Rhode Island Lineup
Powell (CF), Figueroa (C), Hess (2B), O'Neil (3B), Corin (LF), Ulliana (DH), McManus (1B), Foley (RF), Heiss (SS), Murphy (P)

George Mason Lineup
Smith (SS), Sturek (CF), Acker (LF), Driscoll (RF), Kelly (1B), Nelin (C), Popatek (3B), Hansen (DH) Aponte (2B), Zombro (P) 

How it Happened
Seventh-seeded George Mason scored in five straight innings en route to a 9-5 upset of second-seeded Rhode Island in the opening round of the Atlantic 10 Championship Wednesday afternoon.

Rhody (30-21) got off to a quick start as Martin Figueroa singled through the right side, setting up Chris Hess' two-run shot, which gave Rhode Island a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first.

George Mason (26-31) cut Rhody's lead in half the following inning, on a solo home run from Greg Popatak, but the Rams pushed it to 3-1 in the bottom of the frame when Jordan Powell looped a two-out single into right field that drove in Brett McManus.

The Patriots tied the score with a pair of runs in the top of the third, using three hits and a walk to piece together the rally. George Mason then took its first lead of the game an inning later when Frank Sturek chopped an infield single to third with runners on the corners, driving in Jonathan Hansen to make it 4-3.

Mike Corin tied the score for Rhody in the bottom of the fourth, drilling a long shot to left field for his 18th home run of the season.

The back-and-forth continued in the top of the fifth, as George Mason put a pair of two-out runs on the board to go up 6-4. The Patriots pushed it to 8-4 in the top of the sixth, thanks to a two-run blast by Brady Acker. After a scoreless seventh and eighth, Tyler Nelin went yard with a ninth-inning solo shot to cap the scoring for Mason.

Corin sent another solo homer out of the park in the bottom of the ninth, but the next three hitters were retired in succession to end the game.

Inside the Box Score

• With the loss, Rhode Island will now need to win five straight games in the next three days in order to defend its 2016 title.
• Redshirt junior Chris Hess hit his 15th career home run in the first inning. It was his sixth home run of the season, making it the second straight season he has hit six long balls.
• Redshirt senior Mike Corin's historic season continued, as he extended his program record for home runs in a season with numbers 18 and 19 on the year. He also singled and now has 50 RBI on the season.
• Senior Martin Figueroa doubled, singled, walked and scored a run. Over his last four games in Atlantic 10 Championship play, Figueroa is 9-for-14 with five walks and 12 runs scored.
• Junior Jordan Powell and sophomore Brett McManus each scored a run for the Rams. Powell also singled, extending his hitting streak to 10 games. He has now reached base in 35 consecutive game and 46 of the 48 games in which he has recorded a plate appearance this season.
• Rhode Island is now 1-3 against George Mason this season, and 16-4 against the rest of the Atlantic 10. 

Up Next
Rhode Island fell to the loser's bracket, where it will face either No. 1 VCU, No. 4 George Washington, or No. 5 Saint Louis in an elimination game Thursday at 9:30 p.m. (Eastern). George Washington and Saint Louis play later tonight, and the winner of that game plays VCU tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. (Eastern).