The Patriots play their final series of the regular season when they travel to face the first-place Davidson Wildcats for three games beginning Thursday at Wilson Field in Davidson, N.C.
Last time out, the Patriots (21-29, 12-9 A-10) completed a three-game sweep over George Washington with a 4-0 win on Sunday at Spuhler Field.
Sophomore starter Ryan Peterson was named A-10 Pitcher of the Week. He took a no-hitter into the sixth inning and tossed a complete-game three-hitter against the Colonials. Peterson struck out a season-high eight batters in the game.
The Patriots finished the season with a 13-12 record at home. The Patriots are 7-17 on the road and 1-0 in games played at a neutral site this season.
In the last meeting between Mason and Davidson, the Wildcats and Patriots split a four-game series May 14-16, 2021 at Wilson Field. Mason won the first game of the series, 5-3, Davidson swept a Saturday doubleheader by final scores of 8-7 and 5-4, and the Patriots won the finale, 10-4.
The Patriots are 5-6 all-time against the Wildcats, with five of the 11 games decided by one run. The 11 games are the fewest the Patriots have played against any Atlantic 10 opponent since joining the league in 2014.
Each of the last seven meetings between the two teams have been played at Wilson Field in Davidson, with the Patriots 3-4 in those contests.
Davidson has made only one trip to Fairfax, with the first meeting between the two teams May 1-3, 2015 at Spuhler Field. The Patriots took two-of-three games in the series.
The Patriots rank 14th in the nation in stolen bases (100) and are one of only 16 teams with at least 100 on the season. Defensively, Mason is tied for fourth in Division I with 50 double plays turned, only behind Baylor (54), New Mexico (54) and New Orleans (53).
Freshman outfielder Brett Ahalt is batting .340 (49-for-144) with 10 doubles, one triple, two home runs, 31 RBI and 33 runs scored in 41 games with 39 starts. He leads the team in average (.340), is tied for second in RBI (31) and stolen bases (14), third in hits (49) and he is fourth in runs scored (33). His 14 stolen bases are fourth-most in the conference.
Junior INF/OF South Trimble is hitting .324 (47-for-145) with eight doubles, two triples, 21 RBI and 37 runs scored in 37 starts. He leads the A-10 in stolen bases (25) and attempts (28). Among team leaders, he is tied for second in runs scored (37), is second in average (.324) and he is fourth in hits (47). Trimble is tied for 27th in the nation in stolen bases.
Sophomore outfielder Jordan Smith has a .323 average (31-for-96) with five doubles, one triple, one home run, 12 RBI and 17 runs scored in 25 games with 24 starts. He is tied for third on the team in stolen bases (13), ranks third in batting average (.323) and he is eighth in hits (31).
Junior infielder Brett Stallings is batting .296 (58-for-196) with eight doubles, one home run, 32 RBI and 37 runs scored in 50 starts. He leads the club in hits (58), is tied for first in RBI (32), and is tied for second in both runs scored (37) and stolen bases (14).
Freshman catcher Connor Dykstra is hitting .293 (41-for-137) with seven doubles, two triples, six home runs, 32 RBI and 38 runs scored in 46 games with 45 starts. He leads the team in home runs (6), runs scored (38) and hit by pitch (17), is tied for first in RBI (32) and he is sixth in hits (43).
The Patriots have a team batting average of .279 through 50 games.
On the mound, senior Jared Lyons (6-5, 5.82) leads the club in innings pitched (72.2) and starts (11), and he is tied for first in strikeouts (57) in 16 appearances. Among A-10 leaders, he ranks fourth in innings, is tied for the fourth-most wins and is 12th in strikeouts.
Graduate student Danny Hosley (3-3, 4.17) is second on the club in strikeouts (53), is tied for second in both wins (3) and saves (2) and he is fourth in innings pitched (45.1) in 11 appearances with five starts.
Sophomore Ryan Peterson (3-2, 4.04) is second in innings pitched (64.2), tied for second in wins (3) and third in strikeouts (39) in 14 appearances with nine starts. Among A-10 leaders, he ranks 13th in innings pitched.
Freshman Chad Gartland (2-1, 3.47) is tied for first on the club in strikeouts (57), tied for second in saves (2) and ranks third in innings pitched (59.2) in 13 appearances with eight starts. Among A-10 leaders, he is 13th in strikeouts and 17th in innings pitched.
Senior Matthew Henson (1-1, 7.55) leads the team in appearances (25) and he is seventh in innings pitched (31.0), while classmate Mason Posey (2-3, 7.83) leads the team in saves (3) and is second on the club in appearances (20) with three starts.
ABOUT THE PATRIOTS
Mason has 10 returners and 25 newcomers on the roster this season under Bill Brown, who enters his 41st year as the head coach of the Patriots.
The Mason senior class includes pitchers Matthew Henson, Jared Lyons, Hugh O'Hara and Mason Posey, along with infielders Daniel Brooks and Scott Morgan.
The junior class includes outfielder Craig Miles, Jr., infielder Brett Stallings, and infielder/outfielder South Trimble. Sophomore outfielder Jordan Smith returns for his second season with the Green and Gold.
