Home Tyler Zombro gets seventh win: George Mason tops LaSalle
Sports News

Tyler Zombro gets seventh win: George Mason tops LaSalle

george-mason2Tyler Zombro pitched eight of nine innings for his seventh win of the year as the George Mason baseball team (22-25-1) came away with an 8-3 victory over La Salle (22-26-1) in the series finale on Sunday.

The win more importantly gives Mason an 11-10 record in the Atlantic 10 Conference standings and the tiebreaker over La Salle. The Explorers are now 10-11 in the conference.

The Patriots scored seven of their eight runs in the first three innings of the ballgame, jumping out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first. Luke Willis began the game with a ground ball to second base that was thrown away on its way to first, putting him on second. A ground ball moved him to third and Kent Blackstone drew a walk, setting up Brady Acker’s two-RBI triple down the right field line. The throw to third from the cutoff man sailed wide, allowing Acker to score on the play for the 3-0 lead.

Willis was also involved with the scoring in the second inning, doubling home Michael Smith with one out after he was hit by a pitch. The RBI was Willis’ 28th of the season and extended his hit streak to 26 games, one short of tying the program record.

La Salle put a run back on the board in the bottom of the second however Mason responded with three in the top of the third. Blackstone doubled down the right field line and Tyler Nelin singled into center field immediately after in the first two at bats of the inning for the 5-1 lead. Two batters later Ray Totosmashed his second homerun of the season over the left field fence for the 7-1 advantage.

Zombro allowed one run to score in each of the third and fourth innings but the scoring would stop there for the Explorers. He ended his day with eight hits allowed and also four strikeouts with zero walks while forcing 16 groundouts on the bump. The Patriots did not walk any batters in the ballgame.

Mason tacked on one more run once Zombro exited the game when Derek Evans and Michael Smithteamed up for a single and double with two outs in the top of the eighth. Willis singled after Smith, who tried to score from second on the play but was thrown out at home.

Joe Williams struck out the first two batters of the ninth inning and forced the final one to ground out to third for the last out. In the top of the ninth Brandon Gum lined a single through the left side in his final plate appearance, prolonging his hit streak to 25 games with the 10th of 11 hits for Mason. La Salle starting pitcher Mark Williams was chased after Toto’s homerun, allowing five earned runs in two-and-one-third innings.

The Patriots play their final series of the regular season from Thursday to Saturday this coming weekend against UMass at Spuhler Field.

Contributors

Contributors

Have a guest column, letter to the editor, story idea or a news tip? Email editor Chris Graham at [email protected]. Subscribe to AFP podcasts on Apple PodcastsSpotifyPandora and YouTube.

Latest News

How to Bet On the Daytona 500 in California
Sports

How to Bet On the Daytona 500 in California

ron sanchez uva basketball vt
Basketball, Sports

The tweak UVA Basketball coach Ron Sanchez would need if he were to get the job full time

One lesson Ron Sanchez could take with him into next year, if he, indeed, ends up getting the UVA Basketball job on a full-time basis after the season, would be, succession planning.

george mason
Basketball, Sports

George Mason rallies, beats Saint Joseph’s, to stay atop A-10 standings

George Mason took the lead for good on a Brayden O’Connor bucket with 1:18 to go, then got a couple of stops on defense to complete the 58-57 win over Saint Joseph’s, to maintain the lead in the A-10.

isaac mckneely uva basketball
Basketball, Sports

Five Observations: UVA Basketball gets more good offense in road win

Daytona 500 Odds, Picks, & How To Bet
NASCAR

Daytona 500 Odds, Picks, & How To Bet

uva basketball
Basketball, Sports

Live Coverage: UVA Basketball grits out 73-70 win at Virginia Tech

How To Bet On The Daytona 500 in Florida
Sports News

How To Bet On The Daytona 500 in Florida