BASEBALL at Fordham
WHEN: Friday, May 5 (3 p.m.); Saturday, May 6 (1 p.m.); Sunday, May 7 (12 p.m.)
WHERE: Houlihan Park | Bronx, N.Y.
RECORDS: George Mason (22-21, 7-7 Atlantic 10); Fordham (16-29, 3-9 Atlantic 10)
ALL-TIME SERIES: George Mason leads, 12-7
LAST MEETING: The Patriots won two-of-three games against the Rams April 22-24, 2022 at Spuhler Field.
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FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason baseball team is on the road against Fordham for a three-game, Atlantic 10 series beginning Friday, May 5 with the first pitch scheduled for 3 p.m. at Houlihan Park in Bronx, N.Y.

Last time out, the Patriots downed Navy, 4-1, on Wednesday at Max Bishop Stadium in Annapolis, Md.  Freshman starter Logan Rumberg won his second straight start and junior Kyle Menaker notched his first save in a Mason uniform.

Mason took two-of-three from Fordham last season April 22-24, 2022 at Spuhler Field.  The Rams won the first game, 11-10 before the Patriots claimed the final two games of the series by final scores of 8-7 and 15-1.

Each of the last three series between the Patriots and Rams has been played at Spuhler Field.  Mason's last visit to New York was April 2-4, 2015.  The Rams took two games in the series with and 11-2 win in the opener and an 8-6 victory in the rubber game.  The Patriots won the middle game, 10-6.

Five of the last eight games between the Patriots and Rams have been decided by one run going back to the 2017 season.

The Patriots rank fifth in Division I baseball in stolen bases (123 in 43 games).  Only VMI (175), Mississippi Valley (148), Louisiana (130) and Wofford (126) have more.  Senior infielder South Trimble is tied for 27th in the NCAA with 23 stolen bases. 

Mason is tied for 21st nationally in hit by pitch (80 in 43 games) with sophomore catcher Connor Dykstra second in the NCAA (23 times in 40 games).

Freshman outfielder James Quinn-Irons has a .381 average (45-for-118) with four home runs, 26 RBI and 32 runs scored in 32 games with 31 starts.  He is third on the club in hits (45), home runs (4) and runs scored (32) and tied for fourth in RBI (26).

Trimble is hitting .308 (48-for-156) with three home runs, 29 RBI and 40 runs scored in 42 starts.  He leads the team in hits (48), runs scored (40), stolen bases (23) and walks (24), is second in RBI (29) and hit by pitch (14) and third in doubles (8). 

Sophomore Infielder/outfielder Reece Woody is hitting .291 (34-for-117) with three home runs, 31 RBI and 22 runs scored in 35 games with 34 starts.  He paces the Patriots in RBI (31) and is sixth in both hits (34) and runs scored (22).

Junior outfielder Jordan Smith has a .288 average (47-for-163) with five home runs, 26 RBI and 37 runs scored in 401starts in center field.  He leads the club in doubles (12), is second in hits (47), home runs (5) and runs scored (37) and is third in stolen bases (17) and is tied for third in RBI (26). 

Dykstra is batting .276 (35-for-127) with six home runs, 25 RBI and 29 runs scored in 40 starts.  He leads the team in home runs (6) and hit by pitch (23), is second in doubles (11), fourth in RBI (25) and is fifth in hits (35).

The Patriots have a team batting average of .268 through 43 games.

On the mound, graduate student Ben Shields (6-2, 4.11) leads the team in strikeouts (84) and is second in innings pitched (57.0) in 11 starts.  He was selected Atlantic 10 Co-Pitcher of the Week after recording 14 strikeouts with just one walk over 7.0 innings in the Patriots' 7-6 win at Rhode Island on March 31. 

Sophomore Chad Gartland (4-2, 3.02) is first on the team in innings pitched (65.2) and is second in strikeouts (62) in 11 appearances with nine starts.  He was selected A-10 Pitcher of the Week after tossing his first career complete game and shutout in the Patriots 11-0 win over Dayton April 8.

