Box score (PDF)

FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason baseball team won its third straight game with a 9-3 victory over Monmouth in the first game of the series on Friday afternoon at Spuhler Field.

THE LEADOFF

• Junior center fielder James Quinn-Irons hit his fourth home run of the season and third in the last three games, all two-run homers.
• Junior right fielder Drew Canody had three hits, drove in a run and scored a run.
• Graduate student first baseman Jonny Wall collected two hits and knocked in a pair of runs.
• The Patriots have scored 73 runs over their last six games.

Monmouth (3-5) took the lead against George Mason (5-4) graduate student starter Sam Lavin in the first inning. 

With runners on first and second with one out, senior first baseman Jay Bant drove in a run with double to put the Hawks in front, 1-0.  After a walk, sophomore third baseman Wyatt Hunt made it 2-0 with a RBI-single.

The Patriots responded in the home half of the inning against Monmouth senior starter Kevin Opanel.

Freshman Lucas Alberti led off with a single, sophomore designated hitter Owen Hull walked and Quinn-Irons was issued a free pass to load the bases.  Freshman catcher Andrew Raymond drove in a run with a single and the Patriots scored another on a double play grounder to tie the game, 2-2.

After three scoreless frames, Monmouth went in front with an unearned run in the top of the fifth against George Mason freshman reliever Jake Drumm.   With one out, Hawks junior right fielder Nick Lovarco reached on a fielding error and stole second.  Brant then singled, with Lovarco scoring from second base to make it 3-2.

The Patriots scored seven unanswered runs the rest of the game, including two runs in the fifth, sixth and seventh.

In the bottom of the fifth, Hull reached on an error and stole second.  Quinn-Irons stepped in and belted his fourth home run of the season off Hawks junior reliever Austin Beard, a two-run blast to left-center to give the Patriots the lead for good at 4-3.

With one out in the sixth, Wall started a rally with a double down the left field line.  Canody followed with a single to drive in a run to make it 5-3.  Canody then stole second and scored on a double by Hull to increase the lead to 6-3.

In the home half of the seventh against Hawks graduate student reliever Jake Danyluk, Raymond and Patriots sophomore third baseman Jake Butler each walked to start the inning and with one out, sophomore second baseman Toby Hueber singled to right to load the bases.  Wall ripped a two-run single through the left side of the infield to pad the advantage to 8-3.

The Patriots tacked on a run in the eighth on a two-out, RBI-single by junior shortstop Owen Clyne for the 9-3 final score.

For the Patriots, Lavin allowed two runs on four hits in 4.0 innings.  Drumm (2-0) gave up one unearned run on four hits in 2.2 innings and earned the win.  Sophomore Cole Egan tossed 1.1 innings and gave up one hit.

For the Hawks, Opanel allowed two runs on three hits in 3.0 innings.  Beard (1-2) surrendered four runs, three earned, on four hits in 2.2 innings and took the loss.  Danyluk gave up two runs on three hits in 1.1 innings of work.

Canody went 3-for-4 with one RBI and one run scored.  Wall was 2-for-4 with two RBI and one run scored.  Hull and Raymond each had one hit and scored two runs.

The Patriots and Hawks play the middle game of the series on Saturday with the first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. at Spuhler Field.