BASEBALL vs. Bucknell and UMES
WHEN: Tuesday, March 12 vs. Bucknell (2 p.m.); Wednesday, March 13 vs. UMES (2 p.m.)
WHERE: Spuhler Field | Fairfax, Va.
RECORDS: George Mason (7-7, 0-0 A-10); Bucknell (6-8, 0-0 Patriot League); UMES (0-10, 0-0 NEC)
ALL-TIME SERIES: Mason leads UMES, 6-0; First meeting against Bucknell
LAST MEETING: The Patriots defeated UMES, 4-3, on May 16, 2023 at the Parker Athletic Complex in Salisbury, Md.
GAME NOTES: Click here
LIVE STATS: Click here

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FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason baseball team concludes its season-high, eight-game homestand this week facing Bucknell on Tuesday and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore on Wednesday.  The first pitch for both games in scheduled for 2 p.m. at Spuhler Field. 
 
Last time out, the Patriots (7-7) won two-of-three against Monmouth over the weekend. Mason swept a doubleheader with a pair of walk-off wins on Friday with a 6-5 victory in 10 innings in game one and a 2-1 win in the nightcap. 

Mason has a record of 6-0 all-time against UMES.  In the last meeting, the Patriots downed the Hawks, 4-3, in their final road game of the season on May 16, 2023 at the Parker Athletic Complex in Salisbury, Md.  Nick Martins made the start and tossed two hitless innings, Britt Yount pitched three innings of one-hit ball and Carsen Pracht hit a solo home run in the game.

Mason and Bucknell are meeting for the first time.

Senior outfielder Jordan Smith is hitting .333 (15-for-45) in 14 starts in center field.  He leads the club in average (.333), triples (3) and walks (7) and is second in hits (15), doubles (3) and runs scored (12).

Graduate student infielder South Trimble is batting .309 (17-for-55) in 14 starts.  He leads the club in hits (17), runs scored (14) and stolen bases (11).  He is second on the team in RBI (10) and average (.309).

Graduate student utility player Ben Jones has a .289 average (13-for-45) in 14 games with 13 starts.   He is third in average (.289), tied for third in hits (13) and tied for fourth in runs scored (7).

Sophomore outfielder James Quinn-Irons is hitting .343 (12-for-35) in 11 games with 10 starts.  He leads the team in home runs (4), RBI (15), is second in walks (6) and third in runs scored (10).

PROBABLE STARTING PITCHERS
 
Tuesday
Mason: Ty Uchman (0-0)
Bucknell: Mikey Myro (2-0)
 
Wednesday
Mason: TBD
UMES: LHP Eric Elliott (0-0)
 
SCOUTING BUCKNELL
 
Bucknell has a 6-8 record through the first 14 games of the season.  The Bison are 2-0 at home, 0-6 on the road and 4-2 in games played at a neutral site.
 
To begin the 2024 campaign, Bucknell split a pair of games against Towson (Feb. 17-18) and lost to Wofford (Feb. 17) in Spartanburg, S.C.  The Bison dropped the first game against the Tigers, 14-3 and won the second meeting, 7-3.  The Terriers downed the Bison, 17-9.
 
Bucknell took three-of-four against Massachusetts (Feb. 23-25) in Colonial Heights, Va.  The Bison won the first three games by final scores of 9-7, 7-4 and 8-4.  The Minutemen salvaged the finale, 8-6.
 
Bucknell dropped two-of-three to Saint Joseph's (March 2-3) at Depew Field in Lewisburg, Pa.  The Bison took the first game, 16-14 while the Hawks won the final two games, 15-5 and 9-5.
 
Last time out, Bucknell dropped three games to No. 22 Campbell (March 8-10) by final scores of 17-7, 9-8 and 20-5.
 
Junior infielder Sean Keys is batting .460 (23-for-50) in 14 starts.  He leads the club in average (.460), hits (23), doubles (8) and home runs (5).  He is second in RBI (17) and runs scored (13).
 
Senior outfielder Jacob Corson is hitting .316 (18-for-57) in 14 starts.  He leads the team in hits (18) and runs scored (14) and is second in average (.316), doubles (5) and home runs (2).
 
SCOUTING UMES
 
The University of Maryland Eastern Shore has dropped its first 10 games of the season.
 
To begin the 2024 campaign, The Hawks have played every game on the road. 
 
UMES played a three-game series at North Carolina A&T in Greensboro, N.C. (Feb. 16-18), three games at Austin Peay in Clarksville, Tenn. (Feb. 23-25), three games at Alabama State in Montgomery, Ala. (March 2-3) and a single game at George Washington in Washington, D.C. (March 5).
 
Senior outfielder Derrick Mayes II is batting .367 (11-for-30) in nine starts.  He leads the team in average (.367), hits (11), home runs (2), RBI (6) and runs scored (7).
 
Senior infielder Ulysses Luciano is hitting .267 (8-for-30) in nine starts.  He is second on the club in average (.267) and hits (8).
 
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. 
 
Sophomores 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 won their home opener over Coppin State, 21-2 (Feb. 20).
 
Mason dropped three-of-four against Purdue at Ting Stadium in Holly Springs, N.C.  The Boilermakers won the opener, 7-4 (Feb. 23), the two teams split a doubleheader with the Patriots taking game one, 11-9 and Purdue the nightcap, 12-5 (Feb. 24).  The Boilermakers won the finale, 11-1, in seven innings (Feb. 25).
 
In March, Mason is scheduled to play 20 games with 16 at home and four on the road. 
 
Mason opened a season-high eight-game homestand with a three-game sweep over Fairfield (March 1-3).   The Patriots won the first game, 3-0, the middle game, 8-0 and then notched a 9-8 walk-off victory in the series finale.
 
Mason took two-of-three from Monmouth (March 8-10).  The Patriots swept a doubleheader March 8 with two walk-off wins, 6-5 in 10 innings in game one and 2-1 in the nightcap.  The Hawks won the finale, 12-7. 
 
Mason host Bucknell (March 12) and Maryland Eastern Shore (March 13) for midweek games.
 
The Green and Gold are then on the road for a three-game series against North Carolina A&T in Greensboro, N.C.
 
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.