George Mason scored six runs in the first three innings and held off the Canisius Baseball, 7-4, in Fairfax, Va., this afternoon. With the loss the Griffs dropped to 17-21, while George Mason improved to 15-19-1.

The first inning woes continued for the Blue and Gold, as Alex Godzak and the Canisius defense struggled to get out of the bottom of the first as the squad allowed four hits and two runs.

Godzak didn't fair much better the rest of his outing as he pitched 3.0 innings, allowed 11 hits, and six earned runs, as he fell to 4-3 on the year. Josh Shepley came on in relief and threw 3.1 innings and yielded just three hits and one earned run. Tyler Smith finished up the game for the Griffs and pitched 1.2 innings, allowed two hits and shut the door the rest of the way.

Jake Kalish got the start for George Mason and he improved to 4-3 overall with a 5.0 inning effort, where he allowed seven hits and two runs, one of which was earned. The trio of Riley Coverdale, Joe Williams and Tyler Tobin combined for four innings and allowed two hits and two earned runs, one earned.

The Griffs did manage nine hits on the day as Brett Siddall's three hit performance led the squad. Alex O'Donnell, Jesse Puscheck and Jack Massa had the only RBI for the day for the Blue and Gold, as each one recorded one apiece.

Kent Blackstone had the best day for George Mason as he went 2-of-5 and notched three RBI. Both Brandon Gum and Luke Willis tallied three hits apiece.

Following the two-run top of the first, the Griffs fought back. Siddall got the inning started with a leadoff double, while Connor Panas singled up the middle to move Siddall over to third. An error by Kalish allowed Massa to reach, and brought Siddall home for the only run of the inning.

George Mason responded quickly as the squad scored four runs between the bottom of the second and third. The Griffs got one back in the fourth, but did the most damage of the day in the top of the sixth.

Coverdale loaded the bases thanks to an error, a walk and hit batsman. With the bases juiced, Coverdale exacerbated the situation as he walked in a run, giving O'Donnell the free pass. Puscheck came on next and belted a sacrifice fly to left field, which drove in Anthony Massicci. Ryan Stekl ended the inning with a ground out as the Griffs narrowed the gap, 6-4.

George Mason added one more in the seventh before the squad closed out the game with a 7-4 victory.

The Griffs will have their chance at revenge tomorrow when it plays game two of the three game series. Game time tomorrow is slated for 2 p.m.

Game Notes:
George Mason continued to lead the all-time series 5-0 … This is the fourth time the Griffs have lost in Fairfax, Va., with the last loss coming in 2004 … Canisius continued its poor first-inning trend, as the Griffs are now 5-12 when the team allows the opponent to score first … Likewise the Griffs have allowed 44 runs in the first inning, which is the most of any inning this season.