For Immediate Release
April 13, 2010

BOX SCORE

FAIRFAX, Va. -- Longwood University dropped a 5-4 baseball decision on the road at George Mason University of the Colonial Athletic Association Tuesday afternoon in Fairfax. The Lancers (17-14) had their recent four-game winning streak stopped by the Patriots (19-11) while led by junior Brant Jones/Richmond (Monacan) with three hits. Longwood will play again on Wednesday, April 14, at Radford University of the Big South Conference in Radford beginning at 3 p.m..

Longwood scored two runs in the second for an early 2-0 advantage before George Mason responded with three runs in the second to lead 3-2. The Lancers scored two more runs in the third to lead 4-3 and it remained so until the seventh inning when the Patriots scored two runs to take a 5-4 lead that stood. It was a much different result from last month in Farmville when GMU had taken a 17-5 road win at LU on March 16.

In the second, sophomore Robby Newman/Virginia Beach (Salem) (2-4, RBI) led-off with an opposite field single to right, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by senior David Smiy Jr./Chesterfield (Matoaca) (0-2), and later scored on a two-out, opposite field triple to right from Robbie Bailey/Mechanicsville (Hanover) (2-4, RBI). Bailey scored on a two-out infield single by Jones (3-5, RBI). In the third, senior Phil Cerreto/Midlothian (Midlothian) (2-4, RBI) led-off with an opposite field solo home run to right, and with two outs, Newman followed with a solo home run to center. It was a team-leading ninth homer this season for Cerreto, and the sixth homer this spring by Newman. Senior Scott Kimble/Spotsylvania (Spotsylvania) (2-4) added two hits as well for Longwood.

George Mason scored its three runs in the second on a pair of RBI singles by Dan Palumbo (3-4, RBI) and Christopher Cook (2-3, RBI) along with a sacrifice bunt on a squeeze play by Nick Allen (0-2, RBI) that scored Anthony Montefusco (1-4). In the seventh, the Patriots added their decisive runs on sacrifice flies from Ryan Soares (0-3, RBI) and Mark Hill (1-3, RBI).

Sophomore Matt Gwaltney/Chesterfield (Matoaca) (0-3) took the pitching loss for the Lancers while making his first collegiate start, allowing 10 hits and five runs, all earned, with three strikeouts and one walk over a career-high 7.0 innings. Freshman Kyler Morgan/Lancaster, Pa. (Lampeter-Strasburg) tossed the final 1.0 scoreless inning, yielding no hits with one strikeout and no walks.

Jack Zeltner (1-1) had the mound win for Mason with 2.0 shutout innings of relief, scattering two hits with no strikeouts and no walks. Montefusco (3) earned the save with the final 2.0 scoreless innings, allowing just one hit with one strikeout and no walks as well.

Cerreto [.463, 9 HR, 49 RBI] and Kimble [.398, 2 HR, 12 RBI] each extended their respective current hitting streaks to 11 games, while senior Casey Havers/Thorofare, N.J. (West Deptford) (1-5) [.369, 1 HR, 24 RBI] extended his current hitting streak to 10 games, and Jones [.339, 2 HR, 18 RBI] has a current six-game streak.