BASEBALL vs. No. 5 Rhode Island
2026 ATLANTIC 10 BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
WHEN: Wednesday, May 20 (11 a.m.)
WHERE: Capital One Park | Tysons, Va.
RECORDS: No.4 George Mason (28-24, 18-12 Atlantic 10) | No. 5 Rhode Island (23-29, 16-14 Atlantic 10)
ALL-TIME SERIES: Patriots lead, 14-10; Patriots are 2-1 in postseason play.
LAST MEETING (REGULAR SEASON): The Rams won two-of-three on March 20-22 at Bill Beck Field in Kingston, R.I.
LAST MEETING (POSTSEASON): The Patriots fell to the Rams, 4-1, in last year's Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship Final on May 24, 2025 at Capital One Park in Tysons, Va.
TICKETS: Single-day passes are available online, or at the ticket window at Capital One Park.  All-session passes are only available online via the Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship website. Free student tickets can be found here
FREE STUDENT TICKETS: Click Here

GAME DAY LINKS:
CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL | ESPN+ | LIVE STATS |  BRACKET | GAME NOTES

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TYSONS, Va. – The George Mason baseball team enters the 2026 Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship as the fourth seed and will face fifth-seeded Rhode Island in the first round on Wednesday, May 20, with the first pitch scheduled for 11 a.m. (Tournament Game 1) at Capital One Park in Tysons, Va.

The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and can be found by clicking this link.

The loser of Game 1 will play the loser of Game 2 (No. 3 VCU/No. 6 Davidson) later in the evening at 7 p.m. (Game 3). The winner of Game 1 will advance to the next round and face top-seeded Saint Joseph's, which will be played the following morning at 11 a.m. (Game 4). 

George Mason (28-24, 18-12 Atlantic 10) will compete in the A-10 Championship for the sixth time in 10 seasons and the seventh time in program history.

The 2026 Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship will feature three games a day from Wednesday to Friday. A champion will be decided on Saturday, May 23; Game 10 will be at noon, and if necessary, Game 11 will begin 30 minutes following the conclusion of the first game.

The winner of the Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship receives the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Regionals.

2026 ATLANTIC 10 BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SEEDING - CLICK HERE TO VIEW TOURNAMENT BRACKET
#1 Saint Joseph's (35-18, 25-5 A-10)
#2 Richmond (33-22, 20-10 A-10)
#3 VCU (32-22, 20-10 A-10)
#4 George Mason (28-24, 18-12 A-10)
#5 Rhode Island (23-29, 16-14 A-10)
#6 Davidson (25-26, 16-14 A-10)

SCOUTING RHODE ISLAND
Rhode Island had an overall record of 23-29 in the regular season including a mark of 16-14 against Atlantic 10 Conference opponents.  The Rams were 13-7 at home, 10-21 on the road and 0-1 in neutral locations.

Senior utility player Jack Hopko is batting .290 (61-for-210) in 51 starts.  He leads the club in triples (4), home runs (18), RBI (54), total bases (131) and slugging percentage (.624). He is second in runs scored (44) and third in hits (61) and walks (23).

Junior infielder Reece Moroney is hitting .358 (78-for-218) and started all 52 games in the regular season.  He leads the team in batting average (.358), hits (78), doubles (17), RBI (48) and total bases (103).

Sophomore first basebman Ryan Thompson has a .298 average (56-for-188) and has appeared in 48 games.  He is third in batting average (.298), home runs (7) and RBI (36) and fourth in runs scored (36, tied), hits (56) and doubles (11), 

On the mound, junior RHP Joe Sabbath (3-5, 6.28, 9 starts) leads the team in innings pitched (53.0), and sophomore RHP Jake Cullen (2-4, 6.44, 9 starts) has the most strikeouts with 54. Sophomore right-handed reliever Manny Santos (2-1, 4.15) has made 19 appearances and leads the staff in saves (4).

The Rams have a team batting average of .281 and a team ERA of 6.75 through 52 games.

HISTORY WITH THE RAMS
George Mason has an all-time record of 14-10 against Rhode Island. The last time the Patriots and Rams met was earlier this season, where Rhode Island won two of three in Kingston, R.I.

George Mason and Rhode Island have met three times in the Atlantic 10 Baseball Championship. The first two meetings were in the first round and the third time was at the title game.

In the first meeting, the Patriots hit three home runs and Mason hurlers combined for 10 strikeouts on the way to a 9-5 victory over the Rams on May 24, 2017 in St. Louis, Mo. 

