Baseball Opens A-10 Play at George Washington

University of Massachusetts Baseball Game Notes
Games 13-15	Massachusetts (4-8) at George Washington (9-11)
Dates \| Times	Friday, March 24 - Sunday, March 26 \| 3 p.m. / 1 p.m. / 12 p.m.
Location \| Weather	Arlington, VA (Tucker Field at Barcroft Park) \| Directions Friday: 58 Degrees, Partly Cloudy, Chance of Rain: 20% Saturday: 75 Degrees, Partly Cloudy, Chance of Rain: 10% Sunday: 60 Degrees, PM Rain, Chance of Rain: 80%
Series History	Massachusetts leads 26-22
Live Statistics	Stat Broadcast - Game 1 \| Game 2 \| Game 3
Social Media	Twitter: @UMassBaseball \| @GWBaseball1
Probable Starters	Massachusetts: RHP Justin Lasko, LHP Brooks Knapek, RHP Mike Geannelis George Washington: RHP Brady Renner, LHP Shane Sweeney, RHP Elliott Raimo

Batting Practice
- The Massachusetts baseball team embarks on its first series against an Atlantic 10 foe beginning on Friday as the Minutemen face George Washington in Arlington, Virginia. The teams open the three-game set with a 3 p.m. contest on Friday, March 24, followed by a 1 p.m. start time on Saturday and wraps ups on Sunday, with a 12 p.m. scheduled start. Game one of the series will represent the 49^th time UMass has met the Colonials. UMass currently leads the school series 26-22.
- Although the clubs did not meet last season, they did face off for a weekend series during the 2015 season. The Minutemen won the first game of the series 6-7, but fell in the second and third games by a score of 3-1 and 8-2, respectively.

Recap in a Minute
-UMass last played on Tuesday, against Holy Cross in Northborough, Mass. The Minutemen allowed two runs in the third, but crawled their way back into the game by scoring one run both the fifth and sixth's innings. In the bottom of the sixth, the Crusaders put up three runs of their own to take a 5-2 lead with three frames to play. In the top of the seventh the Minutemen tied the game at five after scoring three more runs. Unfortunately, Holy Cross got the best of UMass in the eighth scoring 10 runs, all earned, on seven hits, sealing a 15-5 victory.
- Jon Avallone highlighted the offensive production for the Minutemen, homering to center field in the sixth inning (2^nd of season) and doubling to right field to lead off the eighth.
- Ryan Lever started things off for the Minutemen's three-run seventh inning, with his first home run on the year, a solo shot to left field. The next two batters in Mike Geannellis and Cooper Mrowka each drew walks, while Nolan Kessinger was able to advance the runners on a bunt single in the next at bat. Senior co-captain Dylan Morris then drove in two runs on a single to tie the game up at five a piece.
- Sophomore Connor Donahue saw his second start of the season, allowing two earned runs on three hits, while walking three and striking out six in five innings pitched.

Scouting George Washington
- George Washington (9-11) returns home after a midweek contest at UMBC in Baltimore, MD on Tuesday. The Colonials were able to leave with a 4-3 win, in a close-fought game.
- This past weekend George Washington hosted Monmouth for a three-game series. Game one went to the Hawks by a score of 3-1, but the Colonials dominated game two with a 12-0 victory and went on to end the weekend with a 4-0 win.
- Senior Bobby Campbell has appeared in all 20 contests thus far for the Colonials, leading the team with a .347 average at the plate accompanied by three home runs and 16 RBI. Mark Osis and Joey Bartosic are also batting above the .300 mark with averages of .315 and .314, respectively.
- Junior right-handed pitcher Brady Renner (1-3) leads the starting rotation with a 2.74 ERA over 23 innings pitched. Shane Sweeney, Elliott Raimo and Will Kobos each have two wins on the year from the mound.
- The Colonials have not yet found a consistent closer, as three different players have earned a save this year. Kobos has two saves in addition to his two wins, while senior Eddie Muhl has two and freshman Jaret Edwards has one on the season.
- Head coach Gregg Ritchie is now in his 5th year at the helm of the Colonials baseball program, guiding George Washington to 20+ wins in each of the past four seasons. In his first season at the helm of his alma mater, Ritchie was named the Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year after leading the Colonials to a 15-9 record in conference games and to the program's first Atlantic 10 Championship berth since the 2006 season. Two players have been selected into the MLB First-Year Player Draft under his leadership.

Rookie Leading The Charge
- Freshman outfielder/left-handed pitcher Nolan Kessinger was named the Co-Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week on Monday.
- The Northborough, Massachusetts native extended his team-best hitting streak to nine games against Holy Cross on Tuesday. This past weekend during the Bucknell series saw Kessinger record six hits and a pair of RBI, while he added another hit and RBI at Holy Cross.
- This past weekend featured the freshman's single game career-high performances in runs (3) and his high of hits (3) thus far in his young career.
- Kessinger currently leads the Minutemen with a .395 batting average. He is also tied for the team lead in hits with 15 and is second in doubles with four.

Mrowka Off to Hot Start
- Sophomore Cooper Mrowka continues to serve as an integral component in the lineup for the Minutemen, boasting a .366 batting average, starting in all 12 games thus far. Mrowka has knocked in a team leading 11 runs to match his freshman year total of 11 in 35 games. The Cheshire, Connecticut native has nine run scored to his credit already, as well.
- Although his five-game hitting streak was snapped during Saturday's loss against Bucknell, Mrowka had posted 12 hits and 10 RBIs over the previous five contests.

Set in `Stone'
- The winningest head coach in team history, UMass skipper Mike Stone embarks on his 30th season directing the Minutemen baseball program. In the summer of 2016, Stone announced that he would retire from coaching following the 2017 season. During his career in Amherst, Stone has helped UMass to 682 victories with eight Atlantic 10 regular season championships, along with two A-10 postseason titles and two trips to the NCAA Tournament. Nearly 40 of his former players have gone on to play professional baseball.

Nine is Fine
- Throughout the 2017 season, the Minutemen will play in nine different states: North Carolina, Florida, Massachusetts, Virginia, Kentucky, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and New York.

On Deck
- Next Tuesday, the Minutemen will play their first home contest at 3 p.m. against Northeastern at Earl Lorden Field in Amherst, Mass. UMass then heads to Chestnut Hill to face off again Boston College at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, March 29. The squad then heads down to Morehead, Kentucky for a weekend series at Morehead State. Games are scheduled to start at 5 p.m. on Friday, 2 p.m. on Saturday and concludes at 1 p.m. on Sunday.

Follow UMass Baseball on Social Media
- Fans can follow the Minutemen on Twitter @UMassBaseball for up to the minute updates, photos, and other news around the team. In addition, fans who use Facebook can visit Facebook.com/UMassBaseball for the latest with the squad.

Scoreboard

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Players Mentioned

Jon Avallone

Connor Donahue

Mike Geannelis

Nolan Kessinger

Brooks Knapek

Justin Lasko

Ryan Lever

Dylan Morris

Cooper Mrowka

Scoreboard

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