Box Score (PDF)

FAIRFAX, Va. – Junior Ellis Bitar hit a two-run double, senior Cole Rutherford had a pair of RBI singles and junior Ryan Krainz delivered three hits from the 9 hole to lead the baseball team to a 7-3 victory Friday against George Mason at Spuhler Field.
 
The Big Red (3-1) took the lead in the first inning, then pulled away each time George Mason (5-9) got back in the game. Senior Tim Willittes earned the victory by pitching into the sixth inning and yielding two earned runs. Mason pushed across an unearned run to make the score 4-3 and chase Willittes with the tying run on third, but senior Peter Lannoo came out of the bullpen the induce the final out and work a quiet final three innings and record the save. Five of his 10 outs came via strikeout.
 
In the meantime, Cornell bats were providing some insurance. Sophomore Mitch Blackstone led off the top of the eighth with a base hit, then came around to score on senior Frankie Padulo's triple to left. Krainz followed with his third hit of the day, driving in Padulo to give Cornell a 6-3 lead. Senior Tommy Wagner then scored after a leadoff walk and junior Dale Wickham's RBI double in the ninth to further pad the lead. Wickham, the reigning Ivy League Player of the Week, now has hits in each of the Big Red's first four games.
 
For the third time in those four games, freshman Kaleb Lepper led off the game by reaching base and eventually scoring — this time on Rutherford's single to left. Cornell held the lead behind Willittes until Mason tied the game in the fourth, but the Big Red immediately answered with three runs in the fifth. Krainz doubled, Lepper reached on an error and both scored on Bitar's double to right. Rutherford then brought Bitar home with a two-out single up the middle.
 
The series continues at 2 p.m. Saturday.