BASEBALL vs. Coppin State
WHEN: Tuesday, February 21 (2 p.m.)
WHERE: Spuhler Field | Fairfax, Va.
RECORDS: George Mason (0-3, 0-0 A-10); Coppin State (0-2, 0-0 NEC)
ALL-TIME SERIES: Mason leads Coppin State, 24-1
LAST MEETING: The Patriots defeated the Eagles, 9-3, on March 15, 2022 at Spuhler Field.
GAME NOTES (PDF)
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FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason baseball team hosts Coppin State for the home opener on Tuesday with the first pitch scheduled for 2 p.m. at Spuhler Field.
Last time out, the Patriots (0-3) fell to Indiana, 9-3, on Sunday afternoon in their final game at Baseball at the Beach in Conway, S.C.
In the last meeting against Coppin State, the Patriots defeated the Eagles, 9-3, on March 15, 2022 at Spuhler Field. Mason scored all its runs in the first three innings, including six in the third, to build a 9-0 lead.
The Eagles scored all three of their runs in the ninth inning. The Patriots stole nine bases in the game.
Danny Hosley, now playing for the Savanah Bananas, scattered two singles and struck out eight batters over seven innings in his outing to earn the win.
Mason has faced Coppin State 25 times in program history and the Patriots hold an all-time record of 24-1 in the series. The Eagles recorded their lone win in the all-time series with a 5-4 victory April 25, 2012 at Bachman Field in Baltimore, Md.
Last season, the Patriots won the Atlantic 10 championship and advanced to the NCAA Winston-Salem Regional, making their eighth NCAA tournament appearance. Mason defeated Northeastern and Maryland to advance to the regional final for the first time in program history.
The Patriots finished the 2023 season with 36 wins, the most for the program since 2009. Mason went 15-11 at home, 14-11 on the road and 7-5 in games played at a neutral site.
In the 2023 A-10 baseball championship, the Patriots went 5-1, including three elimination game victories to claim the title for the second time in program history.
Last season, the Patriots finished the season ranked third in Division I baseball in stolen bases (164 in 63 games), setting a new program record this season. Infielder/outfielder
South Trimble finished tied for 27
th in the nation in stolen bases and outfielder
Derek Wood tied for 31
st.
Mason also finished the year 11th nationally in hit by pitch (112 in 63 games). Catcher
Connor Dykstra tied for first in the nation (33 times in 59 games).
The Mason pitching staff finished first in the Atlantic 10 conference in ERA (5.02) and saves (15) while posting the lowest opponent batting average (.258) in school history. The Patriots' pitching staff also set single-season program records for strikeouts (516) and strikeouts per nine innings (8.36).
Starting pitcher
Chad Gartland was named Atlantic 10 Pitcher of the Year and First Team All-Conference. Dykstra was selected First Team All-Conference catcher, starting pitcher
Ben Shields was named Second Team All-Conference pitcher and outfielder
James Quinn-Irons was selected to the A-10 All-Rookie Team.
Reliever
Owen Stewart, Gartland and Dykstra were selected to the Winston-Salem Regional All-Tournament Team.
PROBABLE STARTING PITCHERS
Mason: Chad Gartland (0-1)
Coppin State: TBD
SCOUTING COPPIN STATE UNIVERSITY
Last season, Coppin State finished with an overall record of 21-31, including a mark of 14-16 against Northeast Conference (NEC) opponents. The Eagles went 11-13 at home and 10-18 on the road.
The Eagles dropped their first two games of the 2024 campaign, 24-0 and 9-6, to Creighton over the weekend at Joe Cannon Stadium in Hanover, Md.
Outfielder Brody Black was third on the team last season with a .304 batting average in 50 games with 45 starts. He led the club in stolen bases (16), was second in both doubles (13) and runs scored (39) and third in hits (49) and RBI (32).
Infielder Angel Colon was fourth on the team with a .281 batting average his freshman year in 39 games with 29 starts.
Two-way player Liam McCallum played 43 games with 39 starts last season with a .266 average, four doubles, 14 RBI and 22 runs scored. He was third on the club with 34 walks. On the mound, McCallum struck out 30 batters in 39.1 innings.
The Eagles were picked to finish seventh in the Northeast Conference preseason poll. Central Connecticut was projected to finish first including 10 of the 12 first-place votes, Wagner was picked to finish second, followed by Sacred Heart, FDU and Long Island.
In their first season in the NEC, the Eagles finished tied for sixth and missed the conference tournament by tiebreakers.
Head coach Sherman Reed enters his 14th season at Coppin State and has the most wins in program history.
Coppin State has 23 new players on the roster.
ABOUT THE PATRIOTS
Mason has 22 returners and added 18 newcomers on the roster heading into the season under
Shawn Camp, who enters his second year as the head coach of the Patriots.
The Mason senior class includes pitchers
Nick Martins,
Kyle Menaker and
Ryan Peterson, along with outfielders
Jordan Smith and
Derek Wood. Graduate student utility player
South Trimble also returns for the Patriots.
The junior class includes pitchers
Chad Gartland and
Britt Yount, infielder
Carsen Pracht, outfielders
Brandon Parks and
Reece Woody and catcher
Connor Dykstra.
