Atlantic 10 release

FAIRFAX, Va. – The George Mason baseball team has been picked to finish second in the Atlantic 10 Conference this season, the league announced on Friday.  The preseason poll was conducted by the league's 12 head coaches.

Defending A-10 champion Rhode Island (136 points) has been predicted to finish first including five first-place votes.  George Mason has been projected to finish second (122 points) including four first-place votes, followed by Saint Joseph's and Saint Louis (98 points), and Dayton and Richmond (83 points).

Last season, the Patriots finished in second place in the Atlantic 10 Conference in 2025, with an overall record of 40-21 and a 20-10 mark in league play.  The Patriots went 20-5 at home, 14-13 on the road and 6-3 in games played at a neutral site.  George Mason advanced to the championship game at the Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship played at Capital One Park in Tysons, Va.

The 40 wins were the most for the program since the 2009 season and the 20 conference victories were the most that the Patriots have posted since joining the A-10, the most league wins for the program since 2004 when George Mason went 20-4 in the CAA. 

The Patriots broke the NCAA record for runs in an inning by scoring 23 runs in the second inning against Holy Cross on March 4th at Spuhler Field.  The record had stood for since 1984.

The 2025 club set seven team offensive records and five players set single-season marks.  The team set single-season offensive program records for runs scored (524), hits (677), team batting average (.326), on-base percentage (.429), RBIs (458), walks (316), stolen bases (167) and stolen base attempts (210).  The club also posted the fifth-highest total bases (962), tied for fifth in hit by pitch (76) and tied for the 11th-best slugging percentage (.463). 

On the mound in 2025, the Patriots set single-season program records for innings pitched (526.0) and lowest opponent batting average (.257), recorded the second-most strikeouts (465) and second-fewest hits per nine innings (8.83), third-best strikeouts per nine innings (7.96) and the 10th-best strikeout to walks ratio (1.96) in school history. 

Eight George Mason players earned Atlantic 10 end of season accolades last year, with 11 awards given to those eight Patriots in five categories, the most among any school in the conference after the 2025 season.  

The 2026 Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship will be played May 20-23 at Capital One Park in Tysons, Va.

 2026 Baseball Predicted Order of Finish
(Number of first place votes in parenthesis)
1. Rhode Island - 136 (5)
2. George Mason - 122 (4)
3. Saint Joseph's - 98 (1)
    Saint Louis - 98
5. Dayton - 83 (1)
    Richmond - 83
7.  Davidson - 77
8.  VCU - 71 (1)
9.  George Washington - 68
10. Fordham -- 56
11. St. Bonaventure - 24
12. La Salle – 20

ABOUT THE PATRIOTS
George Mason has 13 returners and 19 newcomers on the roster heading into the season under Shawn Camp, who enters his fourth year as the head coach of the Patriots.  He is assisted by Tyler Nelin, Tommy Winterstein, Evan Duhon, Gardner Meeks and Kyle Darmstead.
 
The Patriots have five seniors on the club with pitcher Logan Rumberg (Okotoks, Alberta, Canada), infielders Evan Blanchard (Manassas, Va.) and Owen Clyne (Wichita, Kan.), and outfielders Drew Canody (Tampa, Fla.) and Laken Tignor (Tappahannock, Va.).

The junior class includes pitchers Shaun OKeeffe (Toms River, N.J.) and Owen Stewart (Elmira, N.Y), along with infielder Toby Hueber (Cincinnati, Ohio).
 
Sophomores returning for their second year with the Green and Gold are outfielder Lucas Alberti (Toronto, Ontario, Canada) and pitchers Jake Drumm (Burke, Va.), Brant Ertel (Cedar Grove, Ind.) and Michael Madigan (Syracuse, N.Y.)
 
The Patriots added 19 new players, with four freshmen, one sophomore, four juniors and 10 graduate students entering their first year at George Mason.
 
New pitchers joining the Patriots are graduate students Diego Cardenas (South Bend, Ind.), Sam DiLella (Wayne, Pa.), Brandon Hsu (Brookline, N.H.), Carter Kelsey (Westport, Conn.), Jackson Peters (Plano, Texas), Tyson Willis (Snohomish, Wash.) and Thomas Wrehe (Southlake, Texas).
 
New position players include three graduate students, utility player Cooper Smith (Eden Prairie, Minn.), outfielder Luciano Terilli (Dallas, Texas) and catcher Logan Vaughan (Coweta, Okla.).  Junior transfers include catcher/outfielder Vincent Cowdrey (White Lake, Mich.), utility player Matthew Westley (Manassas, Va.) along with pitchers Tanner Kaler (Concord, N.C.) and Parker Thomas (Bowie, Md.).

Redshirt-sophomore catcher Jack McCarthy (Burke, Va.) is set for his first year with the Green and Gold.  Freshmen position players embarking on their rookie year are catcher Austin O'Hara (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.), and infielders Julius Bagnerise (Manassas, Va.) and Jackson Morse (Raynham, Mass.), and pitcher Aiden Parker (Virginia Beach, Va.)