field beginning with a three-game league series against Dayton (April 7-9) and a Tuesday meeting with Longwood (April 11).

Mason is on the road for a weekend series when they travel down I-95 to face VCU in Richmond, Va. (April 14-16).  Last year, the Rams finished first in the Atlantic 10 during the regular season and won the 2022 A-10 Baseball Championship to earn a spot in the Chapel Hill, N.C. Regional in the NCAA Tournament. 

The Patriots then return home for a seven-game homestand.  Mason begins with a three-game series against A-10 foe St. Bonaventure (April 21-23), plays a non-conference midweek tilt against Mount St. Mary's (April 25) and then wraps up the month with a three-game conference set against Richmond (April 28-30).

The Patriots will play eight straight on the road to begin the month of May.  Mason travels to meet Navy in a midweek matchup (May 3), then heads north for three games against Fordham in Bronx, N.Y. (May 5-7).  The Patriots collide with the George Washington Colonials in a three-game series in the Revolutionary Rivalry in Washington, D.C. (May 12-14) and end the stretch against Maryland-Eastern Shore in Princess Ann, Md. (May 16).

The Patriots conclude the regular season when they host Saint Joseph's at Spuhler Field (May 19-21).

The Patriots will play three home-and-home series during the 2023 season, taking on Georgetown, Longwood 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 Dayton (April 7-9), St. Bonaventure (April 21-23), Richmond (April 28-30) and Saint Joseph's (May 19-21).

The Patriots will visit Rhode Island (March 31-April 2), VCU (April 14-16), Fordham (May 5-7) and George Washington (May 12-14).

The 2023 Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship will be held May 23-27 at The Diamond in Richmond, Va.

SCOUTING No. 10 EAST CAROLINA
 
East Carolina has an overall record of 16-5.  The Pirates are 13-2 at home and 3-3 on the road.

Last time out, ECU fell at home to No. 18 Campbell, 2-1, on Wednesday at Clark-LeClair Stadium.

The Pirates began the season with a three-game sweep at home over George Washington (Feb. 18-19).  East Carolina won both games of a doubleheader, 9-5 and 11-3, and then took the series finale, 23-5.

The Pirates won both games of a home-and-home set against then-No. 12 North Carolina with a 6-5 victory at Clark-LeClair Stadium (Feb. 24) and a 6-5 win at Boshamer Stadium (Feb. 26) in Chapel Hill, N.C.

ECU has also posted three-game sweeps at home against Liberty (March 10-11) and Missouri State (March 17-19).

Junior catcher Justin Wilcoxen is batting .352 (25-for-71) with four home runs, 16 RBI and 16 runs scored in 20 games with 18 starts.  He leads the team in home runs (4), is second on the team in hits (25), third in runs scored (16) and fourth in RBI (16).  Junior first baseman Josh Moylan is hitting .333 (24-for-74) with one home run, 19 RBI and 19 runs scored.  He leads the team in runs scored (19) and is second on the club in hits (25) and RBI (19).
 
East Carolina has a team batting average of .303 through 20 games.

On the mound, sophomore Trey Yesavage (3-0, 1.48) leads the club in innings pitched (30.1) and strikeouts (43).  He was named American Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week after tossing 7.1 scoreless innings with a career-high 11 strikeouts and no walks in a 3-0 win over Missouri State.  
 
Junior Josh Grosz (3-0, 2.36) is second on the squad in innings pitched (26.2) and strikeouts (34).  Sophomore Wyatt Lunsford-Shenkman (2-1, 1.76) paces the Pirates in appearances (10) and saves (2).

The Pirates have a team ERA of 3.36 through 20 games.

PROBABLE STARTERS

Saturday
Mason: LHP Ben Shields (4-0, 2.42)
East Carolina: RHP Trey Yesavage (3-0, 1.48)
Saturday
Mason: RHP Chad Gartland (2-0, 1.93)
East Carolina: RHP Carter Spivey (1-1, 4.26)
Sunday
Mason: LHP Konner Eaton (1-0, 1.13)
East Carolina: RHP Josh Grosz (3-0, 2.36)
  
STRIKE ZONE

Among teams that currently reside in the Atlantic 10 Conference, East Carolina has faced four clubs the most.  The Pirates have played Richmond 94 times (52-42), George Mason 74 times (44-30), VCU 63 times (32-31) and Davidson 31 times (25-6).

Mason and East Carolina met for the first time on March 18-19, 1982 as members of the ECAC.  The Pirates won both games, 7-0 and 4-3.  The Patriots and Pirates were also rivals in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) and faced each other 14 times in the CAA Tournament between 1987 and 2000.