Griffs drop 2 of 3 to George Mason

RHP Devon Stewart (Maple Ridge, BC) pitched 7 1/3 innings as the Canisius Griffins defeated the George Mason Patriots for the first time in school history. 

The Canisius Griffins rebounded from a 7-4 loss at the hands of the George Mason Patriots Saturday, as right-hander Devon Stewart (Maple Ridge, BC) and outfielder Brett Siddall (Windsor, Ont.) contributed to an 8-2 win in Fairfax, Va.

This is the first time in the series history that Canisius had bested the Patriots.

The Griffs combined timely hitting and strong pitching to record the victory, as Stewart tossed a strong 7 1/3 innings, and allowed six hits and two earned runs, as he improved to 4-5. Siddall led the hitting as he went an effyicient 3-for-4 along with a pair of RBIs to spark the offense.

The Griffs got the first lead of the game in the top of the fourth as Nick Capitano (Bolton, Ont.) drove in a pair, thanks to a single to right field. The first-year catcher was thrown out at second but still got Canisius on the board.

George Mason got one back in the bottom of the fifth, but Siddall started the top of the sixth with a bang, as he launched a homer run to right center to make it 3-1.

The Griffs recorded runs in the next three innings, as Jake Lumley (Windsor, Ont.), Connor Panas (Toronto, Ont.) and Siddall recorded RBI to help close out the win.

In the opener … George Mason scored six runs in the first three innings and held off Canisius 7-4.

Josh Shepley (Tecumseh, Ont.) came on in relief and threw 3 1/3 innings and yielded just three hits and one earned run.

Riley Coverdale (Puslinch, Ont.) was the first man out of the bullpen for George Mason working a scoreless inning allowing two runs — one earned. Coverdale loaded the bases thanks to an error, a walk and hit batsman. With the bases loaded, Coverdale exacerbated the situation as he walked in a run,

The Griffs managed nine hits on the day as Siddall’s three hit performance led the squad. Following the two-run top of the first, the Griffs fought back. Siddall got the inning started with a leadoff double, while Panas singled up the middle to move Siddall over to third. An error allowed Siddall to score for the only run of the inning.

In the finale … Canisius bats went quiet in the rubber match against George Mason losing 8-3. The Griffs managed seven hits and three runs.

With the loss Canisius fell to 18-22, while George Mason improved to 16-20-1.

Freshman hurler, J.P. Stevenson (Hunter River, PEI) got off to a good start but ran into trouble in the fifth inning, as he pitched 4 1/3 frames and allowed five hits and five runs — four earned — to drop to 4-3. Zachary Sloan(Brampton, Ont.) pitched two innings allowing one unearned run.

Stevenson worked into trouble following a leadoff fly out, as a single, fielder’s choice error, and a walk, loaded the bases. A walk by Stevenson gave the Patriots the first run of the inning before head coach Mike McRae called for the bullpen. A single through the left side by drove in a run, followed by a two RBI double. In all, the Patriots notched six runs on four hits and one error to stake claim to a 7-0 lead.

The Griffs got on the board in the top of the sixth, as Cyrus Senior (Kirkland, Que.) and Siddall scored thanks to a pair of errors by George Mason.

Lumley extended his hitting streak to eight thanks to a single in the third inning.

The Griffs get ready for a busy week as the squad battles Buffalo in another mid-week match up on Tuesday, followed by Akron on Wednesday. Both of those games are road contests. During the weekend Canisius will resume MAAC play as the squad heads to Monmouth on Saturday and Sunday.