The Patriots added 25 new players, with 18 freshman, three sophomores and four graduate students.
Rookie pitchers who joined the Patriots are Jackson Baird (RHP), Diego Barrett (RHP), Dylan Crowley (LHP), Konner Eaton (LHP), Chad Gartland, (RHP), Jalen Grant (LHP), Danny Hosley (INF/RHP), Thomas Little (LHP), Christian Mracna (RHP), Andrew Schaeb (LHP), Ben Shields (LHP) and Britt Yount (RHP).
New position players include Brett Ahalt (INF/OF), Tyler Cotten (C/INF), Connor Dykstra (C), Yogie Hartigan (OF), Alex Knapp (UTL), Carsen Pracht (INF) and Logan Scully (C).
The Patriots bring on sophomores Christian Mracna (RHP), Ryan Peterson (LHP), and Stephen Restuccio (RHP).
The Patriots also added four graduate student transfers, Danny Hosley (INF/RHP), Chris Ruckdeschel (RHP), Ben Shields (LHP) and Kamron Smith (OF/INF).
Mason was scheduled to play 56 games, including 24 against Atlantic 10 Conference rivals, and four opponents that made a NCAA Regional appearance last season.
Mason went 10-13 at home in 2021, including a mark of 7-9 against A-10 opponents.
The Patriots played four home-and-home series during the 2022 season, taking on James Madison, Longwood, Maryland and William & Mary for single games at home and on the road.
Mason played eight league series, four at home and four on the road.
Home series against A-10 foes included three-game weekend sets against VCU (April 1-3), Saint Louis (April 15-17), Fordham (April 22-24) and George Washington (May 13-15).
The Patriots made visits to Saint Joseph's (April 8-10), Massachusetts (April 29-May 1), Richmond (May 6-8) and conclude the regular season at Davidson (May 19-21).
SCOUTING DAVIDSON
Davidson has an overall record of 40-10 including a mark of 18-3 against Atlantic 10 Conference opponents. The Wildcats are 26-6 at home and 13-5 on the road this season.
The Wildcats had won nine straight games before falling to Duke, 11-2, on Tuesday in Durham, N.C. Davidson has outscored their opponents by a combined score of 101-37 over the last 10 games, including a 28-0 win over Massachusetts May 7 at Wilson Field.
Last time out, Davidson swept a three-game series against Saint Joseph's (May 12-14) by final scores of 6-2, 6-0 and 8-7.
The Wildcats have a record of 18-3 against conference opponents, including a mark of 8-1 at home. Davidson swept three-game sets from Richmond (April 1-3) and UMass (May 6-8) and took two-of-three from Rhode Island (April 22-23) at Wilson Field.
Sophomore catcher Michael Carico is batting .417 (73-for-175) with 19 doubles, one triple, 18 home runs, 52 RBI and 63 runs scored in 48 starts. He leads the A-10 in batting average (.417), home runs (18) and runs scored (63), is second in the league in hits (75) and sixth in RBI (57).
Sophomore OF/INF Ryan Wilson is hitting .399 (71-for-178) with 18 doubles, seven home runs, 55 RBI and 58 runs scored in 49 starts. He is second in the league in RBI (55), and third in batting average (.408), hits (71) and runs scored (58).
Senior outfielder Trevor Candelaria has a .349 average (73-for-209) with 18 doubles, two triples, nine home runs, 46 RBI and 73 runs scored. He ranks second in the A-10 in hits (73), seventh in doubles (18) and 12th in home runs (9).
The Wildcats are second in the conference with a team batting average of .303 through 50 games.
On the mound, senior Blake Hely (9-0, 2.64) leads the A-10 in ERA (2.64), is tied for first in wins (9) and he ranks second in innings pitched (75.0) and strikeouts (90).
Freshman Ryan Feczko (9-0, 3.02) is tied for the league lead in wins (9), is third in ERA (3.02) and 14th in innings pitched (62.2).
Junior Nolan Devos (7-2, 2.66) is second in the conference in ERA (2.66), is fourth in wins (7) and ninth in innings pitched (67.2).
Senior Gabe Levy (2-0, 2.70) leads the Wildcats in saves (8) and is tied for tops of the club in appearances (20). Junior Bennett Flynn (3-1, 1.06) is second on the team in saves (5) and tied for first on the team in appearances (20).
Davidson leads the A-10 with a team ERA of 3.55 through 50 games.
PROBABLE STARTERS
Thursday
Mason: RHP Chad Gartland (2-1, 3.47)
Davidson: TBD
Friday
Mason: LHP Ben Shields (2-2, 4.89)
Davidson: TBD
Saturday
Mason: LHP Ryan Peterson (3-2, 4.04)
Davidson: TBD
STRIKE ZONE
The Patriots rank 14th in the nation with 100 stolen bases and Mason is one of only 16 teams with at least 100 swipes on the season. Texas Southern leads Division I with 207 stolen bases this season. Defensively, Mason is tied for fourth in Division I with 50 double plays turned, only behind Baylor (54), New Mexico (54) and New Orleans (53).
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