Mason Enters Spring with High Hopes

By Broadside Sports Editor Brian Chan

Unlike Barry Bonds, George Mason University’s home run king returns for his final season. Senior outfielder Scott Krieger, Mason’s all-time leader in home runs, enters the 2009 season in range of breaking several more school records, as the team was selected to finish second in the Colonial Athletic Association in the preseason polls.

After starting off the 2008 campaign with four losses, the Patriots were still below .500 until mid-April.

“Since we started off training indoors, we were at a disadvantage once we had difficulty adjusting to playing outdoors. Once we came together, we gelled as a team. With a great defense to go along with our very good offense, we started putting together wins,” said Krieger.

Mason completed the season with a 30-25 record while finishing third in the conference with an 18-10 record. The team’s late season rally included a four-game sweep over the College of William & Mary Tribe. But Mason’s run was ended in an 18-14 loss to the James Madison University Dukes, the eventual CAA champion. Krieger’s three home runs and the 9-3 lead had not been enough to stop the Dukes’ rally.

“Unfortunately, losing that last game after a great performance was bittersweet,” said Krieger.

Krieger, a first-team ABCA All-East Region player, batted .381 and slugged a team-high .751. He hit 21 home runs in 2008, the most ever by a Mason player in a season. His 49 career home runs are also most all-time at Mason. In last season’s tournament, Krieger belted five home runs and drove in 14 RBIs. As a sophomore, he matched Kevin Burke’s 20 home runs, a record that stood for 22 years. As Krieger looks to add more to his home run total, he also looks to displace previous owners of other school records.

Krieger’s Ruthian power earned him the honors of CAA Preseason Player of the Year and All-CAA Baseball Team.

The Preseason All-CAA Baseball Team also includes three other Mason players: catcher Chris Henderson, first baseman Justin Bour and second baseman Ryan Soares. Henderson batted .339 with a .403 OBP and led the team with 20 doubles last season. Bour, Mason’s left-handed power-hitter, batted a team-high .398 with 15 home runs and led Mason with 65 RBIs. Bour improved across the board after posting 35 more hits and walked 22 more times between his freshman and sophomore season.

“My goals for this season are to improve my batting average, RBI total, and OBP, and also give us more opportunities on base,” said Bour.

Soares brings back his stellar defensive play as well as some pop with the bat.

“With us losing only one player from last season and having a couple of players returning [from injury], we are more experienced as a team, especially with our pitching,” said Bour.

Brecko, a groundball pitcher, posted a 7-2 record with a 3.94 ERA and four saves in 20 appearances and was named to the second-team ABCA All-East Region. In 61-2/3 innings, he held opposing batters to a CAA-leading .237 average. Brecko was lights out from Apr. 6 to May 21, going 4-0 with a 1.54 ERA and a .203 opponent's batting average.

After a phenomenal 2007, reliever Jordan Flasher suffered a season-ending elbow injury after his first appearance. He was selected by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 39th round of the 2008 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft. Flasher will look to rebound and repeat his 2007 season after setting a single-season school record with 14 saves.

Krieger and Bour, one of the CAA’s most prominent power-hitting tandems, will look to provide Mason with their first conference title since 1992. Their success is driven by a healthy and competitive atmosphere. Krieger was named to the Louisville Slugger Preseason All-American First Team, while Bour earned Third Team honors.

The Dukes, who eliminated Mason in the CAA tournament last season, will enter the 2009 season as the favorite to win the conference again. They earned six first-place votes and 95 points in the preseason poll against Mason’s 91 points.
With baseball season just around the corner, Mason is ready to take the field.