Box score (PDF)
 
FAIRFAX, Va. – The Patriots dropped the middle game of their series against Massachusetts, 9-6, on Saturday afternoon at Spuhler Field.
 
UMass (14-20, 5-6 A10) took the lead against Mason (16-20, 4-7 A10) redshirt sophomore starter Konner Eaton in the top of the first.
 
With the bases loaded and two outs, senior outfielder Kevin Skagerlind raced home from third on a wild pitch to put the Minutemen in front, 1-0.  Junior right fielder Carter Hanson then drove in a pair of runs with a single to make it a 3-0 game.
 
The Patriots got on the board in the bottom of the second against UMass graduate student starter Renn Lints.
 
Junior catcher Connor Dykstra was hit by a pitch and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by sophomore third baseman Evan Blanchard.  Junior shortstop Carsen Pracht knocked in Mason's first run of the day with a RBI-single.
 
Pracht advanced to second on a groundout and graduate student second baseman South Trimble doubled down the left field line to make it a one-run game at 3-2.
 
In the bottom of the fourth, Blanchard led off with a double and moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Pracht.  Senior left fielder Derek Wood singled to left, with Blanchard coasting across the plate to tie the score 3-3.
 
The first three batters for the Minutemen in the top of the fifth reached base with a single, walk and hit by pitch. 
 
The Patriots made a pitching change with graduate student Luke Goodyear entering the game. 
 
UMass junior third baseman Jack Beverly drove in a run with a groundout and with two outs, senior catcher Michael Toth plated another with a single through the left side to give the Minutemen a 5-3 lead.
 
Mason batted around in the home half of the sixth against Lints and UMass freshman reliever Callen Powers.
 
Blanchard led off with a single and moved to second on Pracht's second sacrifice bunt of the game.  Wood then smashed a RBI-double down the right field line to pull the Patriots within a run, 5-4.
 
Trimble stepped to the plate and doubled to right-center to tie the game 5-5.  Mason took the lead on a two-out RBI-single by graduate student designated hitter Ben Jones.
 
Mason junior Chad Gartland retired eight of the 11 batters he faced in his outing from the sixth through the eighth before departing for sophomore Ryan Edmonds with two runners on in the eighth.
 
After UMass graduate student left fielder Austin Burgess was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Edmonds escaped the jam with an inning-ending strikeout.
 
In the top of the ninth, the Minutemen sent 10 batters to the plate and scored four runs on three hits, two walks, a hit batter and an error to retake the lead at 9-6.
 
The Patriots loaded the bases in the bottom of the ninth on a single by Dykstra and walks to Pracht and Wood, but UMass freshman reliever Andrew Middleton entered the game and recorded the final out for his second save of the series.
 
For the Patriots, Eaton allowed five runs on four hits in 4.0 innings.  Goodyear gave up one hit in 1.0 inning of work.  Gartland tossed 2.2 hitless innings.  Edmonds (1-1) allowed four runs, two earned, on two hits and took the loss.   Junior Britt Yount pitched 1.0 inning and gave up one hit.
 
For the Minutemen, Lints allowed six runs on 10 hits in 5.2 innings.  Powers (1-1) tossed 3.0 scoreless innings to earn the win.  Middleton faced one batter in the ninth to notch the save.
 
Wood went 2-for-3, reached base four times, drove in two runs and scored a run.  Blanchard was 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored.  Trimble finished 2-for-5 with two RBI and one run scored.  Jones went 2-for-4 and drove in a run.  Pracht was 2-for-2 with one RBI and one run scored.
 
The Patriots and minutemen wrap up the series on Sunday afternoon with the first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. at Spuhler Field.