FAIRFAX, Va. (March 18, 2026) – Mount St. Mary's baseball rounded out their trip to Northern Virginia with a 9-8 win over George Mason on Wednesday afternoon. With the win, the Mountaineers improve to a record of 10-8 through the first 18 games of the 2026 season.
 
The Patriots jumped out to an early 4-0 lead through the first inning before going down 5-0 after the end of the second inning in Fairfax. The deadlock for the visitors was finally broken in the Mount third as Mike Toth scored off a Ryan McKay ground out. George Mason scored one more time in the fourth before the Mountaineer bats returned.
 
Parker Hildebrand took advantage of a Patriot wild pitch to take home for the second Mount run of the game before a Christian Bauman single up the middle-scored Evan Meier to half the lead. Later in the fifth, Phoenix Williams worked a bases loaded walk to score Alex Mendes, cutting the score to 6-4.
 
George Mason doubled in the fifth, scoring a run to make it 7-4. The scores remained the same for the next three innings until the Mount bats once again came to life. Toth started the rally, scoring Williams off a single to left field followed by Sean Heffernan sacrifice fly to right field which scored Toth to cut the deficit to one. Bauman tied the game up, singling to left field and scoring Hildebrand to the game at 7-7. With scores tied, Alex Mendes sent a single into right field, sending both Bauman and Meier home to take a 9-7 lead heading into the ninth inning.
 
After a shutdown bottom of the eight and quiet top half of the ninth, the JB Manarchuck once again came into relieve from the bullpen. And although a Patriot's sacrifice fly cut the deficit to one run, the Mountaineers held on in the end, earning their first win against George Mason since 2022.
 
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The Mountaineers return to E.T. Straw Family Stadium this weekend, March 20-22, ending their long MAAC home stand against Rider, with first pitch on Friday slated for 3:00 p.m.