In the 2022 A-10 Championship, the Patriots rallied for five runs in the top of the ninth inning to top the Rams, 7-3, on May 24, 2022 in Davidson, N.C.

Most recently, the Patriots fell to the Rams, 4-1, last season in the 2025 A-10 Championship Game at Capital One Park at Tysons, Va.

ABOUT THE PATRIOTS
The George Mason baseball team was picked to finish second (122 points, four first place votes) in the Atlantic 10 Conference this season.  The preseason poll was conducted by the league's 12 head coaches.

George Mason finished the regular season in fourth place with an overall record of 28-24, including a mark of 18-12 against Atlantic 10 Conference opponents.  The Patriots were 13-9 at home, 11-14 on the road and 4-1 in neutral locations.

The Patriots have a team batting average of .274 and a team ERA of 5.79 through 52 games.

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.).

PATRIOT SEASON HIGHLIGHTS AT A GLANCE
Among NCAA leaders (as of May 20), the Patriots are seventh in the nation in stolen bases (146).

Senior shortstop Owen Clyne was named a Semifinalist for the College Baseball Foundation's Brooks Wallace Award.  The award honors the nation's top shortstop and will be presented later this year.  Clyne is one of 50 shortstops nationally to earn recognition based on both their offensive and defensive production.  The initial list consisted of the top 100 shortstops.

Clyne has started all 52 games at shortstop for the Patriots this season.  He leads the club in batting average (.345, tied) hits (70), triples (3), home runs (9), runs batted in (50), total bases (116), runs scored (54), walks (35), on-base percentage (.443). and slugging percentage (.571).  He is second in doubles (13).

Sophomore outfielder Lucas Alberti has started all 52 games and is second on the team in leads the team in home runs (6), triples (2, tied) RBI (50), runs scored (42), walks (31), slugging percentage (.459) and total bases (90). He is third in batting average (.321), hits (63) and on-base percentage (.430). 

Graduate student outfielder Luciano Terilli has started all 52 games in the outfield and leads the club in batting average (.345, tied), is second in batting hits (67), third in doubles (10), RBI (39) and walks (28, tied) and fifth in stolen bases (15, tied).

Freshman infielder Julius Bagnerise is tied for 25^th in the NCAA in stolen bases (30).  He is second on the Patriots in triples (2, tied), fourth in runs scored (35), RBI (37), and fifth in hits (44).

Junior infielder Jake Butler has started all 52 games and leads the squad in doubles (14), is third on the team in runs scored (39) and stolen bases (21, tied), fourth in hits (50) and total bases (75) and fifth in RBI (28).

On the mound, senior Logan Rumberg (6-3, 3.92) leads the team in starts (14), innings pitched (78.0) and strikeouts (86).  Sophomore Jake Drumm (4-2, 3.90) is second in innings pitched (67.0) and strikeouts (65).  Graduate student Diego Cardenas (4-5, 5.73) is third in innings pitched (59.2), while senior Owen Stewart (5-4, 4.42) is third in strikeouts (61) and leads in saves (5).

GEORGE MASON 2026 SCHEDULE
The Patriots are scheduled to play a 55-game slate that includes 30 contests against Atlantic 10 Conference rivals, 26 games at Spuhler Field, and eight games against three teams that earned a NCAA Regional appearance last season.

The Patriots won five of their 10 conference series this season, with four of their series victories coming by sweeps. George Mason swept St. Bonaventure (March 13-15), at Saint Louis (March 27-29), George Washington (May 1-3) and La Salle (May 14-16). Their only 2-1 series win of the season was at Dayton (May 8-10).

Of the five series losses George Mason had this season, only one was a sweep, and that was at Fordham (April 24-26). The other four losses were at Rhode Island (March 20-22), against Davidson (April 3-4), versus Richmond (April 10-12) and at Saint Joseph's (April 17-18).

George Mason played nine games in the first month of the 2026 campaign.  The Patriots began the season with a four-game series at No. 23 Oregon (Feb. 13-15) in Eugene, Ore.  The Ducks, who were the 12th seed in the NCAA Eugene Regional last year, swept the series.

George Mason traveled for games against Seton Hall and Ball State at the Swig & Swine Classic in Charleston, S.C. (Feb. 20-21).  The Patriots dropped their first game against Seton Hall, 8-6, then defeated Ball State, 6-1, and Seton Hall 11-4.  The Patriots had their home opener against William & Mary (Feb. 24) postponed. 

