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WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – Up one run with the bases loaded and two out in the bottom of the ninth inning in Plumeri Park, the George Mason Patriots shut the door on William & Mary’s late game rally with a flyout to center to end Wednesday evening’s sub-four hour game with an 8-7 win. The Patriots improve their overall record to 33-16 and sweep the season home-and-home series against the Tribe.
THE LEADOFF
- Owen Hull tied his season-high of three stolen bases for the fourth time and currently has 37 stolen bases this season. He is now the single season record holder in bases stolen, breaking Lonnie Goldberg’s record of 36 set in 1992.
- The Patriots scored six unanswered runs in the middle inning, which proved to be enough to hold off William and Mary’s late-game rally.
- Freshman pitcher Jake Drumm won his fourth game of the season. He is now 4-0 in his rookie season and has won his first decision since getting the win as a reliever against Towson on March 9 in Tysons, Va.
- Freshman pitcher Miachel Bilo notched his first collegiate save.
- Junior shortstop Owen Clyne recorded a game-high three RBI which included an RBI triple in the sixth inning; Along with Clyne, freshman left fielder Lucas Alberti had a team-high two hits.
- George Mason has swept William & Mary in the season’s home-and-home series; the last time the Patriots have defeated the Tribe twice in a row was in the 2012 season (March 23 & 25).
- The Patriots have won 16 of their last 20 games and are now on a four-game winning streak. They now hold a 12-12 record on the road.
The Patriots struck first in the top of the first inning with Clyne on third and sophomore center fielder Owen Hull stealing second. Sophomore third baseman Jake Butler drove in the game’s first run with a single up the middle.
After Butler stole second, there were runners again on second and third with only one out. Freshman left fielder Lucas Alberti plated the second run of the inning with an RBI groundout to short, scoring Hull from third.
The Patriots did not hold the initial lead for long, as William & Mary (20-28, 13-8 CAA) put up three runs in the bottom of the first.
Similar to the Patriots, the Tribe had runners on second and third with only one out when freshman third baseman Jamie Laskofski single through the right side to score leadoff runner Ben Parker.
With runners on the corners, the following batter, graduate student first baseman Derek Holmes, laid down a squeeze play scoring redshirt senior Lucas Carmichael from third and advancing Laskofski to second.
The third run of the inning was plated by subsequent batter, sophomore designated hitter Anthony Greco, with an RBI single through the right side, bringing Carmichael home.
After the Patriots were retired in order in the second, the Tribe added one more run with two out in the bottom of the inning due to a Patriot infield error, scoring Parker for a second time in the game.
After the Tribe’s second inning score, they would be held scoreless until the bottom of the eighth. In that six inning span, the Patriots were able to score in every inning except for the seventh.
George Mason (33-16, 17-7 A-10) brought the game back to within one run the following inning, not before sophomore center fielder Owen Hull broke the Patriot single season steals record.
Hull, the leadoff hitter, got on first by a hit by pitch. He then stole his second bag of the day during James Quinn-Irons’ at-bat. After Quinn-Irons drew a walk, Hull stole the record-breaking base at third during Jake Butler’s at-bat.
With his 37th stolen base, the Alexandria, Va., native has sole possession of the program’s single season stolen bases record. The previous record was set in 1992 by Lonnie Goldberg.
With Hull on third and junior center fielder James Quinn-Irons on second, Hull scored on a wild pitch during Butler’s at-bat.
Though the Patriots scored early in the inning with nobody out, that would be the only run generated.
The bottom of the third was quick for the Tribe, as they were retired in order. In the top of the fourth, the Patriots scored two runs to take the lead on zero hits in the inning.
After back-to-back walks drawn by graduate students Jonny Wall and Nick Barenz to lead off the frame, they both advanced one base due to a wild pitch during junior right fielder Drew Canody’s at-bat. Canody drove in the game-tying run with an RBI ground out to short, scoring Wall and advancing Barenz to third.
The next Patriot batter, Clyne, also grounded out to short, scoring Barenz. After a Hull flyout to end the inning, the Patriots had taken a 5-4 lead.
The Patriots handed the Tribe another shutdown inning to close out the fourth, and Alberti collected his second RBI of the game with an one run single to left center, scoring Butler from second.
In the top of the sixth with the Patriots leading 6-4, George Mason hit back-to-back triples to once again extend the lead. After the Tribe struck out leadoff hitter Barenz, Canody lined a triple to right center. Following Canody was Clyne, who hit a triple to right center of his own, easily plating the seventh run of the game.
George Mason scored their eighth and final run with the eighth inning when leadoff Patriots Wall and Barenz were both hit by pitch by Tribe reliever Connor Kolarov. After Daniel Lingle replaced Kolarov on the mound, both Patriots advanced one base due to a balk.
With runners on second and third with one out, Clyne grounded out to first, but Wall was able to sprint home to score.
Similar to the top of the inning, William & Mary’s first two hitters got on base due to hit by pitches. After both advanced one base on a wild pitch, Laskofski singled up the middle with a two-run single. Laskofski would later score in the inning with a Henry Jackson RBI single. At the end of the three-run Tribe inning, the Patriots were hanging on to a 8-7 advantage.
The Patriots were retired in order in the top of the ninth, and the Tribe began their last rally. With freshman Michael Bilo taking the mound, he started the inning getting leadoff hitter Owen Wilson to flyout to right. However, William & Mary’s second batter, Ben Parker, drew a walk, and Charlie Iriotakis doubled to left center.
Bilo recorded a crucial second out of the inning, striking out Tribe slugger Christian Rush looking.
Up next was Laskofski, who was intentionally walked in order to load the bases and create a force-out on any infield hit. With the bases loaded and two out, William & Mary’s Holmes ultimately ended the game with a flyout to center field’s Hull.
Bilo recorded his first collegiate save and George Mason pitcher Jake Drumm got the winning decision. Drumm now has four wins on the season and won his first game since March 9 against Towson in Tysons, Va.
The Patriots hit the road again, this time for a three-game Atlantic 10 series at Davidson beginning Friday with the first pitch scheduled for 3 p.m. at Wilson Field.