Redshirt freshman Konner Eaton (1-3, 5.46) is third on the club in both innings (29.2) and (38).  Junior Christian Mracna (2-1, 2.31) is tied for the team lead in appearances (17) and has notched three saves. 

Graduate student Mason Posey (1-3, 5.82) has also made 17 appearances this season and is one appearance shy of tying for the most in program history (74).

The Patriots have a team ERA of 4.61 through 43 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, played 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 played 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. 

Mason topped Longwood, 13-6, at Buddy Bolding Stadium in Farmville, Va. (March 29).  In the first a-10 series of the season, the Patriots took two-of-three from Rhode Island at Bill Beck Field in Kingston, R.I.  The Patriots won the first game of a doubleheader, 7-6, while the Rams won the nightcap, 8-4 (March 31).  Mason won the series finale, 5-0, on a combined one-hitter (April 2).  Mason topped Georgetown, 5-4, in Washington, D.C. (April 4) and fell to Towson, 10-8, in Towson, Md. (April 5).

The Patriots played 11 games at home and seven on the road in April.

The Patriots dropped two of three to Dayton (April 7-9) with the Flyers winning the first game, 6-5 and the finale, 6-5.  The Patriots won the middle game of the series, 11-0.  Mason lost to Longwood, 10-5 at Spuhler Field (April 11) to wrap up a four-game homestand.  Mason traveled down I-95 to face VCU in Richmond, Va. (April 14-16) and dropped two-of-three games.  The Rams won the first game, 5-0 and the finale, 11-3, while the Patriots took the middle game of the series, 10-5.  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. 

Mason returned to Spuhler Field for a seven-game homestand.

Mason won the series against A-10 foe St. Bonaventure (April 21-23), sweeping a doubleheader, 7-6 in 11 innings and 17-5 (April 21) before falling in the final game of the series, 4-3 in 11 innings (April 23).  The Patriots then topped Mount St. Mary's (April 25), 3-1, I a midweek non-conference contest.  Mason wrapped up the month splitting a doubleheader against Richmond (April 29).  The Patriots won the first game, 4-3, and dropped the second game, 7-0.

The Patriots will play eight straight on the road to begin the month of May.

Mason traveled to meet Navy in a midweek matchup (May 3) and the Patriots posted a 4-1 win.  Mason 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 FORDHAM
 
Fordham has an overall record of 16-29, including a mark of 3-9 in Atlantic 10 play.  The Rams are 10-10 at home and 6-19 on the road.

Last time out, the Rams dropped their midweek game against NJIT, 5-1, on Tuesday at Houlihan Park.

Senior infielder Zach Selinger has a .330 average (42-for-140) with nine home runs, 32 RBI and 24 runs scored in 41 games with 39 starts.  Graduate student infielder Peter DeMaria is batting .297 (46-for-155) with 10 home runs, 39 RBI and 34 runs scored in 45 starts.  

Freshman infielder/outfielder Daniel Bucciero is hitting .289 (46-for-159) with one home run, 28 RBI and 31 runs scored in 44 starts.  Junior outfielder Ryan Thiesse has a .282 average (50-for-177) with four home runs, 22 RBI and 36 runs scored in 43 starts.

Fordham has a team batting average of .252 through 45 games.

On the mound, graduate student Gabe Karslo (2-4, 6.99) leads the team in innings pitched (46.1) and is fouth in strikeouts (35).  Graduate student Austin Sachen (0-3, 11.30) leads the team in strikeouts (54) and is second in innings (43.0).  Junior Declan Lavelle (0-4, 7.34) leads the team in starts (10) and is third in innings (38.0). 

The Rams have a team ERA of 8.04 through 45 games.

PROBABLE STARTERS

Friday
Mason: LHP Ben Shields (6-2, 4.11)
Fordham: RHP Declan Lavelle (0-4, 7.34)
Saturday
Mason: RHP Chad Gartland (4-2 (3.02)
Fordham: LHP Austin Sachen (0-3, 11.30)
Sunday
Mason: LHP Konner Eaton (1-3, 5.46)
Fordham: TBD

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.

Ryan Ricci, now the Patriots pitching coach, tossed 2.1 innings of one-hit ball to pick up the save.