George Mason faced Lehigh (Feb. 27-March 1) for a two-game set at Capital One Park in Tysons, Va.  The Patriots defeated the Mountain Hawks 7-4 (Feb. 27) and senior starter Logan Rumberg and redshirt-sophomore reliever Brant Ertel combined on a no-hitter in the Patriots 3-0 win (March 1).

In March, George Mason played 18 games with 10 at home and eight on the road.  The Patriots defeated James Madison, 11-2, (March 3) in Harrisonburg, Va.  George Mason played three games against Georgetown (March 6-8) with two of the games at Spuhler Field and one at Capital One Park in Tyson, Va.  The Patriots dropped the opener, 6-5, and the series finale, 5-4, in Fairfax.  George Mason won the middle game, 12-7, at Capital One Park.  The Patriots traveled for a midweek road contest against Longwood (March 10) and fell to the Lancers, 11-1, in Farmville, Va.

George Mason began Atlantic 10 play with a three-game series sweep over St. Bonaventure at Spuhler Field by final scores of 4-3, 15-11 and 3-0 (March 13-15).  The Patriots lost to Mount St. Mary's (March 18) 9-8 in a midweek game to wrap up the homestand.

The Patriots played six of their next seven games on the road.  The stretch began with the first A-10 road series against defending Atlantic 10 Champion Rhode Island (March 20-22).  George Mason lost the first game, 10-5 and the final, 10-9, and won the middle game, 3-1.  George Mason defeated Longwood, 14-4 in seven innings (March 24).  The Patriots swept a three-game series at Saint Louis (March 27-29) in St. Louis, Mo.  The Patriots won by final scores of 5-3, 5-3 and 3-1.

The month concluded with the Patriots dropping their midweek game against USC Upstate, 14-10 (March 31).  The Spartans won both the Big South regular season and tournament championship last season and played in the NCAA Clemson Regional.

In April, the Patriots are scheduled to play 16 games, with eight at home and eight on the road.

George Mason dropped two-of-three to Davidson (April 3-5).  The Patriots won the series opener, 3-2, and the Wildcats claimed the final two games, 4-0 and 7-4.  The Patriots fell to Towson (April 8), 5-4 and then dropped two-of-three at home to Richmond (April 10-12).  The Spiders won the first two games, 4-2 and 11-3, while the Patriots took the finale, 7-5.

George Mason began a stretch of eight-of-nine on the road with a 13-3 win in six innings at Mount St. Mary's in Emmitsburg, Md. (April 15).  The Patriots dropped two-of-three games at first place Saint Joseph's (April 17-19).  George Mason won the opener, 9-6 in 10 innings.
 
The Patriots beat James Madison 9-6 at Spuhler Field (April 21).  The Patriots were swept at Fordham in the Bronx, N.Y. (April 24-26) by final scores of 11-4, 2-1 (7) and 5-4 (12).  George Mason lost to #23 Virginia, 5-1, in Charlottesville, Va. (April 28) to wrap up the month. 

In May, the Patriots are scheduled to play 10 games with six at home and four on the road.  The month began with a three-game sweep by final scores of 16-1, 8-5 and 6-5 against George Washington (May 1-3).

The Patriots will then play four games on the road. They first defeated William & Mary, 15-14, in a midweek barn-burner (May 5) in Williamsburg, Va. Later that weekend, the Patriots won two-of-three at Dayton (May 8-10). After dropping the opener, 11-6, the Patriots won the middle game 6-4 in 10 innings and followed it up with a 9-5 series finale.

The Patriots wrapped up the regular season at home with a three-game weekend sweep against La Salle (May 14-16). George Mason opened the series with a 17-5 Thursday rout, followed by a decisive 10-4 Friday win and completed the sweep with a Saturday Senior Day sendoff, edging out the Explorers 8-7.

The club will play six home-and-home series during the 2026 season, taking on Georgetown, Longwood, James Madison, Mount St. Mary's, Towson and William & Mary both at home and on the road.

George Mason plays 10 league series, five at home and five on the road.  Home series against A-10 foes include three-game weekend sets against St. Bonaventure (March 13-15), Davidson (April 3-5), Richmond (April 10-12) and La Salle (May 14-16).  The Patriots will visit Rhode Island (March 21-22), Saint Louis (March 27-29), Saint Joseph's (April 17-19) and Fordham (April 24-26).

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