Box score (PDF)
 
FAIRFAX, Va. – Redshirt sophomore starter Konner Eaton tossed six strong innings and sophomore right fielder James Quinn-Irons hit his ninth home run of the season to lead the Patriots past George Washington, 5-2, on Saturday afternoon at Spuhler Field.
 
Eaton allowed just one run and struck out six over six innings to earn his third win of the season.  Quinn-Irons went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run and scored two runs.
 
The Patriots handed the Revolutionaries their first conference loss of the season.
 
Mason (14-15, 2-3 A-10) took the lead in the bottom of the second against George Washington (19-11, 4-1 A-10) junior starter Teddy Brennan.
 
Quinn-Irons and junior catcher Connor Dykstra both singled and sophomore third baseman Evan Blanchard was hit by a pitch to load the bases.  With one out, junior shortstop Carsen Pracht lifted a sacrifice fly to right field with Quinn-Irons coasting home to put the Patriots in front, 1-0.
 
Graduate student second baseman South Trimble then ripped a RBI-double to the wall in left field to make it a 2-0 game.
 
The Patriots doubled the advantage in the bottom of the third.
 
With one out, graduate student left fielder Ben Jones walked and advanced to second on wild pitch.  Quinn-Irons stepped to the plate and belted his ninth home run of the season, a towering shot to left-center to increase the lead to 4-0.
 
George Washington dented the scoreboard in the top of the fourth. 
 
Junior right fielder Sam Gates led off with a single, stole second and advanced to third on a wild pitch.  Graduate student left fielder Steve DiTomaso reached on a fielding error and senior first baseman Brett Young was hit by a pitch to load the bases.
 
Junior catcher Tim Nicholson drove in George Washington's first run of the game with a fielder's choice groundout.
 
Eaton was able to escape the jam with two strikeouts to end the inning as the Revolutionaries left the bases loaded.
 
In the top of the sixth, George Washington loaded the bases on a walk and a pair of singles but again were turned away by Eaton, who enticed an inning-ending groundout to third.
 
In the top of the seventh, the Revolutionaries put a pair of runners on base against Mason graduate student Luke Goodyear with a single and a fielding error.  With one out, Patriots junior Chad Gartland walked the first batter he faced to load the bases but ended the inning with a strikeout.
 
In the bottom of the seventh, the Patriots tacked on a run against George Washington junior reliever Brayden Kurtz.
 
Dykstra walked, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Blanchard and scrambled to third on a wild pitch.  Graduate student catcher Socrates Bardatsos plated Dykstra with a sacrifice fly to left field to extend the advantage to 5-1.
 
George Washington scored a two-out run in the ninth for the 5-2 final score.
 
For the Patriots, Eaton (3-2) allowed one run on three hits in 6.0 innings to earn the win.  Goodyear retired two of the three batters he faced.  Gartland gave up one run on three hits in 2.1 innings and picked up his second save of the season.
 
For the Revolutionaries, Brennan (1-2) surrendered four runs on five hits in 5.0 innings and took the loss.  He struck out eight and walked four.  Kurtz allowed one run in 3.0 innings.
 
Quinn-Irons went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run and two runs scored.  Jones was 1-for-2 with two walks and scored a run.  Dykstra finished 1-for-3 with a walk and two runs scored.  Trimble, Bardatsos and Pracht each drove in a run.
 
George Mason and George Washington play the rubber game of the series on Sunday with the first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. at Spuhler Field.