BASEBALL at Rhode Island
WHEN: Friday, March 31, Doubleheader (12 p.m.) - Sunday, April 2 (12 p.m.)
WHERE: Bill Beck Field | Kingston, R.I.
RECORDS: George Mason (11-12, 0-0 Atlantic 10); Rhode Island (8-12, 0-0 Atlantic 10)
ALL-TIME SERIES: Mason leads, 10-5
LAST MEETING: The fifth-seeded Patriots defeated the fourth-seeded Rams, 7-3, on May 24, 2022 in the opening round of the Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship at Wilson Field in Davidson, N.C.
LIVE STATS

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FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason baseball team opens Atlantic 10 play with a three-game series against Rhode Island beginning Friday with a doubleheader at Bill Beck Field in Kingston, R.I.  The first pitch for game one is scheduled for noon.

The two teams will have an off day on Saturday and then wrap up the series on Sunday with the first pitch slated for noon.

The Patriots and Rams didn't face each other in the regular season in 2022.  In the last regular season meeting between the two teams, Mason took two of three games April 26-28, 2019 at Bill Beck Field.  The Patriots won the first two games by identical 3-1 scores, while the Rams salvaged the third game of the series, 7-6.

The Patriots have a 10-5 record in the all-time series against the Rams, including a mark of 6-3 in games played in Kingston, R.I.

Last time out, the Patriots defeated Longwood, 13-6, on Wednesday night at Buddy Bolding Stadium in Farmville, Va.  Senior third baseman South Trimble hit a grand slam and reached base three times, while junior center fielder Jordan Smith belted a solo home run and reached base four times in the game.  Every player in the starting lineup either drove in a run or scored a run.

The Patriots rank third in Division I baseball in stolen bases with 85 in 24 games.  Only VMI (103) and Mississippi Valley (102) have more.  Mason is also tied for 18th nationally in hit by pitch (48 in 24 games) with sophomore catcher Connor Dykstra sixth in the NCAA (14 times in 23 games).

Freshman outfielder James Quinn-Irons leads the Patriots with a .425 average (34-for-80) in 21 starts.  He also leads the club in hits (34), home runs (4), is tied for first in runs scored (25) and is second in RBI (20).

Trimble is hitting .330 (29-for-88) in 24 starts.  He leads the team in stolen bases (17), is tied for first in doubles (5) and runs scored (25) and is second in both hits (29) and hit by pitch (11).

Dykstra is batting .303 (20-for-66) with two home runs, 12 RBI and 15 runs scored in 23 starts.  He leads the team in hit by pitch (14) and is fifth in both hits (20) and RBI (12).

Smith has a .290 average (27-for-93) with two home runs, 14 RBI and 22 runs scored in 23 starts in center field.  He is second on the club in stolen bases (14), third in both hits (27) and runs scored (22) and fourth in RBI (14).

The Patriots have a team batting average of .281 through 24 games.

On the mound, graduate student Ben Shields (4-1, 4.02) is scheduled to make his seventh start of the season in game one of the doubleheader on Friday.  He leads the club in strikeouts (39) and is second in innings pitched (31.1). 

Sophomore Chad Gartland (2-1, 2.70) will take the mound for game two of the doubleheader.  He is first on the team in innings pitched (33.1) and is second in strikeouts (25) in six appearances with five starts.

Sophomore Konner Eaton (1-1, 2.77) is slated to make his sixth start on Sunday.  Junior Christian Mracna (0-0, 3.27) shares the team lead in appearances (9) and has notched two saves.

The Patriots have a team ERA of 5.00 through 24 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 began 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 were swept in a three-game series at No. 10 East Carolina in Greenville, N.C. (March 24-26).  The Pirates won by final scores of 11-3, 8-1 and 5-0.  The Patriots topped Longwood, 13-6, at Buddy Bolding Stadium 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 RHODE ISLAND
 
Rhode Island has an overall record of 8-12.  The Rams are 3-0 at home and 5-12 on the road.

Last time out, the Rams had their four-game winning streak halted with a 7-2 setback against Northeastern on Wednesday at Friedman Diamond in Brookline, Mass.

Junior utility player Addison Kopack has a .333 average (22-for-66) with three home runs, 16 RBI and 18 runs scored in 20 starts.  He leads the team in average and walks (17) and is second in both RBI and runs scored.

Freshman first baseman Michael Anderson is batting .321 (25-for-78) with three home runs, 17 RBI and 11 runs scored in 20 starts.  He paces the Rams in hits and RBI, is second in average and fourth in runs scored.

Senior outfielder Billy Butler is hitting .315 (23-for-73) with two home runs, 14 RBI and eight runs scored in 19 starts.  He is third on the club in average and tied for third in both hits and RBI.

Rhode Island has a team batting average of .270 through 20 games.

On the mound, each Rams pitcher in the weekend rotation against the Patriots has made six starts on the season.

For game one of the doubleheader on Friday, junior Sean Sposato (1-2, 6.84) will make the start.  He is second on the team in both innings pitched (26.1) and strikeouts (24).  In game two, junior Trystan Levesque (3-2, 4.34) gets the ball against the Patriots.  He leads the club in innings pitched (29.0) and strikeouts (39).  In the series finale on Sunday, freshman Braeden Perry (2-2, 10.23) is scheduled to make the start.  He ranks third in innings pitched (22.0) and strikeouts (19).

The Rams have a team ERA of 7.44 through 20 games.

PROBABLE STARTERS

Mason: LHP Ben Shields (4-1, 4.02)
Rhode Island: RHP Sean Sposato (1-2, 6.84)

Mason: RHP Chad Gartland (2-1, 2.70)
Rhode Island: LHP Trystan Levesque (3-2, 4.34)

Mason: LHP Konner Eaton (1-1, 2.77)
Rhode Island: RHP Braeden Perry (2-2, 10.23)

STRIKE ZONE

Mason and Rhode Island have met twice in the Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship with the Patriots winning both opening-round games.  Each contest has been played on May 24th.

In the first meeting, the Patriots hit three home runs and Mason hurlers combined for 10 strikeouts on the way to a 9-5 victory over the Rams on May 24, 2017 in St. Louis, Mo. 

Last season, the Patriots rallied for five runs in the top of the ninth inning to top the Rams, 7-3, on May 24, 2022 in Davidson, N.C.