BASEBALL at Virginia Tech
WHEN: Tuesday, April 23 (7 p.m.)
WHERE: English Field at Atlantic Union Bank Park | Blacksburg, Va.
RECORDS: George Mason (17-20, 5-7 A10); Virginia Tech (25-12, 12-9 ACC)
ALL-TIME SERIES: Virginia Tech leads, 16-14-1
LAST MEETING: The Hokies defeated the Patriots, 5-3, on March 11, 2020 in Blacksburg, Va.
GAME NOTES (PDF): Click here
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FAIRFAX, Va. – The Patriots are back on the diamond for a midweek road game against Virginia Tech on Tuesday with the first pitch scheduled for 7 p.m. at English Field in Blacksburg, Va.
Last time out, the Patriots (17-20, 5-7 A10) downed Massachusetts, 9-1, on Sunday afternoon in the series finale at Spuhler Field.
Senior
Ryan Peterson took a no-hitter into the sixth inning and tossed a complete game. He allowed just two hits, one single and a double, and faced four batters over the minimum to earn his second win of the season. It was his second complete game in a Patriots uniform.
Graduate student catcher
Socrates Bardatsos went 2-for-3 with a double and three RBI in the game. Junior shortstop
Carsen Pracht was 2-for-5 with three runs scored and sophomore designated hitter
James Quinn-Irons finished 2-for-4 with one RBI and two runs scored.
Mason faced Virginia Tech four years ago, with the Hokies claiming a 5-3 win on March 11, 2020 in Blacksburg, Va. That game was the final game of the 2020 season for the Patriots, with the Atlantic 10 canceling the remainder of the year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mason is 6-3-1 in the last 10 meetings against Virginia Tech. The Patriots are 4-2 in their last six games in Blacksburg dating back to the 1993 season.
The Patriots are 9-6 at home, 7-6-1 on the road and 0-2 at neutral sites against the Hokies all-time.
Tuesday's meeting will be just the third between the two clubs in the last 12 years (2012, 2020) and just the sixth meeting in the last 24 years (2000, 2004, 2005, 2012, 2020). It's also just the third time since the 2004 season that Mason has traveled to Blacksburg (4-2 victory March 4, 2004).
The Patriots are 4-2 in midweek games with wins at home over Coppin State (21-2 Feb. 20), Bucknell (13-12 March 12), Maryland Eastern Shore (15-5 March 13) and VMI (16-3 March 26). Last week, the Patriots traveled to face then No. 11 Virginia on Wednesday, April 17 and fell to the Cavaliers, 11-5.
Senior outfielder
Jordan Smith is hitting .357 (50-for-140) in 37 starts in center field. He leads the club in average (.357), hits (50), doubles (14), triples (3), RBI (35) and is tied for first in runs scored (35). He is tied for second in home runs (6), tied for fourth in walks (14) and ranks fourth in stolen bases (8).
Pracht has a .348 average (40-for-115) in 36 games with 35 starts. He is second on the club in average (.348) and doubles (8), third in hits (40), fifth in runs scored (23) and seventh in RBI (15).
Quinn-Irons is batting .315 (39-for-124) in 34 games with 33 starts. He leads the club in home runs (10), is second in RBI (32), third in walks (14) and runs scored (29) and fourth in hits (39).
Senior outfielder
Derek Wood is hitting .299 (29-for-97) in 35 games with 25 starts. He is second in stolen bases (12), tied for seventh in runs scored (20) and eighth in hits (29).
Graduate student infielder
South Trimble has a .288 average (42-for-146) in 36 starts. He leads the team and is tied for 16th in the NCAA in stolen bases (24). Trimble leads the club in walks (18), is tied for first in runs scored (35), second in hits (42), tied for third in doubles (6) and sixth in RBI (22).
VIRGINIA TECH
Virginia Tech has a 25-12 record, including a mark of 12-9 against Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) opponents. The Hokies are 16-7 at home and 9-5 on the road.
The Hokies are 6-1 in midweek games this season, outscoring opponents by a combined score of 79-24.
Virginia Tech dropped its first midweek game of the season on the road at James Madison, 8-7, on Feb. 21 in Harrisonburg, Va. Since then, the Hokies have won six straight midweek contests with victories at Radford (14-4 Feb. 27) and at home against Marist (20-2 March 12), ETSU (14-4 March 19), Marshall (4-2 March 26), Liberty (13-3 April 10) and Radford (7-1 April 16).
Last time out, then No. 23 Virginia Tech dropped two-of-three games in ACC play to No. 7 Duke this past weekend at English Field in Blacksburg, Va. The Blue Devils won the first game in 11 innings, 9-8 and the series finale, 13-10. The Hokies took the middle game of the series, 2-1 in 11 innings.
Graduate student outfielder Ben Watson is batting .392 (58-for-148) in 37 games with 36 starts. He leads the club in average (.392) and hits (58), is third in doubles (10) and runs scored (33) and is fourth in RBI (31).
Graduate student outfielder Chris Cannizzaro is hitting .357 in 36 games with 35 starts. He is second on the team in average (.357), hits (50) and doubles (11), and is fourth in both home runs (8) and runs scored (30).
Sophomore catcher Henry Cooke has a .333 average in 32 games with 29 starts. He is third in home runs (9), fourth in doubles (8), fifth in both RBI (29) and walks (17) and seventh in hits (35).
Virginia Tech has a team batting average of .313 and a team ERA of 4.90.
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.
The Patriots defeated Bucknell (March 12) with a 13-12 walk-off win and then downed Maryland Eastern Shore (March 13) 15-5 in seven innings to finish the homestand 7-1.
Mason was swept on the road by North Carolina A&T in Greensboro, N.C. (March 15-17) by final scores of 14-5, 6-5 and 10-9.
The Patriots dropped their midweek matchup to Longwood (March 19), 9-4.
Mason won two-of-three against Villanova (March 22-24). The Patriots swept a doubleheader (March 22) by final scores of 6-5 and 3-2 and dropped the finale (March 24), 9-2.
The Patriots downed VMI (March 26) in a midweek game, 16-3, to conclude the five-game homestand.
The Patriots wrapped up the month when they traveled down I-95 to take on Richmond in the first Atlantic 10 series of the season (March 29-31). The Spiders took the first two games with 6-5 and 17-16 (10) walk-off wins. The Patriots won the last game of the series, 9-4.
In April, the Patriots are scheduled to play 16 games, with 10 at home and six on the road.
Mason's midweek matinee on the road against Longwood (April 3) was canceled due to rain.
The Patriots took two-of-three games from rival George Washington (April 5-7) at Spuhler Field. The Revolutionaries won the first game, 3-2 and the Patriots claimed the final two games, 5-2 and 13-10.
The Patriots dropped two-of-three at Dayton (April 12-14). The Flyers won the first two games, 6-5 in 11 innings and 17-14 while the Patriots took the series finale with a comeback 8-6 win.
Mason fell to No. 10 Virginia, 11-5, 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 dropped two-of-three games in conference play at home agaisnt Massachusetts (April 19-21). The Minutemen won the first two games, 10-7 in 11 innings and 9-6. The Patriots took the finale, 9-1.
Mason is on the road for a midweek matchup 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
Mason has faced Virginia Tech 31 times, with the Hokies holding a 16-14-1 lead in the all-time series.
The Patriots have played to seven ties in program history with draws against Elon, Howard, Liberty, Richmond, Springfield College, Towson, Vermont and Virginia Tech.
The Patriots and Hokies played to a 6-6 tie on March 16, 2000 at Spuhler Field.