Sophomore returning for their second year with the Green and Gold are pitchers
Konner Eaton,
Ryan Edmonds,
Tyler Herkey,
Connor Knox,
Logan Rumberg and
Owen Stewart, infielder
Evan Blanchard, outfielder
James Quinn-Irons and catcher
Bennett Shealor.
The Patriots added 18 new players, with 13 freshman, one junior and four graduate students entering their first year at George Mason.
New pitchers joining the Patriots are freshmen
Cole Egan (LHP),
Brant Ertel (RHP),
Dylan McCarthy (RHP),
Shaun Okeeffe (LHP) and
Ty Uchman (LHP). Graduate students
Luke Goodyear (LHP) and
Avery Mabe (RHP) along with junior
Jake Roberti join the Mason bullpen.
New position players include two graduate students, catcher
Socrates Bardatsos and utility player
Ben Jones. Eight freshmen position players embark on their rookie year with infielders
Jake Butler,
Christian Carver,
Cole Feldman,
Toby Hueber and
Owen Hull, outfielders
Jake Kozlowski and
Ryan Muskopf and catcher
J.P. Williams.
GEORGE MASON 2024 SCHEDULE
The Patriots are schedule to play a 56-game slate that includes 24 contests against Atlantic 10 Conference rivals, 32 games at Spuhler Field and three games against opponents that made a NCAA Regional appearance last season.
The Patriots began the season with three games at the Baseball at the Beach tournament in Conway, S.C.
Mason fell to No. 18 Coastal Carolina, 26-0 (Feb. 16), lost to No. 12 Duke, 23-5 (Feb. 17) and dropped the final game at Baseball at the Beach to Indiana, 9-3 (Feb. 18).
All four teams that competed at Baseball at the Beach played in a NCAA Regional last season, with both Duke and Coastal Carolina in the 2023 NCAA Conway Regional. The Blue Devils defeated the Chanticleers to advance to the Super Regional.
The Patriots are scheduled to play their home opener against Coppin State (Feb. 20) before heading back on the road to play a four-game series against Purdue in Holly Springs, N.C. (Feb. 23-25).
Mason will then open a season-high 13 game homestand with a midweek game against James Madison (Feb. 28).
In March, Mason is scheduled to play 20 games with 16 at home and four on the road.
The Patriots host Fairfield for three games (March 1-3), Towson for a midweek matchup (March 6) and Monmouth for a three-game set (March 8-10).
After single games against Bucknell (March 12) and Maryland Eastern Shore (March 13), the Green and Gold wrap up the homestand with a three-game series against Eastern Michigan (March 15-17).
The Patriots visit Longwood for a midweek game in Farmville, Va. (March 19) before returning to Spuhler Field to host Villanova for three games (March 22-24) and VMI in a midweek game (March 26).
The Patriots wrap up the month when they travel down I-95 to take on Richmond in the first Atlantic 10 series of the season in Richmond, Va. (March 29-31).
In April, the Patriots are scheduled to play 16 games, with 10 at home and six on the road.
Mason is back home to take on Longwood in a midweek matinee (April 3) and then the Patriots will play their first conference home series against rival George Washington (April 5-7).
Mason plays a season-high five straight on the road in mid-April beginning with a single game at VMI in Lexington, Va. (April 10). The Patriots then face the Flyers for three games in Dayton, Ohio (April 12-14) and wrap up the stretch under the lights against Virginia in Charlottesville, Va. (April 17).
The Cavaliers advanced to the 2023 College World Series last season after winning all three games in the Charlottesville Regional and taking two of three games against Duke in the Super Regional.
In 2023, the Patriots went 15-11 at home, 14-11 on the road and 7-5 in games played at a neutral site.
Mason is back at home in conference play against Massachusetts (April 19-21) before traveling for a Tuesday meeting against Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va. (April 23).
The Patriots host VCU (April 26-28) to wrap up the month of April.
In May, the Patriots are scheduled to play 12 games, with four at home and eight on the road.
The month begins with a midweek matchup against Georgetown in Tysons, Va. (May 1). The Patriots then travel to the Gateway City for a three-game conference series against the Billikens in St. Louis, Mo. (May 3-5).
Mason then plays back-to-back midweek games. The Patriots are home to meet Maryland Eastern Shore (May 7) and back on the road to tangle with Towson (May 8).
The Patriots play their final regular season road series at Saint Joseph's in Philadelphia, Pa. (May 11-13) and conclude the regular season with a three-game series at Spuhler Field against Davidson (May 16-18).
The Patriots will play three home-and-home series during the 2024 season, taking on Towson, Longwood and VMI for single games both 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 George Washington (April 5-7), Massachusetts (April 19-21), VCU (April 26-28) and Davidson (May 16-18).
The Patriots will visit Richmond (March 29-31), Dayton (April 12-14), Saint Louis (May 3-5) and Saint Joseph's (May 10-12).
The 2024 Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship will be held May 21-25 at Capital One Park in Tysons, Va.
STRIKE ZONE
George Mason baseball team has been picked to finish second in the Atlantic 10 Conference this season, the league announced on Tuesday. The preseason poll was conducted by the league's 13 head coaches.
Saint Louis (125 points) has been predicted to finish first including three first-place votes. George Mason has been projected to finish second (121 points) including two first-place votes, followed by Saint Joseph's (114 points), Davidson (103 points) and VCU (97 points).
