By Dave Diamond
George Mason centerfielder Robby Jacobsen went 3-for-4 with three RBI to lead the Patriots to a three-game sweep of the Pride baseball team on Sunday, 5-3. The weekend brought tremendous disappointment to the ball club, which was flying high after a sweep of James Madison last week.
It was a three-run fifth inning that finished the Pride off this time, because of wild pitching and clutch hitting by Mason. While Pride starting pitcher Pat Rogers did not technically walk a batter in his five innings of work, he put himself in trouble by hitting Mason’s Tyler Youngs with one out. Then after Youngs was sacrificed to second, hit Spencer Wiggins with a pitch. Jacobsen made Rogers pay by smacking a two-run double to left center, scoring both runs.
Jacobsen would score later in the inning on a Matt York single up the middle to break a 3-3 tie, allowing the Patriots to retake a lead they would not relinquish.
Indeed Mason struck first in the game when they got a leadoff double from Scott Krieger, who scored on a Jason Bour double. Hofstra came back to take the lead in the fourth inning with some small-ball. Sophomore designated hitter Matt Kougasian led off with a walk, and a single by Ricky Caputo put runners on first and second. The two advanced on a ground out by senior catcher Steve Oliveri, setting up Michael Walsh’s fine execution of a squeeze bunt to score Kougasian. The Pride took a 2-1 lead when Caputo raced home on a wild pitch.
The Pride padded their lead in the top of the fifth inning when Kougasian managed to squeak a ball through the middle with two outs to drive in freshman Nick Panzarella to make it 3-1 before Jacobsen spoiled the Pride’s party in the bottom of the inning.
In the seventh, Jacobsen put the game away with a run-scoring double down the leftfield line. Pride closer Jeff Denlea came on to close out the inning with no further damage, but enough had been done to give the Patriots a 5-3 win and a series sweep, as the Pride offense could not muster anything more.
“We left some runners on base and had a hard time getting in runs all weekend,” freshman Nick Panzarella said. “Things just didn’t work out in our favor.”
Rogers took the loss, but the failed weekend was a team effort. The Pride knew it had a chance to bury a contending team in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) and increase its chances at possible playoff run. But now, the Pride (8-16 CAA) are in poor shape to stay with the cluster of teams vying for that last playoff spot.
“We were all just surprised about the way we were playing,” said Panzarella. “We knew that this was an important series for us so maybe we were just playing a little shaky. We really didn’t know what was going on, that’s what happens in baseball. One day you feel like you can beat anyone and the next nothing goes right.”