By Cody Norman, Staff Writer
It took freshman pitcher Nick Kendrick just 17 batters and 49 pitches to get through four scoreless innings of work against the Maryland Terrapins in a 3-1 victory for the George Mason University baseball team on Tuesday afternoon.
Kendrick was in a groove early and retired 12 of the first 16 batters he faced before being hit in the hand with a ground ball off the bat of centerfielder Matt Marquis.
Redshirt junior T.J. O’Grady stepped in and sat the Terrapins down in order during two stellar innings of work before handing the ball back to a freshman, this time Anthony Montefusco, who allowed one run in the final three innings to pick up the save.
Head Coach Bill Brown was impressed with the performance out of his freshman starter and praised his effort after the game.
“[Kendrick] is getting better every time he steps out on the mound,” said Brown. “He works hard and he certainly gave us an opportunity to win the game today.”
Mason scored first in the bottom of the second inning when freshman second baseman Chris Cook plated junior catcher Brett Hendricks on a triple down the right field line.
Employing a little bit of small ball, the Patriots added two more runs in the bottom of the sixth to jump out to a 3-0 lead.
Sophomore left fielder Brig Tison began the inning with a single before senior shortstop Ryan Soares was hit by pitch.
Senior third baseman Mark Hill laid down a sacrifice bunt to move the runners to second and third base with one out when junior designated hitter Shane Davis drove Tison home with a single to right field.
Redshirt junior first baseman Dan Palumbo pushed the final run across on a perfectly executed squeeze play.
Maryland plated their first and only run of the afternoon when Dan Gentzler reached second base on a throwing error by Hill and was bunted the rest of the way around the bases in a strange sequence of events.
Montefusco closed the door on the Terrapins in the ninth inning and picked up his second save of the season.
O’Grady earned his first decision of the season as he picked up the victory.
Sitting at 16-9, Brown is happy with the way his team has played thus far this season.
“As long as we continue to pitch the baseball and play good, solid defense, we will be OK,” said Brown. “We’ve done a great job of that so far this season.”
The Patriots will return to action on Tuesday afternoon as they will travel to Farmville, Va. to take on the Longwood Lancers.
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